Google has finally unveiled their new developer tools, which is helping to bridge the gap between mobile and PC gaming. Google has made a number of game updates, and added even more customization for developers, making it easier to bring much-loved mobile games to desktop computers.
Developers Will Have the Chance to Opt Out
Google Play Games for PC launched in 2022 and since then, outstanding progress has been made. As part of the update, Google is introducing a new SDK kit for native PC games. With in-app purchase integration as well as updates being made to the Play Console, it’s now easier for developers to manage multiple versions of a singular game, which makes it more effective to distribute a title across different devices.
Developers will have the chance to opt out if they would rather not have their games listed under the new format, with a category that indicates which games have been tested for compatibility.
If games are optimized, then it will gain a badge, indicating to users that the game has passed the quality check and offers the same experience as the original device it was released on, in terms of playability. This is huge for the gaming sector, and shows how as time is moving forward, the lines between PC and mobile gaming are blurring.
Google are Committed to Bridging the Gap
Moves like this show how determined Google is to bring the respective benefits of both mobile and PC gaming up to speed with each other. With that said, this trend is nothing new. Developers have been making their games playable across mobile and PC for quite some time. Games playable online, including 24/7 Chess and Solitaire Bliss can all be accessed on both a mobile and PC, usually from the same website, without any download required. In the iGaming sector, more advanced games like Slingo are also widely available to play, due to the low operating requirements. Slingo games like Slingo Big Wheel and Slingo Stampede can be played on mobile, tablet, or PC, and even though there are complex animations, bonus rounds, and additional features, the games all render smoothly across a multitude of devices without having to lock down certain features.
Google seems to be taking inspiration from how successful this movement has been, and is looking to scale it across even more titles. To ensure that the gaming experience is not compromised, Google is introducing new Graphics APIs. Vulkan is said to deliver smoother frame rates, along with ray tracing. The ADPF framework is also said to be enhanced, with developers being given incentives to port their games. If they do, they have the chance of earning 15% additional revenue.
Mobile emulated games and native PC games alike are going to be available through the Google Store for PC, with games being released to exploit this new feature. In addition to bringing PC games to mobile, Google is also working to bring mobile games to PC, with the long-awaited mystery game Disco Elysium set to launch on mobile devices later in 2025.
There’s A Lot to Look Forward To
With all the technological strides Google have promised to make in the near-future, you may soon not even be able to tell the difference between most games played on mobile versus their PC counterparts, especially as many laptops and PC monitors today now implement touchscreen capabilities just like phones and tablets do.
