Play Managed Publishing

This document shows you how to publish your game on Google Play Games on PC using Play Managed Installation.

With Play Managed Installation, Google Play manages the installation, update, and uninstallation of the game using the game files and metadata you provide in a Windows app bundle (WAB) file.

Before you begin

Integrate the Google Play Games SDK into your game.

Package your game as a WAB file

To create a Play Managed Installation WAB file, follow these steps:

Download the Play publishing tool. You can run this tool on the Windows command line or Powershell.
Create the Play publishing config file, with any name. For example, play_publishing_config.xml with the following format:
```
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<play-publishing-config version="1.0">
  
  <application>
    <package-name>PACKAGE_NAME</package-name>
    <version-name>VERSION_NAME</version-name>
  </application>

  
  <game-files>
    <file-set>
      <root-folder-path>PATH_TO_ROOT_FOLDER</root-folder-path>
      
      
      <exclusions>
        <file-path>REGEX_PATTERN_OF_EXCLUDED_FILES</file-path>
        <file-path>PATH_TO_BE_EXCLUDED</file-path>
      </exclusions>

      
      <file-attribute value=FILE_ATTRIBUTE_VALUE>
        <file-path>PATH_TO_FILE</file-path>
        <file-path>REGEX_PATTERN_OF_FILE_ATTRIBUTE_FILES</file-path>
      </file-attribute>
    </file-set>
  </game-files>

  
  <launch-command>
    <path>PATH_TO_LAUNCH_FILE</path>
    <arguments>ARGUMENTS</arguments>
  </launch-command>

  
  <lifecycle-operations>
    
    <install-operation requiresElevation=INSTALL_OPERATION_REQUIRES_ELEVATION>
      <operation-identifier>OPERATION_IDENTIFIER_STRING</operation-identifier>
      <execute-file>
        <path>PATH_TO_INSTALL_EXECUTE_FILE</path>
        <arguments>ARGUMENTS</arguments>
      </execute-file>
    </install-operation>

    <install-operation requiresElevation=INSTALL_OPERATION_REQUIRES_ELEVATION>
      <operation-identifier>OPERATION_IDENTIFIER_STRING</operation-identifier>
      <update-registry baseKey=BASE_KEY>
        <sub-key>SUB_KEY_PATH</sub-key>
        <value-name>VALUE_NAME</value-name>
        <value type=REGISTRY_VALUE_TYPE>VALUE_TEXT</value>
      </update-registry>
    </install-operation>

    
    <uninstall-operation requiresElevation=UNINSTALL_OPERATION_REQUIRES_ELEVATION>
      <execute-file>
        <path>PATH_TO_UNINSTALL_EXECUTE_FILE</path>
        <arguments>ARGUMENTS</arguments>
      </execute-file>
    </uninstall-operation>
  </lifecycle-operations>
</play-publishing-config>
```
Replace the following:
- PACKAGE_NAME: The package name for your game. This is the unique identifier that will be associated with your game on Google Play. For example, com.yourcompany.yourgame. The package name must adhere to the following rules:
  - It must have at least two segments (one or more dots).
  - Each segment must start with a letter.
  - All characters must be alphanumeric or an underscore ([a-zA-Z0-9_]).
- VERSION_NAME: The game's version string. This can be an arbitrary string, but it must be unique across all uploaded WABs for your game. For example: 1.0, 1.0.1-beta, 2025.11.24, v1.rc1.
- PATH_TO_ROOT_FOLDER: The path to the root folder containing your game files. All files in this folder, except those mentioned in exclusions, are added to the bundle. This path can be absolute or relative to the directory containing the play_publishing_config.xml file.
  
