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Google Leak Hints At an Android Game Center With Multiplayer Support

Posted by timothy on from the androids-are-everywhere dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Google appears to be preparing the launch of a game center for Android with an unknown name. It looks like the new hub will sport a slew of features, including multiplayer support, in-game chat, lobbies, leaderboards, and achievements. The leaked information come to us courtesy of Android Police, which amusingly stumbled on the details by tearing apart the apk file for MyGlass, the Google Glass companion app that launched earlier this week. The feature list was hidden within, though it's not clear if this was done on purpose to build hype or entirely by accident." While on the topic of Google-branded Android hardware speculation, this wishlist at The Full Signal makes some feature-list pleas for the rumored Nexus 5.

44 comments

  1. Ouya console? by Kwyj1b0 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    It looks like this might be a blessing for the Ouya console, if they can support it. They don't have to develop multiplayer capabilities or host their own network.

    Also, first post?

    1. Re:Ouya console? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I doubt Ouya will use this at all. They're trying to keep away from Google's services as much as possible. (so THEY can take the cut and leech off Google's work instead of using Google's app store)

    2. Re:Ouya console? by dagamer34 · · Score: 0

      Non-Google certified devices cannot legally access Google services via their proprietary apps (Gmail, Maps, YouTube, etc...).

    3. Re:Ouya console? by Nerdfest · · Score: 3, Informative

      Oh, you mean like anything running Cyanogen, etc, Kindles, HP TouchPads, etc? Sure they can.

    4. Re:Ouya console? by negRo_slim · · Score: 1

      I could see a partnership, a little light shed on the idea of Android For Gaming and an established brand on Ouya that might lend (some) credibility. Everybody wins.

      --
      On the Oregon Cost born and raised, On the beach is where I spent most of my days
    5. Re:Ouya console? by larry+bagina · · Score: 2

      Read more carefully: Google services via their proprietary apps (Gmail, Maps, YouTube, etc...).

      Android is open but Google's apps are not. HTC, Samsung, etc have them because they pay google money. Kindle and el cheapo android phones don't have them because they didn't pay the google tax.

      --
      Do you even lift?

      These aren't the 'roids you're looking for.

    6. Re:Ouya console? by Nerdfest · · Score: 1

      They don't have them because they don't want them. They can be manually installed. Kindle wants you to go to Amazon, etc. There is no Google tax.

    7. Re:Ouya console? by tlhIngan · · Score: 1

      They don't have them because they don't want them. They can be manually installed. Kindle wants you to go to Amazon, etc. There is no Google tax.

      They cannot be preloaded with them because Google controls it.

      There is a set of requirements that a vendor must meet in order to qualify to have the Google apps. These include passing the CTS, being an OHA member (and paying the necessary dues) and having an agreement signed with Google. This will get the OEM access to the official Android repository (the one that is pushed to AOSP every so often).

      Note that you must be an OHA member and sign the Google agreement. There may or may not be a per-device royalty that's payable as well.

      While AOSP products CAN have Google Apps installed manually, they technically do not qualify and there's no support for it, and in a sense, they are "pirated" versions. Google has allowed Cyanogen to be the sole distributor, however, as Cyanogen supports phones that have already paid the tax.

      But there are plenty of Android devices out there that are pure AOSP and do NOT come with Google. A lot of them ship with alternative app stores (and sometimes, Google just isn't allowed - see China). You can find them as those $150 tablets that are sold - they run Android, but have not been blessed by Google and are unable to ship with Google apps. You may install them yourself, though.

      Amazon, Barnes and Noble, etc., they rely on an extensively customized version of Android whose business model relies on alternative app stores. This is not to be confused with devices that could run it, but not ship with it because they're not certified.

      In fact, I think there was this very situation a year or two ago where a tablet sold at K-mart inadvertently came with Google apps, which were later removed from subsequent versions as they were not allowed to do so. As Google controls those apps, there could've been penalties.

    8. Re:Ouya console? by bickerdyke · · Score: 1

      While AOSP products CAN have Google Apps installed manually, they technically do not qualify and there's no support for it, and in a sense, they are "pirated" versions.

      "technically not qualified" and "no support" don't mean "pirated", just because they have in common that there is no support for pirated versions of software.

      Google has allowed Cyanogen to be the sole distributor, however,...

      espescially they can't count as pirated when someone is ALLOWED to distribute something.

