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6,933 results • Page 516 of 578
Posted by Daniel Trócoli – Google Play Partnerships We're thrilled to announce the return of Google Play's Indie Games Fund (IGF) in Latin America for its fourth consecutive year! This year, we're once again committing $2 million to empower another 10 indie game studios across the region. With this latest round of funding, our total investment in Latin American indie games will reach an impressive $8 million USD . Since its inception, the IGF has been a cornerstone of our commitment to fostering growth for developers of all sizes on Google Play. We've seen firsthand the transformative impact this support has had, enabling studios to expand their teams, refine their creations, and reach new audiences globally. What's in store for the Indie Games Fund in 2025? Just like in previous years, selected small game studios based in Latin America will receive a share of the $2 million fund, along with support from the Google Play team. As Vish Game Studio , a previously selected studio, shared: "The IGF was a pivotal moment for our studio, boosting us to the next level and helping us form lasting connections." We believe in fostering these kinds of pivotal moments for all our selected studios. The program is open to indie game developers who have already launched a game, whether it's on Google Play, another mobile platform, PC, or console. Each selected recipient will receive between $150,000 and $200,000 to help them elevate their game and realize their full potential. Check out all eligibility criteria and apply now ! Applications will close at 12:00 PM BRT on July 31, 2025 . To give your application the best chance, remember that priority will be given to applications received by 12:00 PM BRT on July 15, 2025 .
Posted by Raghavendra Hareesh Pottamsetty – Google Play Developer and Monetization Lead At Google Play, we're dedicated to helping people discover experiences they'll love, while empowering developers like you to bring your ideas to life and build successful businesses. This year, Google I/O was packed with exciting announcements designed to do just that. For a comprehensive overview of everything we shared, be sure to check out our blog post recapping What's new in Google Play . Today, we'll dive specifically into the latest updates designed to help you streamline your subscriptions offerings and maximize your revenue on Play. Get a quick overview of these updates in our video below, or read on for more details. #1: Subscriptions with add-ons: Streamlining subscriptions for you and your users We're excited to announce multi-product checkout for subscriptions, a new feature designed to streamline your purchase flow and offer a more unified experience for both you and your users. This enhancement allows you to sell subscription add-ons right alongside your base subscriptions , all while maintaining a single, aligned payment schedule . The result? A simplified user experience with just one price and one transaction, giving you more control over how your subscribers upgrade, downgrade, or manage their add-ons. Learn more about how to create add-ons . You can now sell base subscriptions and add-ons together in a single, streamlined transaction #2: Showcasing benefits in more places across Play: Increasing visibility and value We're also making it easier for you to retain more of your subscribers by showcasing subscription benefits in more key areas across Play. This includes the Subscriptions Center, within reminder emails, and even during the purchase and cancellation processes . This increased visibility has already proved effective, reducing voluntary churn by 2% . To take advantage of this powerful new capability, be sure to enter your subscription benefits details in Play Console. To help reduce voluntary churn, we’re showcasing your subscriptions benefits across Play #3: New grace period and account hold duration: Decreasing involuntary churn Another way we’re helping you maximize your revenue is by extending grace periods and account hold durations to tackle unintended subscription losses, which often occur when payment methods unexpectedly decline. Now, you can customize both the grace period (when users retain access while renewal is attempted) and the account hold period (when access is suspended). You can set a grace period of up to 30 days and an account hold period of up to 60 days. However, the total combined recovery period (grace period + account hold) cannot exceed 60 days. This means instead of an immediate cancellation, your users have a longer window to update their payment information. Developers who've already extended their decline recovery period—from 30 to 60 days—have seen impressive results, with an average 10% reduction in involuntary churn for renewals . Ready to see these results for yourself? Adjust your grace period and account hold durations in Play Console today. Developers who extend their decline recovery period see an average 10% reduction in involuntary churn But that’s not all. We’re constantly investing in ways to help you optimize conversion throughout the entire buyer lifecycle. This includes boosting purchase-readiness by prompting users to set up payment methods and verification right from device setup, and we've integrated these prompts into highly visible areas like the Play and Google account menus. Beyond that, we're continuously enabling payments in more markets and expanding payment options . Our AI models are even working to optimize in-app transactions by suggesting the right payment method at the right time, and we're bringing buyers back with effective cart abandonment reminders . That’s it for our top announcements from Google I/O 2025, but there’s so many more updates to discover from this year’s event. Check out What's new in Google Play to learn more, and to dive deeper into the session details, view the Google Play I/O playlist for all the announcements.