  Note: Except for PATH_TO_ROOT_FOLDER, all file paths specified in this XML configuration can be relative to PATH_TO_ROOT_FOLDER or absolute paths.
- exclusions: (Optional) Specifies file paths or patterns for files within PATH_TO_ROOT_FOLDER to exclude from the bundle. You can include multiple file-path elements within the exclusions element. A path can be represented in one of two ways:
  - As a file path: Path to the file to exclude.
  - As a regex string: All files that match the regular expression string are excluded from the bundle. Use RE2 syntax.
- file-attribute: (Optional) Defines attributes for specific files or files matching a regular expression pattern.
  - FILE_ATTRIBUTE_VALUE: Can be one of the following:
    - SKIP_UPDATE: During an update, this attribute tells the system to copy the file only if it's not already present, preserving any changes to an existing file.
    - MODIFIED_ON_DEVICE: Use this for files that must be updated, but could be modified on the device after installation. The system downloads the full new file and overwrites the installed version during an update. If this file is different from the installed version during installation integrity checks, the installation is not considered corrupted.
  - file-path: Identifies files for this attribute. You can include multiple file-path elements within each file-attribute element. Each path can be represented in one of two ways:
    - As a file path: Path to the file to associate this attribute with.
    - As a regex string: All files that match the regular expression string are associated with the attribute value. Use RE2 syntax.
- PATH_TO_LAUNCH_FILE: Path to the executable file used to launch the game.
- ARGUMENTS: (Optional) Command-line arguments. The <arguments> element is used to pass arguments to an executable file specified in <launch-command>, <install-operation>, or <uninstall-operation>. Each use of the <arguments> element applies only to the executable it is defined alongside, allowing you to specify different arguments for different executables.
  - If an executable has multiple arguments, separate them with a space.
  - Prepend arguments with -- or - if the executable requires it. Example:
```
<arguments>--package_name --version_name</arguments>
```
- lifecycle-operations: (Optional) Custom actions to perform during game installation or uninstallation.
  - install-operation: An action to run when the game is installed. You can specify two types of install operations: execute-file and update-registry.
  - uninstall-operation: An action to run before the game is uninstalled. update-registry operations are automatically reverted during uninstallation.
  - INSTALL_OPERATION_REQUIRES_ELEVATION: Indicates whether the install operation needs to run with administrator privileges.
    - "true": Run as Administrator.
    Warning: Displays a UAC prompt for the gamer.
    - "false": Run as the current user. This is the default if unspecified.
  - UNINSTALL_OPERATION_REQUIRES_ELEVATION: Indicates whether the uninstall operation needs to run with administrator privileges.
    - "true": Run as Administrator.
    Warning: Displays a UAC prompt for the gamer.
    - "false": Run as the current user. This is the default if unspecified.
  - operation-identifier: A unique string to identify an install-operation.
  - execute-file: Runs an executable file.
    - PATH_TO_INSTALL_EXECUTE_FILE: Path to an executable to run during installation.
    - PATH_TO_UNINSTALL_EXECUTE_FILE: Path to an executable to run before uninstallation.
  - update-registry: Creates or updates a Windows registry entry.
    - BASE_KEY: Defines the root key to be used in the Windows registry. Accepted values: HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT, HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG, HKEY_CURRENT_USER, HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, HKEY_PERFORMANCE_DATA, and HKEY_USERS. When performing an update-registry operation, set requiresElevation="true" on the parent install-operation based on the baseKey used:
      - HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE or HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG: Set requiresElevation="true".
      - HKEY_CURRENT_USER: requiresElevation="true" is not needed.
      - HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT: Set requiresElevation="true" only if writing to machine-wide sections; it is not required for user-specific sections.
      - HKEY_USERS: Contains profiles for all users. Set requiresElevation="true" when modifying profiles other than the current user's (e.g., other users or .DEFAULT).
    - SUB_KEY_PATH: This represents the path to a specific key within the Windows Registry, nested under the main baseKey.
    - VALUE_NAME: This specifies the name of the data entry you want to modify within the designated sub-key.
    - REGISTRY_VALUE_TYPE: This attribute specifies the data type of the value being written to the registry. Supported values are STRING for a string or DWORD for a 32-bit number.
    - VALUE_TEXT: Data to be stored in the registry key.
Note:
To include blocks of text with special characters that shouldn't be parsed as XML markup, use a CDATA section. For example:
```
<file-path><![CDATA[file path with special characters <>]]></file-path>
```
Note: Verify that any game binaries you provide are targeted to run on either x86 or x64 architectures. Binaries for other architectures are not supported.

Important: Regular Expressions for File Paths:
When using regular expressions to specify file paths (For example, for exclusions or attributes), it's crucial to use forward slashes (/) as directory separators. This is because the tool internally normalizes all file paths to use forward slashes, regardless of your operating system.

Backward slashes (\\) should only be used for their standard purpose in regular expressions: escaping special characters.

Example: To exclude log files like test_failed1.log, test_failed2.log within a testing directory:

Correct: testing/test_failed\d\.log
/ is used for the directory.
\d matches any digit.
\. matches a literal dot.

Incorrect: testing\\test_failed\d\.log
Using \\ as a path separator here will conflict with RE2's interpretation of \\t and \\d as escape sequences, leading to unexpected behavior.

For more examples, see How to use regular expressions.
How to use regular expressions

You can use RE2 syntax regular expressions in file-path tags to apply exclusions or file attributes to a group of files. Remember to use forward slashes / for directory separators, and to escape special regular expression characters with a backslash \. For example, use \. to match a literal dot ., or \d to match a digit.

