Google is hoping to allow Android and iOS gamers to play together by expanding its Google Play game services to iOS. According to Google, the search giant plans to bring real-time and turn-based multiplayer capabilities to iOS, though it is not certain if Apple would allow such a thing to happen.
It's all up to developers, and if they choose to integrate Google Play game service within their games, then it should be possible for both iOS and Android gamers to play together without a hitch. It's a good idea, one that might catch on since mobile gaming is growing at a rapid pace.
Already, Google Play games support iOS via a Unity game engine plug-in, and that plug-in will be updated with this new multiplayer cross platform aspect soon enough.
"Further enhancing Google Play Game services, we're expanding multiplayer to support iOS, bringing turn-based and real-time multiplayer capabilities to both Android and iOS," says Google in a statement that was later removed. "To further help with cross platform game development, we're updating our Play Games Unity Plug-in to support cross-platform multiplayer services, and introducing an early Play Games C++ SDK to support achievements and leaderboards."
Google isn't the only company looking into making cross platform play a real possibility. Microsoft is planning to do the same thing with Xbox Live, which is already a more robust platform when compared to Google Play.
As of now, Xbox Live only works on Windows Phone, Windows, and Microsoft branded game consoles. Future updates should see cross platform play brought to both Android and iOS, and possibly any other viable platform.
Only Apple is left with only supporting its own platform with GameCenter, and even that might change.
With cross platform play becoming more and more real, gamers may no longer have to choose the same smartphone platform their friends own just to play with them.
It's a shame that mobile has grown to such a point that it is now doing what video game consoles have failed to do. Both the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 does not allow gamers to play the same game together, and that's truly a disappointment.
