Google Playground is the successor to Google's AR Stickers which launched alongside the Google Pixel 3 and the Google Pixel 3 XL. Playground may seem like just a rebrand of AR Stickers on the surface, but there are a few key differences: characters can interact with each other, suggestions for stickers will appear based on what's showing on the screen, and stickers can now be placed via the front-facing camera. There are also new stickers packs like the Marvel sticker pack, but they only work on Google Pixel smartphones. Thanks to the work of XDA Senior Member Arnova8G2, however, you can now get Google Playground on all ARCore supported devices that are running Android 9 Pie—without even needing root!

Google Playground sticker packs include:

  • Marvel Studios Avengers
  • Pets
  • Signs
  • Sports
  • Stranger Things
  • The Last Jedi
  • Travel
  • Weather

Google Playground working on the Samsung Galaxy Note 9

The ported Google Playground app only runs on ARCore supported devices, which includes more and more smartphones every month. Before a new Android smartphone can support ARCore, Google has a very involved process which involves working directly with device makers to ensure complete compatibility. If your device doesn't have ARCore support yet, there's nothing to say that it won't in the future. Google has a list of all supported smartphones, which you can check out here. Interestingly, Arnova8G2 says he's working to find a way to get ARCore working on devices that haven't been certified yet. That means that even if your device isn't supported, you might get to try out Google Playground in the future.

Download Google Playground Port for ARCore Compatible Devices

You'll first need to the latest version of ARCore. You can download ARCore on the Google Play Store below.

Google Play Services for AR Developer: Google LLC
Price: Free
3.8
Download

Once ARCore is installed, simply install Arnova8G2's modified Playground APK from the link below.

Download Google Playground for all ARCore devices

Mirror (Google Drive)

Lastly, to actually use the stickers, you'll need a working Google Camera port. You'll be able to access Google Playground just like on a Google Pixel with all Playmojis working. ARCore is a cool technical concept although it doesn't have a lot of uses in the real world yet. Even Playmojis are more of a gimmick. Still, you can give it a try and have some fun with it!

Credits: XDA Senior Member Arnova8G2 for sharing his work on our Google Camera Mods forum. We recommend following this XDA thread for all the latest updates on his ports.