Here are some common examples:
- Match all files with a specific extension (For example, .log) in any directory
  Use .*\.log to match any path ending with .log, like game.log or logs/errors.log.
  <file-path>.*\.log</file-path>
- Match all files and subdirectories within a specific folder (For example, 'temp')
  Use temp/.* to match all paths that start with temp/, like temp/data.txt or temp/saves/file.sav.
  <file-path>temp/.*</file-path>
- Match files matching a pattern in a specific folder
  Use assets/level\d\.dat to match assets/level1.dat, assets/level2.dat but not assets/other.dat.
  <file-path>assets/level\d\.dat</file-path>
- Match a folder name when it appears anywhere in the path
  Use .*/cache/.* to match files under any directory named cache, like game/cache/file.txt or temp/cache/other.log.
  <file-path>.*/cache/.*</file-path>
- Match files with one of several extensions (For example, .ini, .cfg, .sav)
  Use .*\.(ini|cfg|sav) to match any file ending in .ini, .cfg, or .sav, like settings.ini, config.cfg, or saves/slot1.sav.
  <file-path>.*\.(ini|cfg|sav)</file-path>
- Match files with a specific extension in specific directories (For example, .ogg in music/ or sfx/)
  Use (music|sfx)/.*\.ogg to match any .ogg files that are located under either the music/ or sfx/ directories, but not elsewhere. Matches music/level1.ogg or sfx/explosion.ogg, but not voice/intro.ogg.
  <file-path>(music|sfx)/.*\.ogg</file-path>
Example Play publishing config file

Here is an example play_publishing_config.xml for a game called TestGame:
```
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<play-publishing-config version="1.0">
  <application>
    <package-name>com.test.package</package-name>
    <version-name>1.0</version-name>
  </application>

  <game-files>
    <file-set>
      <root-folder-path>C:\Users\Username\game-files</root-folder-path>
      <exclusions>
        <file-path>mock_game\d\.exe</file-path> 
        <file-path>deprecated_graphics</file-path> 
        <file-path>.*\.log</file-path> 
      </exclusions>

      <file-attribute value="SKIP_UPDATE">
        <file-path>settings.ini</file-path>
      </file-attribute>

      <file-attribute value="MODIFIED_ON_DEVICE">
        <file-path>game_assets\d\.zip</file-path> 
      </file-attribute>
    </file-set>
  </game-files>

  <launch-command>
    <path>launcher_test_game.exe</path>
    <arguments>--launch-arg</arguments> 
  </launch-command>

  <lifecycle-operations>
    <install-operation requiresElevation="true">
      <operation-identifier>elevated-execute-file</operation-identifier>
      <execute-file>
        <path>install_file.exe</path>
        <arguments>--arg</arguments> 
      </execute-file>
    </install-operation>

    <install-operation requiresElevation="true">
      <operation-identifier>elevated-update-registry</operation-identifier>
      <update-registry baseKey="HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE">
        <sub-key>SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\TestGame</sub-key>
        <value-name>InstallLocation</value-name>
        <value type="STRING">C:\Program Files\TestGame</value>
      </update-registry>
    </install-operation>

    <uninstall-operation requiresElevation="true">
      <execute-file>
        <path>uninstall.exe</path>
        <arguments>--test-arg</arguments> 
      </execute-file>
    </uninstall-operation>
  </lifecycle-operations>
</play-publishing-config>
```
Run the Play publishing tool on the Windows command line or Powershell, using the build-bundle command:
```
playpublishingtool.exe build-bundle --input=PLAY_PUBLISHING_CONFIG_PATH --output=WAB_OUTPUT_PATH
```
To overwrite an existing WAB file with the same name, use the --force argument.
```
playpublishingtool.exe build-bundle --input=PLAY_PUBLISHING_CONFIG_PATH --output=WAB_OUTPUT_PATH --force
```
Replace the following:
- PLAY_PUBLISHING_CONFIG_PATH: The path to the Play publishing config. For example, path\to\play_publishing_config.xml.
- WAB_OUTPUT_PATH: The path to the WAB file. For example, path\to\output_bundle.wab.
Important: The WAB filename in the --output must have a .wab extension.

Note: The --input and --output paths can be absolute or relative with respect to the current working directory.
How to use Play publishing tool

If you have playpublishingtool.exe, play_publishing_config.xml, and your game files in game_files/ in the current working directory:
```
.\
├── game_files/
├── play_publishing_config.xml
├── playpublishingtool.exe
```
To create pmi_bundle.wab in the same directory, run:
```
playpublishingtool.exe build-bundle --input=play_publishing_config.xml --output=pmi_bundle.wab
```
While the tool builds the bundle, you will see a progress bar on the terminal:
```
Building bundle: [====       ] 40%
```
On success, you should see output similar to the following:
```
Building bundle: [===========] 100%
Successfully built the managed install bundle at pmi_bundle.wab
```
Find the WAB file in the folder:
```
  .\
  ├── game_files/
  ├── pmi_bundle.wab
  ├── play_publishing_config.xml
  ├── playpublishingtool.exe
```

Play Managed Publishing Stay organized with collections Save and categorize content based on your preferences.

Before you begin

Package your game as a WAB file

How to use regular expressions

Example Play publishing config file

How to use Play publishing tool

Play Managed Publishing