Building Android Mobile Game Using Python | Good or Bad?

Can We Build Android Mobile Game Using Python?

To be Precise to this question…

YES!

You can build the Android App using Python.

But the real question arises… Is it a good choice to make the Android App using the Python programming language?

As per the reports from The Statistics Portal, Google Play Store recently placed at 3.3 million Android apps (including mobile games) in September 2017. Firmly, it is the Android market. You can see the craze of developers developing mobile applications and honing their career as the fascinated App developer.

How many of them have developed their Android application in Python?

There are so many programming languages, developers are using to build mobile applications and games. There is Java for Android Application development, Swift for iOS development. Recently Google has launched Kotlin as its main programming language for Android.

All these programming languages are dedicated to a particular operating system. You can not use Kotlin for iOS development. You can not build an Android App using Swift.

Looking at my experience in App development (Not so much though).

I remember, using Brew technology to develop a mobile application. Even to display “progress wheel”, I was used to write around 500-600 lines of code. You might be thinking why did I do that? That was the first project assigned to me for my first job being an App developer.

And as expected, I did not do well, seeing all my colleagues developing fancy Android and iOS applications with just a few lines of code.

Later, I jump to Python…

Being a Python developer, just like you, I was curious to know if I can build my mobile game application using Python. Or again it will hold me back?

I have curated complete Python tutorial. But when it comes to answering this question, I was stuck. To find if my world is right, I started reading and doing some study.

Before sharing my study and knowledge on this subject, you should aware…

How is Game App different from other mobile Applications?

As per my prior experience of working on mobile applications development, developing Game is not easy as much as any other mobile application…

There are lot many things come into consideration while developing a mobile gaming application…

• The game requires high-end graphics.
• It uses lots of resources.
• It should be interactive without lacking speed.
• Most importantly, You can not afford to have an even single memory leak as smartphones have very limited memory resource to provide you.

If you don’t work on these factors, your Gaming application can hang the user’s smartphone. And the user hates it the most.

You can not hang your self while enemy chasing you, right?

To satisfy all the Gaming requirement, you should need your app running faster.

One of the biggest constraints about GAME is that… It has a limited resource available, whether if its memory resource, graphics, data buses or taking user input… And smartphone OS have to share these resource with other running applications as well.

What are the challenges of developing a mobile application using Python?

Python is slower than most of its competitive programming languages like C/C++, Java…

I would better say, it is the only challenge because there are so many areas where Python have feathers in its crown…

To throw the fact, most of the Python libraries are build on C programing language. Python looks like the wrapper on top of compiled C programs. This is to make the Python modules work faster.

So to get on to the point… YES! You can develop an Android application using Python. But, it is not the best choice if we compare to other programming languages to develop the Android app.

There are lot many things you can do with the Python, but developing a solid Android game does not come in Python bucket.

Java programming language is the most preferred for developing an Android application. Google also launched Kotlin as its programming language for Android application development.

Many beginners indulge in Python in a dream of developing an Android application. It is mostly because of Python is far simpler to start with… And on another end, Java is the real challenge to learn if you don’t have previous programming experience. But it worth teaching yourself Java for developing an Android application.

As you are reading this post, you might be good at Python (or maybe decided to learn Python). You can make a simple Game using Python (not recommend developing high graphics games).

The real strength of the Python is the module. It makes your programming easy and precise even for smartphone application development.

Is there a Module for Developing Android Mobile Game using Python?

Kivy: It is the most evaluated module for developing the mobile application so the GAME. Advantages of using Kivy module

• It is open source.
• You can develop the cross-platform application.
• It also gives surety for GPU acceleration, so the good for graphics.

If you make your mind to develop an Android mobile game using Python, Kivy is the best choice.

Final Word Taking over Python Vs Java for Android Game Development:

If your application requires high graphics as like GAMING applications or if you are looking to elevate your application in the competitive market, just take time and rethink your choice.

And again, developing an Android application is not an easy deal. If you want to develop your own mobile application, bear with Java. For being in full-time android development, learn Java. For iOS game development, teach yourself the Swift programming language. Native programming languages are always superior to use for high-end mobile game development.

You might have so many question pumping in your mind as it is an open discussion about developing Android mobile game using Python. You might have your own opinion. Feel free to write the comment. I would love to make fruitful discussion and I am sure it will help many other readers.

If you like it, do share this article with your friends.

Happy Pythoning!

Aniruddha Chaudhari

I am a Python enthusiast who loves Linux and Vim. I hold a Master of Computer Science degree from NIT Trichy and have 10 years of experience in the IT industry, focusing on the Software Development Lifecycle from Requirements Gathering, Design, Development to Deployment. I have worked at IBM, Ericsson, and NetApp, and I share my knowledge on CSEstack.org.