Android Android Adaptive Icons for API 26+ 27+ 28+ 29+ (2.2.0 Runtime Fix, Tips, about Sizes, and more...)

[HW.]

Intro About API 26+ (in case you are still not "moving on" yet with older api 23/24/25....)
Google has published a timeline for mandatory API level adoption. Generally, API levels that are a year old will become mandatory for new and updated apps. This will begin in August 2018, when targeting API level 26 (Android 8.0, released August 2017) will be mandatory for new apps. A month later, the requirement kicks in for all app updates.

About ADAPTIVE ICONS -- new Standard!
Android 8.0 (API level 26) introduces adaptive launcher icons, which can display a variety of shapes across different device models. For example, an adaptive launcher icon can display a circular shape on one OEM device, and display a squircle on another device. Each device OEM provides a mask, which the system then uses to render all adaptive icons with the same shape. Adaptive launcher icons are also used in shortcuts, the Settings app, sharing dialogs, and the overview screen.

Urgent Case
So to update an app after August you need to use an adaptive icon. And this will be the case of ALL YOYO's GMS2 CONSUMERS who own the Android module licenses (and the 1.4. too of course), Therefore this should be quite a 100% priority for the future of the Android module of the GameMaker Studio.

Do we mind publishing and distributing our GMS2-powered game with an ugly as hell branding/label (app icon)? I believe all will answer of course not with ugly icon.

Okay so this is the detail for YoYo team:

OS/device including version:
Android devices with Android Oreo (8.0.0) or higher.

Issue description:
GMS2 does not support Android Adaptive Icons and Android's roundIcon (https://developer.android.com/guide/practices/ui_guidelines/icon_design_adaptive.html), therefore Android games exported from GMS2 do not have icons that adapt to the user's system settings. Since this is the new standard way of defining app icons on Android, I think GMS2 should support it too in the export options.

Steps to reproduce:
Run a game on an Android 8.0.0+ device and see how the icon does not adapt it's shape to the other app icons. The icon also doesn't animate like the other icons do when the user interacts with it.

Impact: UGLY as Hell,
very unpleasant to the eye! (the 50% and white bg == bad presentation to users)
If we still use legacy icons on Android Oreo and higher+, our game icon will be 50% half in size and with white background on it like the following examples:

(credit: image from other engine forum which i upload here as it describes well the case, text edited, and it looks like they have fixed on their engine, Well not try to compare, just to motivate: GMS2 shouldn't be left behind.)

n.b.1. references, pics, you can find tons of references on google search to learn more about adaptive icons)

n.b.2. BY THE WAY........... This adaptive icon, has been reported somewhere on this forum but that post is now buried and got little attention and the OP reported it as GMS 1.4 case, so i create a new one here, and this is for GMS2 as we know it is the future (1.4 sunset) with more details so YoYo team can examine better, thank you.

To ALL Android module owner, Please upload your screenshots here as more references for YoYo team.

There are several Reports/Feedbacks regarding this case from people so far:
@Genetix @splitter @SPGames (as seen on previous thread there.)
@Dxnxex (as seen on previous thread there-too.)

AND to all of you who is reading here and use the Android module, Please don't forget to help us to Submit ticket/bug report/ feature request to YoYo team so that this will be included in the next release.

Please help.. More reports are better so everyone please submit each of yours....okay?!, that is the standard way nowadays. I hope YoYo team or moderators with Android module division take a look at this.

Thank you all. Please bump this thread so that it gets priority later with your screenshots of the case and more information/references.

*Edited: add the link to the GMS buried post for reference. It has a screenshot too there.

I think version 1.4 Final and 2.1.5 should adopt this adaptive icon very very soon. (regarding one week to sunset or the countdown by Google itself)

API 26+ is mandatory in the coming next weeks....guys.. Prepare for it, Don't stick with old 23 24 25.....

"Final" is supposed to be working well, isn't it?

And with this also being applied to the 2.1.5 is what we expect from the new version update (GMS2 is the future isn't it?)

Please move on and say goodbye to the 23 24 25 api settings

We should! we know we are going to be enforced to do it since last year.

Once again, i repeat: 26+ mandatory in the coming weeks....

so adaptive icon should be supported very very soon in case "bundles of updates" want to be included at the end of this month as a "sayonara" last final stable working version?!

