What you need to know
- Google’s new redesign turns the Play Store from a plain app shop into a tailored entertainment and gaming hub that serves up what you actually care about.
- The Apps tab now displays entertainment corners, seasonal spotlights, and curated content like trending shows, webcomics, and mobile dramas (rolling out globally after tests in India and Japan).
- With Guided Search, you can type your goal — like “find a home” or “deck-building games” — and Play’s AI organizes the best options for you.
- A single gamer profile now tracks stats and achievements across devices, and Gen AI Avatars let you show off your personality.
Google Play is getting a redesign built around personalization, and it’s more than just a fresh coat of paint.
Google announced today that the app store is shifting from a basic download hub to something closer to a personal entertainment and gaming companion, one that knows what you’re into and serves it up at the right moment.
First up, the Apps tab isn’t just apps anymore. It’s now a place to discover entertainment and seasonal content without digging. Google has been testing this idea — like India’s Cricket Hub and Japan’s Comics space — and is rolling it out globally.
The Play Store in Korea now has a dedicated entertainment corner loaded with mobile-friendly dramas, movies, and TV shows, while U.S. users can browse trending shows, webcomics, and bite-sized dramas right from the Apps tab.\
Seasonal spotlights will pop up in an immersive format tailored to your tastes. And if you’re tired of guessing keywords, Guided Search lets you type what you’re after (“find a home” or “deck-building games”), and Play’s AI will do the sorting for you.
Gaming gets unified
Gaming also got a big overhaul. Google Play Games is now a one-stop shop: unified gamer profiles track your stats and achievements across devices, and a Gen AI Avatar lets you show off your style.
Play Points rewards are now woven across mobile and PC, and Google is kicking off Play Games Leagues on October 10 with Subway Surfers. You can compete for rewards and bragging rights until October 23.
This comes a few days after Google announced that it’s rolling out new prizes and items for Play Points rewards in the UK.
The new Sidekick overlay, powered by Gemini Live, gives in-game tips without making you alt-tab for a walkthrough. DeepMind has been training Sidekick to actually understand game context, and select players will get early access in the coming months.
PC gamers aren’t left out either, as Google Play Games on PC is out of beta with a catalog of more than 200,000 titles, including Mecha Break, Subnautica, and soon, Deep Rock Galactic Survivor.
Finally, the brand-new You tab ties it all together, including your subscriptions, rewards, audiobook picks, and in-progress content in one feed. The rollout starts this week in select Play Points markets, with more countries coming October 1.