In a move that senses a little late, coming years after Chromebooks got admission to Android apps and games, Google states that ChromeOS users will get entry to an “early Alpha” of game controls optimized for certain touchscreen-only games.
Mobile games are made for use on phones with touchscreens, which multiple computers don’t have. To bridge the gap, beginning with ChromeOS 105, Google’s operating system can turn-key presses into simulated touches.
According to Google, “We see play controls as a way to overpower initial challenges with the ChromeOS gaming background while users wait for developers to completely optimize their apps for ChromeOS,” even as it drives for game developers to include input support that operates across tablets, phones, and computers.
Android Police speckled the first signs of the feature over a year ago, which Google also referenced by citing the public beta of a “gaming overlay” while announcing plans for a Steam Alpha before this year. In the future, Google says gamers will have access to an editor that should enable this exact control mapping for any games in Google Play that will function on a Chromebook, as well as advanced support for the gamepad, mouse, and other kinds of touch controls.
Google’s announcement included a list of all the supported games so far (which you can read below), with joystick action games like Pixel Blade R – Revolution, a series of 2048 variants to try out swipe controls, plus a few single- and multi-button control games like Hill Climb Racing and Tap Titans 2.
If you have a gaming PC, game console, or even your phone, you might not be looking for a way to play more mobile games from the keyboard. But for kids who have a Chromebook as their primary device, or anyone else who prefers this style of fun. It might open up more accessible access to play, especially. At the same time, we wait for Steam to become available on more ChromeOS devices and for Google makes its games store available on Windows PCs.
To try it out, users don’t need to do anything special, as long as they’re running version 105 or higher, which was scheduled to arrive on the stable release channel yesterday and should be rolling out there shortly. When you open one of the games with game controls support, Google explains it will pop up an overlay listing the keys that translate to the various touch controls.
If you need to customize the control settings, click the white square in the right center of the game’s window.
Joystick Games
- Archero
- AXES.io
- Heroics Epic Legend of Archero
- Wizard Legend: Fighting Master
- Pixel Blade R – Revolution
- Zombero: Archero Hero Shooter
- Archer Hunter – Offline Action Adventure Game
- Mr. Autofire
Single Button Games
- Geometry Dash Lite
- Stack Ball – Crash Platforms
- Fire Balls 3D
- Stack Smash
- Drop Stack Ball – Fall Helix Blast Crash 3D
- Helix Smash
- Stack Crush Ball
- Crush Stack Ball Blast
- Stack Fall
- Helix Stack Jump: Smash Ball
- Tap Titans 2
Multi-button Games
- Hill Climb Racing
- Ninja Arashi 2
- Ninja Arashi
- Ninja warrior: legend of adventure games
- Power Hover
- Grimvalor
Swipe Games
- 2048 (Androbaby)
- 2048 Original
- 2048 (Solebon LLC)
- 2048 Number puzzle game
- 2048 (S2Apps)
Methods of Playing on Mobile
The touch control, how the player utilizes the device’s touch screen, is always the most challenging component to get respectable. The control mechanics will make or break your play on a mobile device.
If users are always fighting against the control mechanics or if users cannot understand what to do quickly, or if users are required to do too many things with their fingers, it will kill your game. It is also impossible to make everyone happy with the control mechanics. Understanding your audience is critical.
Using the familiar mechanics your target audience uses is extremely important. If your audience is core gamers, use standard mechanics with which they are familiar. Don’t be afraid to get inspiration from your competitor’s games. That is what your core audience is used to! Always take risks and innovate; however, don’t fight what your users already know when it comes to controls.
This chapter is a reference for designing touch controls that work on mobile or small touch screen devices. Focus on developing touch controls that are as inclusive as possible. Let the player play your game whenever and wherever the player wishes. It is imperative to always user test.
The only way to see what is suitable for your game is to experiment with your target audience as often as possible right from the beginning. Take their feedback seriously. Prioritize fixing usability bugs over creating new features.
If you leave usability to the end of your production, you will never fix them. Adding more features on top of a poorly controlled game will not make the game any more successful. Often, it will cause your house of cards to come crashing down.
The first step in designing a control mechanic is determining where and how your audience will play your game. Then, heading out into the real world, find your target audience. Watch them play games.
There are many common ways that people hold their iOS devices when playing games. People are inclined to operate them in similar ways. The mantra of this chapter is: Always know your audience.
The “Gamer Stance” is the bread and butter for most game-experienced players on the iPhone. It involves holding the gaming device with two hands and using both thumbs as controllers.
The “Casual Prodder” is how most of the world plays on the iPhone. One hand holds the gaming device while the other (thumb or fingers) controls the gameplay.
The “Subway Thumb” comes up when the player is walking along the street or is holding onto a subway railing to support themselves. Both the holding of the gaming device and the control of the gaming action happen with the same hand.