Your ticket has been created and is now in the support queue.

Your ticket number is: 146895

One of our Customer Service Technicians will be with you as soon as possible.

Thanks
YoYo Games

I have just submitted a support ticket regarding Adaptive Icons for API 26+.
Anyone owns GMS/2 Mobile module who also needs this, please help, please submit yours too!

Submit here: (Please help)
https://accounts.yoyogames.com/report-bug

Thank you so much.

 

[HW.]

BUMP (after 8days)
Got a reply by email few days ago, with no solution yet, at least please list it on the bug mantis list so we can monitor the progress.

GMS/2 is using 48dp icon on a 108dp icon (not a proper size to use), no surprise that is the white bg case being appeared on Oreo devices+ (target mandatory to publish on Play store), which is wrong.

Please fix the bug, by including the new adaptive icon format on the module in addition to the current old formats. It is now used by ALL Android dev users (26+), mandatory by Google.

All android export is going to target API 26+ the day after tomorrow...(already August 2018)

Other engines already implemented it, because already a year since 8.0 was launched,

When is GMS/2,

why not yet ?

We are waiting for it.

This is killing our brand image (game icon) on the devices, "why this little thing isn't being cared for a year?, said the players on the specific device, lead to uninstall".

Help! Only YoYo can modify the module runtime isnt it?, we are looking forward to it, please help.

Helloowww....anyone

@Dan Sorry to tag, just saw you as YoYo staff on this forum appeared today, Could you please help to check this, ticket number is: 146895

This is not just for me, for ALL GMS/2 Mobile Module (Android export) devs to publish their games (Target API 26+ mandatory by Google).

 

[The-any-Key]

Again? Google keep change things a lot these days. Seems I will leave my old Android games behind me to its fate and skip Android export overall until this is resolved.

 

[Mert]

Again? Google keep change things a lot these days. Seems I will leave my old Android games behind me to its fate and skip Android export overall until this is resolved.

I strongly agree with Google's decision. An app must have a minimum set of quality. Also, complying with newer APIs is for the security and performance concerns.

Also please bring consent SDK for Google Ad extension(Google Play Services extension)

 

[2Dcube]

Doesn't new Android adoption rate start at something like 5%?

Until YoYo gets their (admittedly shamefully late) update together, it should be fairly simple to implement yourself.
You can add lines to the manifest with an extension, and you can simply add icon images to the right folders in the extension. I've implemented multi-language icons this way.

 

[HW.]

Doesn't new Android adoption rate start at something like 5%?

Until YoYo gets their (admittedly shamefully late) update together, it should be fairly simple to implement yourself.
You can add lines to the manifest with an extension, and you can simply add icon images to the right folders in the extension. I've implemented multi-language icons this way.

Did you already implement adaptive icons? Please share the way to do it, perhaps a thorough guide on how to that ourselves in the meantime with some screenshots (where to patch, any codes, which folder, name or resolution, etc) please?

This should be YYG job to do by the way (BASIC minimum thing of the export modules using the mandatory new API), but in my case and others, in some of my games, i have a majority of Oreo users (30% or more). This is killing my app if not resolved. And with the mandatory is already starting now in August, this Oreo+ users will increase faster than before (already since 2017). I really need it to prevent uninstall from users.

 

[2Dcube]

I haven't implemented adaptive icons yet but I will share it once I do. It might be a month before I get to another app update though.

 

[HW.]

Daniel Cleaton @Dan from YYG wrote an article to implement this by modifying the 2.1.5 runtime ourselves, in the meantime we're waiting for the next release:
--> https://help.yoyogames.com/hc/en-us...ive-Icons-into-Projects-Made-with-GMS2-v2-1-5

@Dan, You already posted that link to the Google dev doc page, and I think that it could be better to mention on the page a "warning" that the adaptive size is now in 108dp (different with the normal 48dp). So that we don't get the wrong size, here are the adaptive sizes should be 2.25 times of the regular icons:

Based on the 108 dp the Google design guideline at https://medium.com/google-design/designing-adaptive-icons-515af294c783

the normal non adaptive size:
ldpi 36x, mdpi 48px, hdpi 72px, and so on..(if we use the same for adaptive, it will be half /or in possible case enlarged but blurred? because too small : 48dp vs 108 dp)

