Google's new emoji reactions mark an escalation of its catty messaging war with Apple. Google tells (Opens in a new window) The Verge that if Apple wants to change how these reactions appear in its app, that's up to Apple. Google added a feature to Messages earlier this year that automatically strips those superfluous messages and appends the emoji to the original message. That's a pain Android users with iPhone friends know all too well when iMessage folks react to a green bubble. So, those who aren't using RCS (like iPhone users) will get the dreaded 'X reacted to Y with Z' pings. The Messages app will let you react to any message with an emoji, even if it's not an RCS chat. Google has added one more feature that appears aimed at giving Apple a taste of its own medicine. Should someone end a YouTube video, the updated Messages app can also play those in-line. The app will also recommend adding a star to messages that it thinks are important enough to refer back to later.

The new threaded replies will let you reply to specific messages without disrupting the flow of conversation, and you can set a reminder for specific messages as well. Most of the new Messages features require you to use RCS, which supports numerous enhancements over SMS like longer messages, read receipts, and high-resolution media. Google implemented RCS itself in Messages, which is the default messaging app on most Android phones. Initially, Google hoped carriers would implement RCS, but unsurprisingly, they were well on their way to making it a mess of walled gardens. After Google took the 'L' on Allo, it began focusing on RCS (Rich Communication Services) as an alternative to SMS. The company has, at times, had four or five different messaging platforms, one or two of which are killed off every year. It would be an understatement to say that Google's approach to messaging has been disjointed.

Even if you're not, Messages will let you react to all messages with an emoji, but that's probably more about annoying iPhone users than anything else. Those chatting with Google's app will be able to reply in-line to messages, set reminders, star messages, and more. Google has announced a raft of updates to its Messages app for Android (Opens in a new window).

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