Android has had a growing potential of becoming a competition to larger gaming ecosystems. I remember playing my first Life is Strange game on my Galaxy A23 phone and it was completely lag-free. Later, I moved on to Life is Strange: True Colors on PS4. It was the perfect introduction to Square Enix’s production and the progression was natural.
Today, that potential is fully realized with Google Play Games expanding across both mobile and PC. You’ll be able to play popular titles on your mobile device or even see some Android options on PC. Breaking into gaming from whichever direction you want is now more accurate than ever.
Android games are coming to PC
Google has saved many gamers from using emulators and backdoor methods to run Android games on their personal computers. In a recent announcement, they shared that they’re bringing all games available for Android to computers, which means you’ll see exclusive titles, including Game of Thrones: Kingsroad, Sonic Rumble, Odin: Valhalla Rising, and others soon. The update is reciprocal, so PC games will eventually come to Android.
Most importantly, this is now an opt-out situation rather than an opt-in. The games will automatically be available on PC. If you, as a developer, don’t want that happening, you can leave. We’ll see the changes happening across AMD-powered laptops and desktops, with the addition of Play Points rewards on PC to make things more interesting. You can rack up to 10x boosters, and it’s become easier to track and redeem points.
Customization is another focus. Google has added a game sidebar to help you make quick adjustments, as well as multi-account support and multi-instancing. You can even run multiple game sessions simultaneously or use your mouse and keyboard for tactical advantage.
Google is also making Vulkan the official graphics API for Android instead of relying on the older OpenGL. This addresses a major concern every player has over how older games will perform. There’s assurance that gameplay will still be realistic and smoother.
Microsoft left the door open for Google to walk in
Google’s announcement couldn’t have come at a better time, considering how Microsoft ended support for Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA) on Windows 11. It was the one thing that gave people an easy way to play mobile games on their computers. Now that it’s gone, there’s a gap in the market and no official way to run mobile apps and games on computers.
With that solution out of the way, Google has a strategic edge. Also, the Game Developers Conference (GDC) is around the corner and is set for March 17 to March 21. It’s the right period to create excitement at one of the most significant technological events. It will happen at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. Google will host sessions with Samsung and Gameloft on modern graphics and multiplatform game development.
Google Play Games on PC is currently in the Beta phase and has a limited rollout. However, later this year, Google will make it publicly available. To join, you need Windows 10 (v2004) or, later, an SSD with at least 10GB of free space, 8GB of RAM, and a graphics card equivalent to Intel UHD Graphics 630 or better. Your processor must have at least four physical cores, though some games may require an Intel CPU.
