Fed up of losing out on iOS exclusive apps, Google have now announced new features for Play Games to encourage more titles to be developed for Android.
It’s possibly one of the most frustrating things that Google has to deal with on a day to day basis. They have the biggest search engine in the world, are a driving force in the tech industry and just recently, their open source software, Android, successfully surpassed the ‘1 billion devices’ milestone, a huge achievement for any company, even one that’s as big as Google. Yet, despite their clear weight in the mobile sector, Google just can’t seem to shake off the inarguable weight that the Apple brand name carries, with many mobile app developers choosing to bring their games to iOS before they bring them to Android, often seeing those who use devices that run the latter miss out on some great games. However, with new features being added to their Play Games service, Google are set to change that.
The decision to announce the new Play Games features comes right before Google’s presentation at GDC (Game Developers Conference) in San Francisco, an East Coast gathering of tech companies, developers and the media from all over the world to both encourage new companies to work with them, show off their wares and cover all of the big news (respectively), in which the search giant are reportedly set to make a huge play for developer interested. In other words, Google want those devs to work with them and they’re showing it in a big way.
Amongst the pre-GDC updates to Play Games, is something called ‘Game Gifts’ a brand new feature that is thought to make Android games a more social experience, allowing players to gift their friends with items and bonuses. This can be done by searching for a profile or by finding a friend’s Google Plus account and so it will provide a valuable bump to the numbers of Google’s social media service as well as one for their bottom line. Too, a more social gaming experience is also being supported by the ‘rough version’ of the Play Games C++ SDK (technological information to help developers make games for Android) that is said to include support for achievements and leaderboards, again showing that Google want to rival what their competitors, Apple, whose iOS includes something similar, are offering. Not only this, but Google are also now including Google Analytics support in their AdMob interface, allowing developers to both earn money from their Android apps and better understand how that money is being made, in a move that will further support the huge statement by Google that Play Games is the “fastest-growing mobile gaming network in history.”
We’ll keep you posted once we know more.
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