If we use a dp to px calculator to convert the 48 dp to 108 dp,
there are many tools online, ex. http://labs.rampinteractive.co.uk/android_dp_px_calculator/

Here are the adaptive icons sizes of the both background/forefround image dimensions should be:

ldpi = 81 px
mdpi = 108 px
hdpi = 162 px
xhdpi = 216 px
xxhdpi = 324 px
xxxhdpi = 432 px

And the "mask" of the foreground is said to be maximum of "72 dp" which will be cropped by OEM, the whole size still 108 dp, "72 dp only the max mask safe zone", and "in pixels" they are:

@Dan, i hope this extra information about the adaptive icons dp/px sizes could be helpful for YYG team to add support for doing this into Game Options > Android > Icons for the next GMS2 IDE release (with the adaptive 108 dp sizes for API 26+, instead of current normal icon 48 dp for API 25 and below).

Thanks for the in the meantime 2.1.5 fix article!

 

[HW.]

It looks like it is not coming in 2.2.0
so sad

am looking forward to the 2.2.1 to include this.

Oh man.... months to wait again..
so sad.

Anyway,
has anyone successfully implemented the icons tips and how does it display on a physical oreo+ device (not emulator) from the various brands (samsung,htc,lg,xiaomi,oppo, et cetera) ?

After doing the manual runtime patch, The Lint reports talks about duplicate drawable icons warnings bla bla bla..... (i haven't finished my project to include all of the pieces yet, but i already tried to only compile the patch tips to see how it goes, and it seems the new v26 adaptive folder are injected in the apk along with the normal folders, but i don't know how it will display correctly or not on targeted oreo device because several of my current physical phones are on marshmallow/nougat now, until i get an oreo+ soon to test it)

My installed device test so far: after doing the manual patch, the new folders are included in the apk with some lint warnings, when i installed the apk to my physical non-oreo devices, the standard icon is displayed as usual (as expected for non oreo), so that is still half of the test, but for oreo+ i don't know yet... thats why i am asking from other users how is the patch working on an oreo (not emulator)? I am curious now.... until i get my hands on my own oreo test device soon.

hmm...
"In the meantime" again,

Has anyone else finally seen the adaptive icons successfully implemented without any errors by using the "in-the-meantime--runtime-patch-tips"?

Please share ur screenshot if possible.. (and please describe with little notes of what specific OEM device brands (samsung,htc,xiaomi,etc) or device api you are using (the install device and gm compile setting), because the adaptive icons seem to display variously, also according to the OEM implementation from our own apk implementation).

In the meantime (until it is built-in on the runtime by YoYo officially next time so that we don't need to do it ourself, manually, for each apk, each patch), your following posts (screenshots and notes) could be some of additional QA Tests from us to us on GM Community forum who are using GM2 Android export for our published apk icons to be presented well for game players. Thanks.

 

[Pano]

Hi @HW. , after some test I have my adaptive icon that works.
Following the Dan's guide create images of 108x108dp; even foreground images have to be 108x108dp but only a center square of 66x66dp will be showed in the icon (see this: https://medium.com/google-design/designing-adaptive-icons-515af294c783).
See attached image to understand what I see on my Sony Xperia Z1 Compact with a custom 8.1 ROM.

 

[HW.]

@Pano Thx for your test. so the fix is working in Xperia Z1 with 8.1.

I see your icon has no "forced white background" on it, so the OEM can read the adaptive folders as expected right?

So what i understand from your screenshot and ur post: your background is opaque (nontransparent) in dark grey, and foreground is the 4-squares with transparency, right? and both with the same size. (@108dp == ldpi.81px~xxxhdpi.432px).

 

[Pano]

@Pano I see your icon has no "forced white background" on it, so the OEM can read the adaptive folders as expected right?

yes

So what i understand from your screenshot and ur post: your background is opaque (nontransparent) in dark grey, and foreground is the 4-squares with transparency, right? and both with the same size. (@108dp == ldpi.81px~xxxhdpi.432px).

yes exactly....

 

[Andrey]

I attached the template markup for creating icons. Might come in handy...

 

[Guest User]

Okay, so does anyone here know how to fix the issue with the adaptive icons? The adaptive icons are not changing to the new style I generated them to.