      --
      bickerdyke
  2. Nexus 5 needs it own topic by tuppe666 · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    This is two topics in one, and I suspect everyone who looked at the Nexus 4 is of the mind. Thought that it did not have enough local storage, compounded by having no expandable storage...on a device that was sold out so quickly because of its amazing price. It just pissed people off.

    People buy the Nexus range for regular updates of stock android, running on great, but good value hardware. Whether its 4" or 6" I couldn't care less...or whether it contains IR/Waterproof/Wireless Charging etc etc I don't even care who manufactures the phones (I would love to see a Lenovo Nexus), but local storage and Distribution issues need to be solved. I skipped the Nexus 4, hopefully the Nexus 5 will offer me what I want.

    1. Re:Nexus 5 needs it own topic by Nerdfest · · Score: 1

      I bought one despite the space deficiencies. For someone with an older phone who wants to get out of the contract cycle, the price was too good to pass up. I can live without the removable battery, but I very much miss the local storage. I was actually thinking it would be cool if someone came out with a low cost flash drive with secure wifi or bluetooth access to it. For the right price that might almost be better than extra storage in the phone.

    2. Re:Nexus 5 needs it own topic by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I bought it for my mom as her first smartphone. I myself don't own a smartphone - I have an ancient "stupid" phone - and so I was appalled to learn the manufacturers don't update them. Since she was really bugging me about getting one (since all her friends had one and she was about to get one herself if I wasn't about to choose one), I started looking around for a phone I can install linux on. My thinking was that this way I could at least update it to make sure it's not giving away her password in return for lol cats. I came by the Nexus and was pleased to hear it's getting updated regularly by google themselves.

      It's been now two month since she got it. Running the vanilla stock android kernel without any mods. Regular updates were automatically applied and she even started using the ebay app to check up on some offerings though she still insists on rushing home to place the actual bids. She even reads her some of her mails, though again she often uses the pc to respond.

      Overall, she's quite happy and doesn't understand why everyone warned her about the battery life since hers seems to run fine for days...

      TLDR: My mom seems happy with her Nexus 4. Maybe you're not the target audience.

    3. Re:Nexus 5 needs it own topic by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Google nexus 4 usb otg. It requires a y-cable, rooting, and a custom kernel.
      Personally I don't like rooting so I prefer using my rpi with a usb-to-sata connector and an old 80gb drive I have laying about to serve ftp over the wifi...

    4. Re:Nexus 5 needs it own topic by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      LG L9 is the way to go for that. $200 + 50/month with T-Mobile, they'll unlock it for you if you ask nicely. 4.0 but LG has released a 4.1 upgrade (T Mobile hasn't rolled it out yet, will soon hopefully).

  3. Google has taken too long, buy openfeint by tuppe666 · · Score: 4, Informative

    This is great news, but so late to the party similar social platforms include Heyzap, Plus+, Crystal, Gameloft Live, Scorelp, Geocade, Scoreoid, agon and Apple's Game Center...and the now discontinued openfeint.

    Everybody recognise there is a need for a social gaming platform, many games leverage Facebook to do this, so I'm expecting better organised G+ gaming extension in future.

    The only question is when Steam for Android will happen.

    1. Re:Google has taken too long, buy openfeint by netsentry · · Score: 1
      It takes something to stand out from this list. What Google does have is integration, though. It has potential.

      Great post btw, I wasn't aware of a few of these networks.

    2. Re:Google has taken too long, buy openfeint by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Just to be nitpicky, there is a Steam app for Android.

    3. Re:Google has taken too long, buy openfeint by grouchomarxist · · Score: 1

      With OpenFeint already bought and shut down there would be little value to Google, better to buy one of the other actively running networks.

  4. What are they going to charge for it?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    App games go for virtually nothing but there are many thousands of them.

    If such features are offered so they can be incorporated into games, then there will be thousands created that have virtually no players who still eat up the server resources google would have to supply.

    Some 'tiered' 'pay' offering for when the meager 'free' resource impacts any sucessful game ????

    1. Re:What are they going to charge for it?? by cjjjer · · Score: 1

      Nothing you will pay with your loss of privacy....

  5. Copy? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Now where have I seen Game Center before?

  6. From Duke Nukem 3D by tuppe666 · · Score: 1

    Maybe you mean Total Entertainment Network service offered PC game players a place to play DOS and Windows-based games online with and against other players, to chat, to download game-related content, and to compete for high scores and to win tournaments. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Total_Entertainment_Network The service was bundled with many PC games....Kali featured an Internet Game Browser for TCP/IP native games, a buddy system, a chat system, and supports 400+ games http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kali_(software)

    The reality is these services have been around at least since 1996, so I'm not sure what you mean by copy. They are simply part of modern gaming I can name at least 7 such services that operate today.

