The Complete Guide to Game Center on iOS

Posted 09/13/2010 at 12:52pm | by Cory Bohon

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Games List



With Game Center, the game list is where all the action happens. This screen will show you all of the games you have installed that are Game Center compatible. In addition, you can see your ranking and achievements for each game. If you're interested in seeing all the games available in Game Center, Apple finally updated Find Game Center Games to launch the App Store.

When you tap on an individual game, you’ll get more information like Leaderboards, Achievements, and Recently Played.

Recently Played shows you which if your friends has recently played the selected game and how long ago they played it.

Leaderboards

Leaderboards shows your rank among your friends and your ranking among all players. If the game supports Multiplayer, you will have two Leaderboards, one for the single player game (called Main) and one for the multi-player mode (called Multiplayer Scores). Leaderboards can be sorted by Today, This Week, and All Time.

Achievements

Achievements shows specific in-game achievements that you can earn for a particular game. You can also gain points by completing different achievements, but this is defined on a per game basis. At the top of the achievements screen for a particular game you will be able to see how many points you’ve gained.

Multiplayer

Games that support multi-player modes is really where you will see the Game Center shine. Developers can include VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) audio chatting in multi-player matches that can make the game experience feel more like Xbox Live than a mobile device.

Inviting Someone to a Multiplayer Match

To invite someone to a multi-player match, both players must have the same game installed on their iOS devices. Once you open the game and attempt to start a new multiplayer Game Center match, you will be presented with a screen with various match options.

Different games will allow you to have a different number of players, our particular game let us choose 2 players. By default Game Center will select the Auto-Match option that will pick any player at random, but if you wish to play someone in your friends list, tap the small Invite Friend button to the right of each available slot.

When you choose to invite a specific friend off your friends list, you will first need to choose the gamer name from the list of names in your friends list, then type a quick message to them. When you are done, click the Send button. An invite will be sent to the player.

You will then be returned to the multiplayer game settings where you can choose another friend by selecting the Add Player button, or remove a friend by tapping Uninvite next to the player you no longer wish to play with. When the player accepts your friend request, you will receive a notification in the player slot and you can begin the game by selecting the Play Now button.

Depending on the game you are currently playing, you may be able to do in-game VoIP. This allows you to talk with your opponent in real time, and because the audio is being transmitted over the Internet, you will not be using your cellular minutes, and the audio could sound crystal clear (depending on your Internet connection). Refer to the App Store page of the game you’re playing to see if this feature is supported as not all games do.

Checking Recent Multiplayer Scores

You can keep track of the last time you played a multiplayer game against a friend by opening Game Center, clicking on Games and navigating to the game you recently played. After tapping on the game, tap Recently Played. Your recently played friends list will be displayed.

If the person you invited doesn’t have the game on their iOS device, they will be able to either cancel the invite or purchase or download the game on the App Store. Game Center will direct them to the appropriate App Store version of the game.

Tips and Tricks

Use Multiple Game Center Accounts

Do multiple users play games on your iOS device? Don't want to let them destroy your Game Center reputation by playing and submitting scores for games like "My Pretty Pony"? No problem, Game Center has you covered. Just go to the Me tab in Game Center and click the Account button near the bottom of the screen.

An alert will popup asking what you want to do. Select Sign Out.

Your account will be signed out and you will be returned to the Game Center Welcome Screen where you can create a new account or sign back into your Game Center account. By doing this, you can ensure that your leaderboards, scores, and friends will be separate from other players that use your iPhone or iPod touch.

Add Multiple Email Accounts for Friends to Find You By

Because Game Center allows you to search for a friend by their email address, Apple gives you the ability to add more than one email address to your Game Center account. This will allow friends to add you by whichever email address you give them. Find out how to manage multiple email accounts in Game Center by reading our post by Roberto Baldwin.

Have another Game Center tip or trick that we didn't cover? Let us and other Mac|Life readers know in the comments below.

Follow this article’s author, Cory Bohon on Twitter or battle him on Game Center. His user name is: coryb