Google Unifying Existing Game Platforms, Including Google+ Games into Google Games

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While this news isn't directly Android related, these changes by Google will likely have a future impact on much of our gaming on Android in the future, so we thought it should be shared with you guys. According to statements from Google+ Product Manager Punit Soni, made during a Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, Google is planning on combining their various gaming platforms, including Google+ Games, into a single unified gaming platform they will call simply, Google Games. He said,

“By next year, we will not be here talking about Google+ Games, Chrome Web Store games, Games for Native Client and Android games. We will be talking about Google games.”

Mr. Soni further added, “It was very clear games was one of the first things we would put up there on Google+. Games bring people together. They are an important part of how users interact online. Game developers push boundaries, and games are fun.”

This new direction focuses even further on Google's plans to create a Google branded ecosystem to assist developers but also to bring consumers together under one social platform, namely Google+. This ties hand in hand with Google's recent announcement in which they changed the name of the Android Market to the Google Play Store. Here's a quote from the TalkAndroid article with some more details,

Doing this will give developers a much larger audience to target, making developing for Google more lucrative. Technically, this will entail using technologies such as HTML5 and Google Chrome Native Client, which enables browser games to take advantage of 3D graphics hardware, for easier and higher performing cross-platform compatibility.

Google+ will serve as the social layer supporting and helping games get noticed. With already more than 100 million active monthly users spending more than one hour a day on the site, Google+ will certainly attract gaming companies. Game developers are excited to have a Facebook alternative, but want Google to provide more promotional opportunities for their games. Google is starting to do this already with a new notification system to promote games to your Google+ circles.

This is a brilliant move on Google's part. Tying everything together under a unified ecosystem will help each of the currently disparate products flourish. It makes marketing everything easier, and it showcases products and services to people that might not have seen them otherwise.

Source: GooglePlusTalk.net via TalkAndroid