Posted by Chris Wilk – Group Product Manager, Games on Google Play To captivate players and grow your game, you need tools that enhance discovery and retention. Play Games Services (PGS) is your key to unlocking a suite of services that connect you with over 2 billion monthly active players. PGS empowers you to drive engagement through features like achievements and increase retention with promotions tailored to each gameplay progress . These tools are designed to help you deliver relevant and compelling content that keeps players coming back. We are continuously evolving gaming on Play, and this year, we're introducing more PGS-powered experiences to give you deeper player insights and greater visibility in the Play Store. To access these latest advancements and ensure continued functionality, you must migrate from PGS v1 to PGS v2 by May 2026. Let’s take a closer look at what’s new: Drive discovery and engagement by rewarding gameplay progress We’re fundamentally transforming how achievements work in the Play Store, making them a key driver for a great gaming experience. Now deeply embedded across the store, achievements are easily discoverable via search filters and game detail pages, and further drive engagement when offered with Play Points. At a minimum, you should have at least 15 achievements spread across the lifetime of the game, in the format of incremental achievements to show progress. Games that enable players to earn at least 5 achievements in the first 2 hours of gameplay are most successful in driving deeper engagement * . The most engaging titles offer 40 or more achievements with diverse types of goals including leveling up characters, game progression, hidden surprises, or even failed attempts. To help you get the most out of achievements, we’ve made it easier to create achievements with bulk configuration in Play Console . For eligible titles * , Play activates quests to reward players for completing achievements - for example with Play Points. Supercell activated quests for Hay Day , leading to an average 177% uplift in installs * . You can tailor your quests to achieve specific campaign objectives, whether it's attracting high-value players or driving spend through repeated engagement, all while making it easy to jump back into your game. Hay Day boosted new installs with achievement-based quests Increase retention with tailored promotions Promotional content is a vital tool for you to highlight new events, major content updates, and exciting offers within your game. It turns Play into a direct marketing channel to re-engage with your players. We've enhanced audience targeting capabilities so you can tailor your content to reach and convert the most relevant players. By integrating PGS, you can use the Play Grouping API to create custom segments based on gameplay context * . Using this feature, Kabam launched promotional content to custom audiences for Marvel Contest of Champions , resulting in a 4x increase in lapsed user engagement * . Marvel Contest of Champions increased retention with targeted promotional content Start implementing PGS features today PGS is designed to make the sign-in experience more seamless for players, automatically syncing their progress and identity across Android devices. With a single tap, they can pick up where they left off or start a new game from any screen. Whether you use your own sign-in solution , services from third parties, or a combination of both, we've made it easier to integrate Play Games Services with the Recall API . To ensure a consistent sign-in experience for all players, we’re phasing out PGS v1. All games currently using PGS v1 must migrate to PGS v2 by May 2026 . After this date, you will no longer be able to publish or update games that use the v1 SDK. Below you'll find the timeline to plan your migration: Migration guide Migration Overview Migrate to Play Games Services v2 (Java or Kotlin) Migrate to Play Games Services v2 (Unity) May 2025 As announced at I/O, new apps using PGS v1 can no longer be published. While existing apps can release updates with v1 and the APIs are still functional, you’ll need to migrate by May 2026, and APIs will be fully shut down in 2028. May 2026 APIs are still functional for users, but are no longer included in the SDK. New app versions compiled with the most recent SDK would fail in the build process if your code still uses the removed APIs. If your app still relies on any of these APIs, you should migrate to PGS v2 as soon as possible. Q3 2028 APIs are no longer functional and will fail when a request is sent by an app. Looking ahead, more opportunities powered by PGS Coming soon, players will be able to generate unique, AI-powered avatars within their profiles – creating fun, diverse representations of their gaming selves. With PGS integration, developers can allow players to carry over their avatar within the game. This enables players to showcase their gaming identity across the entire gameplay experience, creating an even stronger motivation to re-engage with your game. Gen AI avatar profiles create more player-centric experiences PGS is the foundational tool for maximizing your business growth on Play, enabling you to tailor your content for each player and access the latest gameplay innovations on the platform. Stay tuned for more PGS features coming this year to provide an even richer player experience. * To be eligible, the title must participate in Play Points, integrate Play Games Services v2, and have achievements configured in Play Console. * Data source from partner. Average incremental installs over a 14-day period. * Data source from partner. * The Play Grouping API provides strong measures to protect privacy for end users, including user-visible notification when the API is first used, and opt-out options through My Activity .
An honest conversation with Sophie Vo on walking away from the startup grind to build something radically different. She shares why true success is not about scale but about alignment, real impact, and building a business that actually feels like freedom.
The European Commission has required Apple to make a series of additional changes under the Digital Markets Act: Communication and promotion of offers Today, we’re introducing updated terms that let developers with apps in the European Union storefronts of the App Store communicate and promote offers for purchase of digital goods or services available at a destination of their choice. The destination can be a website, alternative app marketplace, or another app, and can be accessed outside the app or within the app via a web view or native experience. App Store apps that communicate and promote offers for digital goods or services will be subject to new business terms for those transactions — an initial acquisition fee, store services fee, and for apps on the StoreKit External Purchase Link Entitlement (EU) Addendum, the Core Technology Commission (CTC). The CTC reflects value Apple provides developers through ongoing investments in the tools, technologies, and services that enable them to build and share innovative apps with users. Music streaming apps on the App Store in the European Economic Area (EEA) wanting to use the Music Streaming Services Entitlement (EEA) can use these options. Update to Business Terms for Apps in the European Union By January 1, 2026, Apple plans to move to a single business model in the EU for all developers. Under this single business model, Apple will transition from the Core Technology Fee (CTF) to the CTC on digital goods or services. The CTC will apply to digital goods or services sold by apps distributed from the App Store, Web Distribution, and/or alternative marketplaces. Apps currently under the Alternative Terms Addendum for Apps in the EU continue to be subject only to the CTF until the transition to the CTC is fully implemented next year. At that time, qualifying transactions will be subject to the CTC, and the CTF will no longer apply. Additional details regarding this transition will be provided at a later date. User Experience Update Beginning with iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6, iOS and iPadOS will provide an updated user experience in the EU for installing alternative marketplaces or apps from a developer’s website. Additionally, later this year, we will provide an API which will allow developers to initiate the download of alternatively distributed apps they publish from within their app. To learn more, view Communication and promotion of offers on the App Store in the EU . To read the full terms, view the Alternative Terms Addendum for Apps in the EU or the StoreKit External Purchase Link Entitlement Addendum for EU Apps . You can also request a 30-minute online appointment to ask questions and provide feedback about these changes.
