I am addicted to Clash of Clans. I love setting up my clash of clans bases strategically to see if it pans out; I just love everything about the game.
I just checked the usage reports on my iPhone, and do you want to know what one of the biggest CPU/Battery users was for the past month? (Not that it drains resources, just that I play it that much.) When I’m on the bus, waiting in line, taking a break… I’m playing Clash of Clans. I even like to play it at home, but then I run into a problem: when I’m at home, I don’t want to stare at my iPhone screen. I’ve got a nice computer, with some great specs, and a killer, high-resolution monitor, and here I am spending all of my down time at home on my phone?
No, I still want to play Clash of Clans, but I want to be able to play it on my computer. Fortunately, there are a lot of option for emulation of mobile platforms out there — even online emulation. But it’s tricky to get an emulator set up just right. If you’re like me, know you’re not the first person to want to play Clash of Clans online but run into tons of problems from running the app to trying to login to your account to pick up where you left off.
But believe me, you won’t have to worry after you follow the steps below because I’ve got the very best tricks to keep you playing CoC any- and everywhere you want to be. However, keep in mind that there are pros and cons to the methods below that I’ll outline.
I’ll also provide you in depth options for both PC and Mac depending on your computer of choice and an option to play CoC directly from a web browser without having to download any app player.
“I used to game a lot, you know, back in the day. My gaming time done got so short that my skills ain’t where they need to be to be online, you know what I’m saying? I just got that Xbox One. I gotta get my skills back, up the par to call myself a gamer.” – Ice Cube
What Is Clash Of Clans Online
Clash of Clans was created by one of the hottest mobile app gaming companies, Supercell, as their first app out on the market. The creators were veterans in the gaming industry and sought out to create a game that people would want to play for years. Eventually, they came up with the incredibly popular Clash of Clans. Clash of Clans (or CoC, as it’s called amongst devotees like myself) is a tactical combat came, which finds you building armies, invading neighboring towns, and (most importantly) managing the resources you need to keep your defenses high and your armies in production. Added into all of this, there’s a multiplayer element, as you’re not limited to going up against pre-generated baddies, but can also try your tactics against another player’s defensive set-up (and they’ll try the same against yours).
Unfortunately, Supercell has decided to concentrate on mobile gameplay and haven’t branched out yet to desktop options. If you imagine the number of people around the world with a smartphone, you can imagine that the market for mobile gaming is incredible. Therefore, Supercell has focused on creating hit after hit only for iPhone and Android. And smart phone saturation is so high at this point, it’s not entirely clear if there will ever come a point when it is fiscally advisable (let alone necessary) for Supercell to port CoC over to other platforms.
Indeed, there has been no word as of yet that Supercell is in the works creating a desktop version of their game so that we all can play online. Which is merely annoying for those of us who have smart phones, but really frustrating for those who don’t, yet still want to get in on this gaming sensation everybody’s into now. My guess is that a full online version of the game is at least a few years out and potentially longer if the company decides to continue to focus on creating new content for mobile platforms.
My hunch is that we will never see a Supercell Clash of Clans online game given the potential in apps and their tendency to be very limited in releasing to different platforms. For instance, the game is not available for Windows Phones or Blackberry.
Android Emulator To The Rescue!
The upside is that we can now use Android emulators to give us the ability to “trick” an app into believing it’s being run on Android but it’s really on a PC or Mac. Emulation of various hardware set ups is by no means new. It had a real golden age in the 90s, when development teams (usually just one or two people on a labor of love) put together emulators to let people simulate their favorite obsolete console games on their computer. That more and more game publishers see this market and have begun to release digital ports of their classic (but otherwise out-of-print) games has obviated the need for much of this form of emulation, but it has nonetheless paved the way for the present day emulation of mobile platforms. This gives us almost unlimited options to play and run apps online all the while running on an Android platform.
There are multiple options that I’ll cover below. Basically, you can download the emulator onto your computer and then download the CoC app to run. Alternatively, you can use an online emulator that will run on a web client such as Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Internet Explorer, etc.
