Google tool helps devs make their games play nicer with Chromecast

The mobile gaming world is ever-ramping up as more and more developers are starting to consider the Android operating system a serious gaming platform. However, there’s only just so much immersion you can get on a tiny screen (unless you go the VR route). That’s why Google is trying to convince developers to make their games more friendly to televisions via Chromecast. They’ve even released a plugin to simplify the process: the Google Chromecast Remote Display plugin.

The light plugin helps developers using the Unity Game Engine create a multi-screen experience for their project. For a lot of games, this could really open up the doors to a lot of interesting features that they might not have previously considered. It’s not just immersion that can be improved by casting mobile games. With visuals out of the way, the smartphone can become more of an input device. Google discusses the possibility of creating “abstract controls” that let users interact with the screen through motion and touch.

Alternatively, it’s possible to turn the smartphone into something like an inventory screen, allowing players to see what they’re carrying just by looking down. Google does warn, however, that from a player experience perspective, having players constantly looking back and forth from one screen to the other is fatiguing. Google has released a guidebook to help keep the Remote Display experience consistent.

If you want to know more about Remote Display, head over to Google’s blog post and download the plugin. Are you a developer with experience building for multiple screens? Let us know how this will affect your work in the comments.