UNO & Friends: The classic card game gets the 'With Friends' treatment

If you're a fan of the classic card game UNO, then you might have wished for a more social digital version for a while now.

Gameloft, makers of popular MMOs, casual and action games for the mobile market, have teamed up with toy giant Mattel to bring you UNO & Friends for Facebook, iOS and Android. This may be the multiplayer version of UNO you have always wanted: a cross-platform game you can play with up to three friends, in real time.

Ironically, the word UNO has become associated with family gatherings where certain relatives get cranky after they're hit with one too many Draw Four cards. Or, if you're like me, you only see them once or twice a year and really miss those table-flipping card games during the holidays.

In addition to playing family and friends whenever, and from wherever, the game will allow you to use voice and text chat to taunt them from hundreds of miles away. "As our goal is to revolutionize the way people play UNO this new game and its new social features will be at the heart of UNO & Friends." says Gonzague de Vallois, Senior Vice President of Publishing at Gameloft.

With the popularity of Zynga's 'With Friends' games, e.g. Words with Friends and Matching with Friends, it's hard to imagine that a similar treatment of this card gaming staple will fail to be an instant hit. Keep an eye out for the release later this year, with 3DS and PlayStation Vita versions arriving in 2013.