Gamemaker Studio -> launch html from local - android -> short contract

Hello coders.

We have an educational game that we have made in gamemaker studio. One of the requirements is to have the game launch a video in an html file to explain a concept in the game. Their is a function that downloads the files to included files in the game on the device and the html page is launched locally and the user can watch the video over and over again. This works just fine on Windows export, but on the android export it is not working. I can get the browser to launch but the video won't play and I am at a stand still.

What I am asking for is a dev who can assist on this function and get the browser to launch and play a locally hosted file.

As far as remuneration goes, this is negotiable as a flat rate for the delivery of the working function. Cash on delivery or what ever makes you feel more comfortable.

I am in Cape Town, but we could do this remotely. If you are in Cape Town you can also get a beer out of the deal. (maybe 2 beers, but if you are driving, no more!)

Help me Obiwan, you are my last hope.

Kind regards
Johno

Comments

  • Hey,

    I haven't really done mobile stuff in a while, but IIRC mobile is designed as a sandbox so one app can't really access data from another. This means the web browser shouldn't have access to the files of another app.

    I think you'd need to play video from inside the app itself, but I don't think GM does that natively, but there might be an extension for it on their store or something.
  • Thank you Karuji for the response. I am by no means an expert, so my thinking may be waaaaaay off the mark.
    What you are explaining tells me that I can't target the included files even with a browser launched from the app itself, so my options could be to save the mp4 into the downloads/globally accessible folder and reference it from there with the browser? or would the same restrictions apply? (sorry, this isn't really a comment for the Jobs section as I am asking for free advice now).

    The extensions on the store have caused me pain and suffering they promise such riches only to have my victory plucked away at the last moment.
  • Well my thinking is more of a "Why use a browser?"

    There are a bunch of extensions on the GM asset store that let you play video inside the game itself. So no real need to launch a browser and so on :)

    Now I've never used any of those extensions. And I'm not all that sure how well they work on mobile. Buuut hopefully this is the right direction for a good solution to your problem :)
  • I am using the browser because I couldn't the extension for Android that can play the video in the game.
    I found extensions for windows and the like, but not Android.

    If you can point me to the right one, the beer offer remains in force...aye with pizza and dancing girls (ok, there will not be any dancing girls - I got too excited for my own good).
  • My two suggestions to you would be:
    1.) Animate the tutorials/about animations in game using the sounds from the video (First prize).
    2.) Link to a YouTube video so it can play in the browser.

    The reason I think there are more extensions for Windows than Android (speculation, please correct me if I'm wrong) is that there are more graphics libraries you will be able to reliably find on Windows as opposed to Android, and even then the user might not have the correct codecs installed.

    The only way to reliably play video would be to write your own video player (either in game, or as an extension) which is an absolutely massive undertaking. Even Clash of Clans links to YouTube videos when new content is released, and you know they have the time and budget to write a dedicated video player for their games.

    Personally, I think an interactive tutorial (written in game) is by far the better solution, and it may well prove to be easier than trying to get video working on mobile.

    Good luck :D
    Thanked by 1Karuji
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