Having used online platforms in the past to meet people, I’m no stranger to the many apps and websites designed to put people in touch with each other. I recently came across LuckyCrush, a new type of random video chat, which allows people to have video chat calls with random opposite-sex partners worldwide, either on their desktop or mobile.
The concept seems to differ from other platforms, which are usually aimed at connecting couples in the hope of dating or a relationship. LuckyCrush is purely to flirt and chat with strangers, while remaining totally anonymous as you don’t share any personal information and are free not to show your face during chats.
The process of joining LuckyCrush was straightforward and simple. During the registration process I was required to state whether I was male or female. This is to pair up males to females and vice versa, as the site is designed for straight people. Once the registration was
complete, I was able to then access the webcam and see the guys waiting at the other end.
The chat can last a few minutes or a few hours, but the website allows you to press « Next » to stop the chat at any time, which automatically connects you to another random partner.
This was really reminiscent of a site I used to use called Chatroulette, which had a very similar concept. The ‘randomness’ associated with LuckyCrush is very similar, as you don’t need to take part in choosing who you speak to. The LuckyCrush does it for you and assigns a random chat with girls or boys, depending on your sex.
One question I had throughout the process was why it only matches men with women and women with men. Why are there no options for LGBTs?
At the moment, the site is optimized for straight people and regulates registrations to keep 50% of males and 50% of females. The goal is to maximize the chances for both random partners to be interested in chatting to each other while keeping an approximately equal number of male and female members, so that nobody waits for too long before getting matched with a partner.
This is a fair question, and one that I have often pondered about. It seems now more than ever, especially during COVID and the lockdown situation, that many people might crave some company. Whether to flirt, talk platonically or just meet random strangers, it’s going to become increasingly difficult to do that in the real world as we maintain social distance and restaurants, cafes and other general meet up places stay closed.
LuckyCrush has accumulated over 1 million members spanning 100+ countries since 2019, so it’s ideal for chatting to people outside your home country if that’s what you’re looking for. The random choosing means you won’t have a choice anyway, but that added to the excitement as you could be paired with someone you’d never normally pick out for yourself.
Additionally, the number of members means that there’s always the opportunity to be connected with someone and you’re guaranteed to meet a mix of people using the site.
As mentioned earlier, you are totally anonymous, which makes the experience more comfortable. The only thing which is displayed is your username, which you can choose. The fact that no-one needs to know your personal details made the experience safe, so as long as you don’t share personal details yourself, you’re free to chat away without any repercussions.
All in all, I found the site easy to navigate and use. From a user aspect it was simple and quick, from the registration to the actual random video chat. For virtual flirting, there’s definitely the possibility to meet hot and interesting people with no strings attached.
