Over the past five to even ten years, there has been a strong growing division for video games and that happens to be within the mobile market. Smartphones and tablets have allowed companies like Google to create Google Play that is a source to which gamers can discover and download new video games and applications effortlessly. During the GamesBeat Summit, Jamil Moledina was able to give a small taste of what consumers can expect from Google Play by 2020. There seems to be a strong lead on making video games more accessible to various formats that don’t just include smartphones and tablets but devices like smart TVs.
GamesBeat Summit has officially wrapped up but for those unaware, the summit brought together over a hundred gaming executives to help develop and give insight to the video game industry as we make our way through 2015 and onward. During one of the keynotes, Jamil Moledina who is a game strategic partnership lead for Google Play talked about what consumers can expect Google to offer through Google Play by 2020. Jamil spoke of how Google will be focusing on various aspects that have proved to be profitable and trendy.Take, for example, virtual reality; Google has seen that the virtual reality movement as of late became more favorable to develop on. The Google Cardboard alone, Google’s answer to virtual reality for various smartphones, has been successful so far with over five-hundred thousand units being shipped since last December.
There is also a movement on bringing more video game titles to Google Play that were not originally developed for a mobile market. During the keynote, Jamil keened in on how video games like Goat Simulator and Limbo that have already been brought over to the mobile market blossomed. Development for these video games will allow consumers to enjoy an easy to play functionality to mobiles, but it won’t just stop at smartphones and tablets.
A newer platform has slowly started to make its way into markets. Smart TV’s that offer Google Play will open up another new division of gamers. Already there have been confirmations of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, NBA Jam along with TellTale’s Game of Thrones set to release on smart TVs with Google Play connectivity.
One issue that consumers and even developers are facing with Google Play is the limited space offered to display applications and video games. An answer to showcasing relative applications at any given time will be be based around brand support. For example, the May the 4th Star Wars selections event allowed Google Play to showcase a wide range of video games and applications that supported the Star Wars brand. This may put a damper on some developers that might feel limited in creativity when releasing their next video game, but only time will tell.
Google is certainly paying attention to what the latest trends are and adapting their marketplace to not only benefit on the potential profitable gain but also showcasing the content and media consumers are most likely wanting to see. We’re eager to see how Google Play changes over the next few years and even more curious as to hear what you’d like to see changed showcased within the Google Play marketplace.