To port games to Android, it will require you to use some extra software and hardware depending to the game that you are porting. These hardware gadgets such as the intel x86 Atom cell phone, windows device emulator for Android, and other things will allow developers to translate their games into smartphones.
The trickiest part of porting a game is the compatibility with the tablet screen size so it would be best for developers to use mobile screens for their games. If a developer wants to port his/her game onto Android, he/she should be able to run several versions of that OS on the same PC at different resolutions just in case they want to target multiple devices such as tablets and mobiles or maybe an Amazon Fire TV stick.
Tips on how to port games to Android
1. PC ports to Android
This is the best way to start because once you port your game to Android, you can run it on almost all kind of devices such as smartphones, tablets, and even mobiles. Most of the PC to Android ports are released in form of an executable file that a developer is able to run using an Android emulator such as Genymotion. It is done by using an x86 Atom mobile phone or another Intel x86 Atom device which has a codriver driver that allows it to emulate mobile phones as well as other devices such as a windows device emulator for Android. It’s also possible to use different emulators such as the x86 emulator in order to run phone apps without having any hardware.
2. Game ported to Android
In this method, you need to create a game for Android by using some software that is mostly using java programming language. It’s important for the game developer to add new features such as the possibility of running on devices like tablets, smartphones, or even Amazon Fire TV Stick. Then it is necessary for him/her to use Genymotion or different emulator in order to test the game on his/her computer before uploading it on Google Play Store.
3. Using Genymotion for game porting to Android
This is the easiest way because it doesn’t require any software to be installed on your system except an Android emulator like Genymotion. It simply needs you to unzip the game file and run using Genymotion and it will automatically convert your game into apk files. This is a viable solution but it may take some days until the game is ready to be uploaded into Google Play Store. However, you can always use one of those newbie launchers that comes with google play store in order to run games without installing them on your phone or tablet so this is a fast and effective method if you don’t want to wait for several days or weeks.
4. Porting games to Android using the x86 emulator
This is a hacky way because it doesn’t require any advanced or technical knowledge in order to be used. It is possible to make this method work if you have the x86 emulator installed on your PC because it will run in the form of apk files that you can download from another PC using the latest version of Genymotion. However, this method requires that your game actually supports being run in .apk file format so if your game isn’t, then you may need to change some parts of the code depending on how much work is required for porting it.
5. Run PC games on Android using the x86 emulator
This method requires that you already have the x86 emulator installed on your mobile device. It works by loading the game into an .apk file and installing it in your Android device. The game will run slowly but it is possible for some games such as Hawken to run smoothly if you reduce their graphics settings. This method doesn’t require root because all you need is a PC simulator like Genymotion or an Android device that has a built-in x86 emulator and then use the original executable files to run them on your Android device. This method is currently supported by PCs like Windows, Mac, Linux, etc.
6. Port your PC game to Android using Genymotion
This method is the fastest and a relative cheap method because it doesn’t require any advanced knowledge. It works by the developer downloading an apk file from another PC using Genymotion and then he/she can run it on Android device. This method is supported by most of the recent Android phones and tablets and it doesn’t require any additional software to be installed on your system except Genymotion which is very user-friendly as it won’t affect your system in any way. You can always try other emulators as well but Genymotion seems to be the easiest to use if you want to use this method.
7. Porting games to Android using a PC emulator
This method may require the use of an Intel x86 Atom cell phone or an Android device that have a built-in Intel x86 Atom emulator. It works by converting your game into an apk file and then installing it on your Android device in order to be able to play it on your phone or tablet. Even though this method doesn’t require root, it will take several days until you can upload your game onto Google Play Store if you don’t have access to a mobile phone that supports running PC ports or if you aren’t willing to buy one. This method is one of the slowest methods because it requires that you run apk files on the simulator.
8. Porting games to Android using a PC emulator using Genymotion
This is the fastest method because it will take some minutes before you can upload it on Google Play Store. It works by creating an apk file from your game and then running it on your computer so that it can be uploaded onto your Android device. This method depends heavily on the PC version of Genymotion because you need to download the actual apk file from another PC using Genymotion in order to start playing in your mobile device asap.
In conclusion, you can use any of these methods to play your favorite Console or PC games on your Android device but the one that works best for you will depend on trial and error, personal preference and other factors.