Posted by Kosuke Suzuki – Director, Games on Google Play On July 1, Amazing Seasun Games is set to unveil its highly anticipated action shooting game - Mecha BREAK , with a multiplatform launch across PC and Console. A key to their PC growth strategy is Google Play Games on PC , enabling the team to build excitement with a pre-registration campaign, maximize revenue with PC earnback, and ensure a secure, top-tier experience on PC. Building momentum with pre-registration With a legacy of creating high-quality games since 1995, Amazing Seasun Games has already seen Mecha BREAK attract over 3.5 million players during the last beta test. To build on this momentum, the studio is bringing their game to Google Play Games on PC to open pre-registration and connect with its massive player audience. "We were excited to launch on Google Play Games on PC. We want to make sure all players can enjoy the Mecha BREAK experience worldwide." - Kris Kwok, Executive Producer of Mecha BREAK and CEO of Amazing Seasun Games Mecha BREAK pre-registration on Google Play Games on PC homepage Accelerating growth with the Native PC program Mecha BREAK 's launch strategy includes leveraging the native PC earnback , a program that gives native PC developers the opportunity to unlock up to 15% in additional earnback. Beyond earnback, the program offers comprehensive support for PC game development, distribution, and growth. Developers can manage PC builds in Play Console, simplifying the process of packaging PC versions, configuring releases, and managing store listings. Now, you can also view PC-specific sales reports, providing a more precise analysis of your game's financial performance. Delivering a secure and high quality PC experience Mecha BREAK is designed to deliver an intense and high-fidelity experience on PC. Built on a cutting-edge, proprietary 3D engine, the game offers players three unique modes of fast-paced combat on land and in the air. Diverse combat styles: Engage in six-on-six hero battles, three-on-three matches, or the unique PvPvE extraction mode "Mashmak". Free customization options: Create personalized characters with a vast array of colors, patterns and gameplay styles, from close-quarters brawlers to long-range tactical units. Mecha BREAK offers a high-fidelity experience on PC The decision to integrate with Google Play Games on PC was driven by the platform's robust security infrastructure, including tools such as Play Integrity API , supporting large-scale global games like Mecha BREAK . "Mecha BREAK’s multiplayer setting made Google Play Games a strong choice, as we expect exceptional operational stability and performance. The platform also offers advanced malware protection and anti-cheat capabilities." - Kris Kwok, Executive Producer of Mecha BREAK and CEO of Amazing Seasun Games Bring your game to Google Play Games on PC This year, the native PC program is open to all PC games, including PC-only titles. If you're ready to expand your game's reach and accelerate its growth, learn more about the eligibility requirements and how to join the program today.
If the last era of geogaming was defined by novelty, of catching Pokémon in your backyard and turning your evening walk into an XP grind, the next one will be defined by its depth.
Right now, we’re forcing AI into development without thinking long and hard about the implications. From ethical blind spots to broken career ladders, the future of game development might not be faster, just riskier.
HELLO DEVELOPER Today @ WWDC25 Your daily guide to the conference. Today’s group labs Join Apple engineers and your developer peers online to ask questions, get advice, and follow the discussion about the week’s biggest announcements. Revisit the highlights It's impossible to pick favorites, but here's a collection of some of the biggest moments from an incredible set of video sessions. Browse the highlights from WWDC25 › COMING THIS SUMMER Explore the biggest updates from WWDC25 We’re taking WWDC25 around the world. Join us in person this summer for a new Meet with Apple session geared toward your entire team. We’ll dive into the big announcements from WWDC25 and discuss the benefits for your apps and games. Find an activity near you › How did we do? We’d love to know your thoughts on this year’s conference. Take the survey › “6 out of 5 ⭐️” Once again, a little song dedicated to you. Watch the video › TODAY'S PLAYLIST Every time we say goodbye One last playlist for the road. We're sending you off with cutting-edge music from the global frontiers of jazz. Listen on Apple Music › Thanks for being here WWDC25 is our biggest week of the year, and we have the best time sharing it with you. Thanks for being a part of another incredible conference. We’ll see you out there.
Hacker News
“GPT-5.5's API pricing is reshaping how startups build AI products”
