Google teased its new Google Play Games app during The Game Awards, which will bring Android games to Windows in 2022. Details of the app were first leaked in documents in the ongoing Epic versus Apple lawsuit. The app is designed to work on Windows 10 and above. Google spokesperson Alex Garcia-Kummert said that it had been building the app on its own instead of any partnerships or outsourcing for development. It will support cross-functionality between different devices, allowing players to seamlessly switch from mobile to PC.
Google Play has helped billions of people find and play their favorite games across multiple platforms, including on mobile, tablets and ChromeOS. Starting in 2022, players will be able to experience their favorite Google Play games on more devices: seamlessly switching between a phone, tablet, Chromebook, and soon, Windows PCs. This Google built product brings the best of Google Play Games to more laptops and desktops, and we are thrilled to expand our platform for players to enjoy their favorite Android games even more. We’ll have more to share soon! – Greg Hartrell, Product Director, Games on Android and Google Play
Unlike other gaming services such as Google Stadia or NVIDIA GeForce Now, the new app will not “involve game streaming.” Games will run on the device itself. “This will be a native Windows app distributed by Google, which will support Windows 10 and up,” Hartrell said. Once a game is installed, it will run via emulation and not depend on any proprietary Windows integration. Meanwhile, Microsoft has been working on Android support within Windows 11. It has partnered with Amazon to allow users to natively install games from its app store. It is not known if, or when, Google will release the app on Apple devices.
Sources: The Verge, 9to5Google