Apple gives a boost to iOS devs with 'Best New Game Updates'

Developers have long complained that the iOS App Store doesn't offer enough avenues for players to find games. Apple recently added a new discovery tool to its App Store with "Best New Game Updates" -- which should help players connect with games that are actively being worked on. Discoverability has been a primary concern for mobile developers for years -- and platform-holders have been slow to make changes to their store environments in response. Earlier this month, at its annual WWDC conference, Apple announced that further discoverability features are slated to come with this fall's iOS 8 release. For its part, Google's Greg Hartnell told Gamasutra yesterday that its Google Play Games service and SDK -- which works on both iOS and Android -- is tailored to increasing player engagement and game discoverability. [The update, which has been in place for a while, first came to Gamasutra's attention thanks to this tweet by mobile consultant Adam S. Gutterman. You can see a shot taken from the live App Store of the new section above, which allows users to sort the updates according to three criteria.]