  7. About the Nexus 5 wish list ... by Taco+Cowboy · · Score: 1

    One thing that I do not understand ...

    They are saying that Qualcommâ(TM)s Snapdragon 800 chipset are much superior than anything else, even surpassing Samsung's Exynos 5 Octa

    Not that I'm in the "more core more better" camp, but I can't help but wondering what makes Qualcomm's offering so attractive to those folks in the first place ...

    --
    Muchas Gracias, Señor Edward Snowden !
    1. Re:About the Nexus 5 wish list ... by bfandreas · · Score: 1

      The API to get optimization for Tegra 3 is proprietary. I guess it's also a matter of software/driver support. Then there also is power consumption(which is a biggie on cell phones), availability of specs/dev chips, price when bought in bulk, availability when bought in bulk and so on.

      You always have to remember that it takes a lot of time to properly design your hardware around your components, make sure the component drivers behave well, test the stuff, go into production, test again...

      Computing power is just a small factor when you hope to sell in the millions.

      I can't personally speak for Snapdragon 800. But let's take a look at what nVidia did with Tegra 3. They built an SoC without any 3G capabilities. So if you wanted to put it into your cell phone you'd have to buy extra components for 3G. That made Tegra 3 absolutely unattractive for phones. The tablet market is growing but it is phones that carry a SoC. Number of cores/computing power is the least of your worries. The only thing that really taxes the top of the currently available line SoCs is benchmarks. I know that because I'm constantly looking for games where my Tegra3 based rooted&overclocked tablet simply doesn't cut it anymore. And ATM there is to my knowledge nothing that runs natively that really screams for a faster SoC.

      tl;dr: Don't look at the benchmarks. Look at the business side of things.

      --
      20 minutes into the future
  8. Poor 'an' left out... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Someone forgot to capitalize 'an' in this article's title. Poor word, every other word, even 'At', the other two letter word got graced with capitalization.

  9. Copyright in the Google Play Store application by tepples · · Score: 1

    "technically not qualified" and "no support" don't mean "pirated"

    Let's assume here the "pirated" refers to copyright infringement. Google owns copyright in the Google Play Store application. Google authorizes nobody but its OHA licensees to make and distribute copies. How are copies of Google Play Store, if obtained through other means, not infringing?

  10. Backup, root-and-wipe, restore by tepples · · Score: 1

    It requires a y-cable, rooting, and a custom kernel.

    I don't own a Nexus 4 phone, but I do own a Nexus 7 tablet. Rooting it and installing a custom kernel required wiping the device last time I checked. And this in turn required finding some sort of backup solution for the information already on the device. Which tool do you recommend to back up the information on an Android device so that it can be restored after rooting?

    1. Re:Backup, root-and-wipe, restore by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      Which tool do you recommend to back up the information on an Android device so that it can be restored after rooting?

      Either CWM (ClockworkMod Recovery) or TWRP (Team Win Recovery Project). I prefer TWRP, its interface is far superior to CWM. Both let you make full-device backups.

      I don't know how it works on Nexus devices, but on my SEMC Xperia Play you can fastboot a recovery boot.img without flashing it. You can thus boot (e.g.) CWM and perform a nandroid backup. These backups do not restore the kernel so you want to identify a good allegedly working stock kernel image before you begin. If something goes wrong you'll need to reflash it (probably with fastboot) before restoring your backup.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    2. Re:Backup, root-and-wipe, restore by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Check out the Carbon backup app. Apparently it lets you make a full device backup to a computer without needing root.

  11. Jeremiah Cornelius: Grow up by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You're embarassing yourself Jeremiah Cornelius http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=3581857&cid=43276741 since you posted that using your registered username by mistake (instead of your usual anonymous coward submissions by the 100's the past 2-3 months now on slashdot) giving away it's you spamming this forums almost constantly, just as you have in the post I just replied to.

    1. Re:Jeremiah Cornelius: Grow up by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Paul, you fail it. Your skill is not enough.

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  13. You failed vs. APK, you troll by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

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    1. Re:You failed vs. APK, you troll by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

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  15. Jeremiah Cornelius: Grow up by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You're embarassing yourself Jeremiah Cornelius http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=3581857&cid=43276741 since you posted that using your registered username by mistake (instead of your usual anonymous coward submissions by the 100's the past 2-3 months now on slashdot) giving away it's you spamming this forums almost constantly, just as you have in the post I just replied to.