Google Play Services 4.1 improves Drive, turn based multiplayer games

An update to Google Play Services, the backbone of Android, is getting an update today. Version 4.1 of Play Services brings improvements for turn based multiplayer games, Google Drive, and Google+.

Google Play Games finally supports asynchronous games like Draw Something. The update brings support for 2-8 players in a single session. Asynchronous gaming doesn’t require both players to be active to play so player moves will be sent to Play Services and sent automatically to friends you’re playing with.

Google Play Services 4.1 also brings a preview for the new Google Drive API for Android. The new API allows users to easily read and write files to Drive to be synced across multiple devices and the web. Drive is automatically updated as soon as a user has an internet connection.

Lastly, Google+ sharing is improved with Google Play Services 4.1 by offering auto-complete for contact names and suggested friends when you’re sharing. Google+ will search for everyone in your Circles as well as all the contacts you have on your devices.

The update is rolling out slowly and will update on your Android device automatically. For more information about how Google Play Services works, check out our explanation of how Play Services controls Android.

Source: Android Developers Blog

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