I'm looking for this because I'm curious to know if an Android app with an Open GL ES 3.0 renderer is relevant nowadays. And Godot 3.0 have some interesting new features for my project but as you probably know this version have a renderer who works with GL ES 3.0 only.

I didn't find a recent answer with Google. Maybe it's due to my lack of english vocabulary.

Unity has some stats: https://hwstats.unity3d.com/mobile/gpu-android.html

But I'm not sure wjat they mean with "DX11" on the android platform. Maybe Open GL ES 4 or Vulcan?

Anyway, it says that you'll miss out on 34.4% of devices with OpenGL ES 2.0 at the moment.

But this could be differen when Godot 3.0 releases. Be it in 12, 15 or 24 months. Who knows... ;-)

@wombatstampede said: But I'm not sure wjat they mean with "DX11" on the android platform. Maybe Open GL ES 4 or Vulcan?

probably ES 3.2 and ES3 / DX10 is likely ES 3.1

@Shin-NiL said:

Source: https://developer.android.com/about/dashboards/index.html

This is why I have no plans to use Godot 3.0 :(

I read many times that Godot 3.1 will have a second renderer for GL ES 2.0.

I would like to see this renderer as the only priority of the 3.1 version, but the Godot devs usually plans huge roadmaps for every single stable release. Because of that they will have to maintain two Godot parallel branches for months :/

Yeah, for Android developers this is a no go by while. My phone, for example, just runs OpenGL ES 2.0. I think most people is not aware of this fact yet.

Maybe the developers hope that by the time godot 3.1 will be released the share of 2.0 devices got neglectible low so they can skip that part. ;-)

@wombatstampede This is probably what will happen :D

@Shin-NiL said: Yeah, for Android developers this is a no go by while. My phone, for example, just runs OpenGL ES 2.0. I think most people is not aware of this fact yet. Don't most high end smartphones already support 3.0 already and have for awhile? My S8 support 3.1.

@Rukiri said: Don't most high end smartphones already support 3.0 already and have for awhile? My S8 support 3.1.

This is true: any high-end device released after 2014, and many mid-range devices released after 2015, support GLES 3.0. Most of the 2016 flagships also support OpenGL ES 3.1, and Vulkan may be supported by a few already. (I'm however not aware of any mobile device supporting OpenGL ES 3.2, the latest specification to date. The Android dashboard stats do not track it yet, too.)

The problem is that most mobile developers, in order to maximize their target audience (and due to the nature of the Android device ecosystem, which wildly varies in performance and software versions/support), try to target even old, low-end devices (which can have visible impacts on the final game's visuals, even for higher-end devices). While the Godot developers can re-add a GLES 2.0 renderer, it will be a lot of work not only to create, but also to maintain since we'll have two supported renderers (GLES 3.0 and GLES 2.0).

The issue is analog to, for example, Web browsers: unless you have a very large budget, you have to make a choice between supporting old browsers (likely at the cost of user experience), or focusing on improved visuals and user experience for users with modern browsers, excluding users of old browsers in the process.

@Calinou said: While the Godot developers can re-add a GLES 2.0 renderer, it will be a lot of work not only to create, but also to maintain >since we'll have two supported renderers (GLES 3.0 and GLES 2.0).

Nowadays the contributors already have to support two Godot branches, 2.1 and 3.0. Many people will complain when they find out that their phone does not runs the amazing Godot 3.0. What to do ? They will support two Godot parralel branches until the GL ES 2.0 spreading rate falls under 20 % ? Or they will support just two renderers ?

@Rukiri said: Don't most high end smartphones already support 3.0 already and have for awhile? My S8 support 3.1.

You're right, if you're targeting high end devices this won't be a issue. As @Calinou said, the choice depends on your main target.