Games Again…
Google is planning on adding a new feature called “Continue Playing” in the Google Play Store that will go a step further in enhancing the mobile gaming experience for Android users. Currently in test mode, the feature looks to make it easier to pick right up where one left off in games users have already installed but might have forgotten about. This feature really helps organize those titles for users that amass large libraries of mobile games over time and encourages players to go back to games that might otherwise be buried under a sea of newer apps and updates.
In this article, we are going to look at the “Continue Playing” feature-what it is, how it works, why it’s a welcome addition, and what it means for gamers on Android.
1.What is the “Continue Playing” Feature? (what-is-the-continue-playing-feature)
2. Key Features of “Continue Playing” (key-features-of-continue-playing)
1.Most Recently Played Game at the Top (most-recently-played-game-at-the-top)
2. Play Status and Installation Date (play-status-and-installation-date)
3.Easy Access Through the Play Store (easy-access-through-the-play-store)
3.Why “Continue Playing” Matters for Android Users (why-continue-playing-matters-for-android-
users)
4.The Role of Casual Gamers (the-role-of-casual-gamers)
5.Google’s Broader Strategy for the Play Store (google-strategy-for-play-store)
6.When Will “Continue Playing” Be Available? (when-will-continue-playing-be-available)
7.Potential for Re-engagement (potential-for-re-engagement)
8.Conclusion (conclusion)
What is the “Continue Playing” Feature?
Continue Playing The section will be a future feature of the Google Play Store’s Games tab, making it easier for users to find and jump into games previously installed on their Android devices. It will organize and present such games in a simple, easy-to-access list rather than asking the user to scroll down the app drawer or search through all installed apps to get to a particular game.
This section includes the list of games installed on the device, along with the last time each game was played. The most recently played game is always at the top, making it easy for users to jump back into their active gaming session. For those games which have not been played in some time, this section will instead display the date of original installation to urge users to revive those titles as well.
This feature solves a problem all Android users who download and try new games frequently face: where forgotten games get buried under a pile of new apps and notifications by making it easier to re-engage in games that have gone dormant.
Key Features of “Continue Playing”
Most Recently Played Game at Top
Perhaps the greatest feature of “Continue Playing” is that it sorts the list for you. The most recently played game will jump to the top of the list, making it easy to pick up immediately where one has left off. Whether in the middle of an intense level or exploring a new part of the game, users can easily resume gameplay without having to hunt for the app.
This is especially useful for gamers who game several titles and find it cumbersome to look for which one they were last playing. The feature basically replaces scrolling up or down in the app drawer or using the search bar, looking for which game you were gaming.
The “Continue Playing” section also extends useful context to games that have not been played in some time. It not only shows how long ago the game was last played but also the date of its original installation. This will often spur users into revisiting games they may have set down for months or years.
This brief cue is enough to bring to mind those titles that one has stopped playing. In the fast-moving world of mobile gaming apps and updates, sometimes it’s easy to let a favorite game fall by the wayside. The “Continue Playing” feature offers an easy, effective way to surface those games once again.
Easy Access Through the Play Store
It will also make life much easier because it will live directly within the Google Play Store’s Games Tab. People won’t have to leave the Play Store or even open an app to get into their installed games. The integration works really well, making for seamless use when one wants to pick up where they left off in a game without having to jump between menus and screens.
This is a welcome improvement, especially for those users that are in constant browsing and downloading new games from the Play Store, where they may forget what they had installed before. “Continue Playing” will let them jump into their gaming sessions without further ado.
Why “Continue Playing” Matters for Android Users
With the free-to-play model and an ability to download titles right from the Play Store, many Android users have quite extensive libraries of mobile games. Unfortunately, with all the different apps always vying for your attention, it is fairly easy to let games fall between the cracks. The new “Continue Playing” section attempts to rectify this by organizing and surfacing games that are installed, but not currently in active use.
This feature will be a godsend for casual gamers who tend to download a game, play it for some time, and then totally forget about it. It keeps all games alive and ensures that users are most likely to go back and finish the game that otherwise would have been left unfinished.
Moreover, it allows finding one’s old favorites again: to keep those games someone loves but hasn’t played in some time accessible. Such a function would bring these titles right back into the limelight, and “Continue Playing” can be there to re-engage people with their previously installed games-breathing life again into their game library.
Casual Gamers’ Role
The casual players, who download and start several games all at once but never finish any of them, have a special stake in the “Continue Playing” feature. They are unlikely to search for games they have played before, especially if those games are deeply buried in their app drawer or home screen.
The “Continue Playing” feature would ensure such users went on to complete partial game-plays or revisited titles they once loved. This can help organize the app overload out there and would generate more fulfilling, complete gaming experiences.
These show a user, for example, a casual gamer who downloaded some kind of puzzle game and played it for a week before moving to the next big release, the fun they had with that puzzle game via the “Continue Playing” section, encouraging them to go back and finish it.
Google Play Store Strategy
It forms part of the broader plan by Google to improve the overall user experience on the Play Store. In recent times, the company has been issuing a number of updates that make using the Play Store less complex and more intuitive. Other changes include launching newly installed apps automatically and including a dedicated tab for search, so users can find what they need more quickly.
But by throwing “Continue Playing” into the mix, Google is signaling loud and clear that the Play Store is not just a place of discovery of new apps and games but also a much more personalized space where people can manage and enjoy previously installed games.
This is in line with the current goal of Google in making apps easier to find and more useful to users, perhaps leading to longer play sessions on user engagement. It surely is a major interest of mobile game developers since they need user retention to keep their games alive and profitable.
When Is “Continue Playing” Available?
The “Continue Playing” feature, while still in the process of testing, has not gone live for everyone just yet. However, reports do indicate the feature is almost ready to go and could see a wider availability anytime soon.
Although the timeline is not very clear, since it’s already being tested and receiving positive feedback, that means it could well form part of the next big Play Store update. This is a feature that Android users would want to watch out for; after all, it promises an entirely different mobile gaming experience.
Re-engagement Possibilities
Continuing Play has some great potential for re-engagement. Users probably have installed lots of games over time, but those games get lost as newer titles and updates become more prominent. If you organize and surface these games, this section may allow users to rediscover some of their older games they may have forgotten and give them a second chance.
The result can be much higher satisfaction for the user and, thereby, completed game sessions. By suggesting players pick up where they left off, Google encourages a more seamless and enjoyable experience for users of games on Android.
Conclusion
All in all, the addition of “Continue Playing” in the Google Play Store becomes especially promising for those who have large collections of mobile games, as it allows them to easily get into games that have been forgotten for at least some time. Definitely, there is more of a possibility that games would be completed and one would have an overall good experience with casual gaming.
The addition of this feature to the Games tab of the Play Store is part of the numerous efforts Google is putting into place to enhance user engagement and elevate the mobile gaming experience. While “Continue Playing” is still a test feature, it certainly does have the potential to be among the most important ones on the Play Store: to help users get their game libraries straightened out, and to keep the experience of gaming fresh and pleasurable.
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