"GMS2 versions 2.2.4 and above target the newer AndroidX system of common functionality, rather than the older Android Support Library system. Accordingly, any extensions which use the old Support Library now need to be updated in order to remain compliant with Google Play requirements and the expectations of the GMS2 2.2.4+ runtimes.
Please be aware we don't offer custom advice for how to port a third-party extension to the new Android build system, and so we won't handle support tickets about this (you will just be asked to make a GMC thread with your questions), but here is a list of resources you might find useful if you have issues updating your extensions. This page will grow as we hear of issues and find more resources we can highlight."
The newer runtimes are broken for now, I'm looking into how to install or disable AndroidX but I'm having no luck. I've tried to disable it in gradle.properties but no luck. I can't even find where to download AndroidX.
you might be having the same problem, in the output log it should say:
"> Could not find method implementation() for arguments [androidx.legacy:legacy-support-v4:1.0.0] on object of type org.gradle.api.internal.artifacts.dsl.dependencies.DefaultDependencyHandler."