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Google's instant app tech now lets you try games before you buy
Google doesn't really make games on its own, but with Android, it supports one of the biggest developer communities out there. As such, the company is sharing some news at the Game Developers Conference that'll be of interest to both players and devs alike: The "Instant App" technology that Google added to Android last year can now be used on games, as well.
Google announces 30 finalists for its first indie games festival
Google's first indie gaming festival is less than a month away, and today the company is announcing the 30 games that made the cut for the competition. You can find the whole list here, but note that you won't be able to try out all of them just yet -- 20 of the 30 games haven't been released in Google Play yet. Games that are out in the store now include Chetan Surpur's Orbit, High Score Hero's Hovercraft: Takedown, Double Coconut's Parallyzed and Roofboot (both still in beta) and Worthing & Moncrieff's A Matter of Murder. (The full list of games can be found here.)
Google's first indie gaming festival comes to San Francisco this fall
Indie game developers, Google wants to hear from you. The company has just announced the first Google Play Indie Games Festival, and you can submit your game for consideration now. The festival, which will take place Sept. 24th in San Francisco, will highlight 30 upcoming and recent games that will be available in the Google Play Store to Android users, with prizes going to the top submissions.
Google helps devs create cross-platform Android and iOS multiplayer games
The annual Game Developers Conference descends on San Francisco this week, and Google's wasting no time in sharing its news. For gamers, Mountain View's said it'll be launching a "game gifts" service for sending in-game swag to other players, and increasing the number of game categories in the Play store to 18 in the hope you'll stumble upon titles you might like easier. More important, however, is what devs can do with the new features of Google Play game services, a back-end tool for managing leaderboards, achievements and more in Android, iOS or web games. Multiplayer support has been added for iOS games, and via an update to the Unity plug-in, cross-platform multiplayer between Android and iOS devices is now possible. These features have to be implemented by developers, of course, but next time you see that friend who's always arguing the merits of one mobile OS over another, you might just be able to settle the discussion in-game instead. Update: A new version of Google Play services is rolling out to support the new features. Version 4.3 supports the new gifts feature, as well as tie-ins to Google's recently updated Drive API for storage.
Google Play Games for Android now shows you who wants to play
Google Play Games just became much, much more useful for avid Android gamers. A newly released update to Google's entertainment hub lets you see all your invitations; it's now much clearer that someone wants to play. The upgrade also shows you a not-quite-live view of who's playing, and a new Find Games area (shown here) suggests titles you can try. Play Games still won't compare with advanced gaming frameworks like PlayStation Network or Xbox Live, but it's likely worth a download if your smartphone regularly doubles as a handheld console.
Virgin Media launches Play Games portal for TiVo
Many of us don't see TiVos as game consoles, but Virgin Media would beg to differ -- there have been over a million game sessions this year on its edition of the DVR. Accordingly, it just launched a Play Games portal to court this growing audience. Besides putting games in one handy location, the hub saves game states and ranks favorite titles. Virgin is also recruiting more developers to expand Play Games' fledgling catalog. While the casual gaming focus is unlikely to stop serious players from pre-ordering an Xbox One or PS4, it may be enough to keep TiVo owners on the couch long after their favorite show is over.
Google Play Games service confirmed by Eufloria HD update
Need more evidence that Google is preparing a Game Center-like platform dubbed Play Games? Look no further than the "What's New" section of your favorite Android game. At least one title, Eufloria HD, received an update today that explicitly states it has support for Google Play Games Achievements. According to the changelog, the title will now allow you to sync those achievements with your Google+ profile and share them with your circles. Guess the cat is pretty officially out of the bag at this point. Now we'll just have to sit tight for a little while longer and wait for the folks at Mountain View to explain all the fun little details to us. [Thanks, Peter]
