Proof of concept for an Xamarin Android project
See below for how to create an Xamarin Android app that references a library that can be referenced by any other .NET project. That relationship will allow you to develop game logic against the library instead of Android directly, so we have a clear separation of UI and implementation. Additionally, if you ever choose to create a desktop or web app, you can reference the same game logic lib and won't have to duplicate any unnecessary code.
- Download VS 2019 Community (https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/downloads/)
- Make sure when prompted, you install the "Mobile development with .NET" module
- Launch VS 2019 and select "Tools>Android>Android SDK Manager..."
- If it prompts you for a repair, click 'Yes', 'Agree', etc.
- Also make sure you have the matching SDK version of your Android phone selected. If not, select it and click "Apply".
- You can view your phone's Android version under "Settings>System>About" (this varies by manufacturer so may be different for you).
- While in your phone, also enable Developer Mode. Again, this varies by manufacturer, but it's usually tapping the version number 5 or 7 times.
- Plug your phone into your computer via USB, making sure that debugging mode is enabled.
- Go back to VS 2019 and click "File>New>Project".
- Select "Android App (Xamarin)"
- Choose project name, file location, etc. You will also be prompted for app type and version. I'd recommend "Navigation Drawer App". The version MUST match your phone's Android version!
- Click "File>New>Project" and add a "Shared Project" to the solution (make sure it's the C# one and not the Visual Basic one).
- Again prompted for project name and location. This is going to be the project that houses all the application agnostic game logic, so I'd name accordingly.
- Also make sure you select "Add to solution" instead of "Create new solution".
- To add the Shared project as a reference to the Android project, Right+Click on each project in the 'Solution Explorer' and select "Add>Reference...", then expand "Shared Projects" and select your Shared project.
