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Google Play Games is the latest way for mobile gamers to play games on PC, but is it better than BlueStacks?
Both offer mobile games you can play directly on your PC, and one option comes directly from Google. So, you would think the answer is pretty straightforward. But surprisingly, you would be mistaken.
If you would just like a basic answer and don’t feel like reading a ton of words: we believe BlueStacks 5 (the current version) is better than Google Play Games.
That’s our very basic answer currently. But, we’ll break down each option to give a better explanation.
Google Play Games vs BlueStacks
In this section, we’ll break down what each platform provides to explain our reasoning above.
We have spent many hours with BlueStacks and have started to really explore Google Play Games, as well. This is how we’ve determined that BlueStacks is ultimately a better way to play mobile games on PC.
BlueStacks
BlueStacks is one of the OG Android emulators, and it shows in its polish. The onboarding experience is great and it provides a full Android experience on PC.
Players can download almost any Play Store Game. And if that isn’t enough, they can download something like TapTap to discover even more great games.
There’s really not much to dislike about the Android emulator. You can even use different instances to help manage your many games.
If there is one detractor, it’s that lower-end PCs can struggle to run BlueStacks. But, the company has thought of that too, as you can download BlueStacks 10, a cloud-based emulator to handle some of the load.
Google Play Games
Google Play Games (GPG) features a polished UI and an easy onboarding system. But, the platform misses the mark on arguably the most important part – the games.
Sadly, GPG doesn’t allow full access to Google’s vast library of games. You also can’t install app stores like TapTap on it to increase the number of games.
Then, to top it off, out of the 40+ games on Google Play Games, many are pretty basic titles that aren’t going to be appealing to many users. There’s also a surprising number of casino games available, as well.
It’s not all bad, though. Because of the curation method used, games run smoothly on Google Play Games, and keyboard and mouse support has been extremely solid in our experience.
Google Play Games isn’t terrible, BlueStacks is just better
Google Play Games isn’t bad. It’s a decent platform that will most likely get better over time. The curation system is limiting, but it does mean a solid PC experience every time.
But when it comes to Google Play Games vs BlueStacks, there is a clear winner.
Right now, however, it’s hard to recommend Google Play Games when options like BlueStacks (and Nox Player) exist.
The freedom they provide mobile gamers is just better, and it is much easier to get all the mobile games you want on PC.