Online Clash Of Clans Using Manymo
The first option that I would recommend is using Manymo that is basically an online emulator. You won’t have to download the emulator at all since it’s all run on a web browser.
This is a great option if you’re on a work computer where you’re not supposed to download any software that isn’t approved. It’s also a good idea if you are at an internet cafe where you really aren’t allowed to download anything and can only browse online.
TIP: Before starting, you will need to create a Google Play account. Basically, if you already have a Google account you can just head over to play.google.com and from there you can login with your current Google account. This will be required for you to download and access the Clash of Clans app to upload or install onto the emulator. Login is completely free so you don’t have to worry about paying.
To get the Manymo emulator up and running all you need to do is follow these steps.
- First, you’ll want to make sure you create a Google Play account and head over to the Google Play site. From there, search for Clash of Clans and download the .apk file to your desktop to use later.
- Then, head over to Manymo and sign up for an account. You won’t be required to pay anything up front but may need to pay down the road, which I will discuss below.
- Once you have a Manymo account click on Launch Emulators at the top right to see the list of the available emulators to launch. I would recommend choosing one that is similar to the resolution of the computer you’re using so you can maximize the screen size.
- From there, click on the Launch With: App button at the top right. This will pop up with a dialogue to upload the Clash of Clans apk file so that you can play on Manymo.
- Upload the app and you will be able to start playing CoC online. If you have an account with Manymo you won’t have to upload it every time so it makes it easier after multiple sessions.
One thing to keep in mind is that you can use Manymo for free initially but if you use it often you will eventually have to pay for the service. The reason is because the Manymo servers are running your emulator and they need to pay the bills to keep the servers functional.
Clash Of Clans – PC & Mac
The next option that I would suggest is what I personally use to play CoC on my Mac when I’m at home and don’t want to play on my phone. This option is great because it’s completely free and you won’t need to go through the process of registering for a service and launching the online emulator every time.
Keep in mind that you will still need a Google Play account for this to work as well because you will need the emulator to sync with your Google Play account and allow you to download Clash of Clans to play.
There are a variety of options out there for Android emulators that run on a PC or Mac. I personally have the best success with Andyroid and recommend using them. I’ve tried BlueStacks but it is very buggy and I’ve heard a lot of people complain about it not working with their graphics card.
Andyroid is relatively new to the Android emulator scene but they are well funded and have a superior product compared to the competition. The main thing I appreciate is that it just works and requires very little computer knowledge and is easy to setup. To get Andyroid up and running follow these steps.
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- First, head over to Andyroid and download the emulator. The site should recognize automatically if you’re on a PC or Mac and download the corresponding software.
- Once it’s downloaded, double click to go through the installation process. Make sure you just continue to click ok and allow it to finish installing.
- Launch Andyroid and you will notice it takes a little longer initially but will be faster after the first launch. You will see a screen that looks just like a fresh install of Android.
- Next, you will need to login to your Google Play account so that Andyroid can access it. Make sure you allow the emulator to go through the 1 click sync process as this makes using Andyroid much easier down the road.
- Once you login to your account, you will want to click on the Google Play icon at the bottom.
- From there, click on the search icon and search for Clash of Clans. Click install next to the app and this will install it onto your emulator desktop.
- You’re now ready to play Clash of Clans.
See below for tips on transferring your game from your iPhone or Android over to the emulator so you don’t loose all of your previous work.
Link Clash of Clans To Multiple Devices
The next thing you’ll want to do is link your CoC account to your previous smartphone as well as your new emulator. To do this make sure you have not made any in app purchases or else these may not transfer over. Also, you will want to make sure you set it up before being at Town Hall level 4.
To transfer the game you will need to make sure it’s connected to your Game Center if you’re on an iPhone or Google+ if you’re on Android. You can check to make sure they’re connected by opening CoC from the Game Center app on your iPhone. On an Android make sure you click the Google+ sign in button when you connect accounts in the settings.
Now, to transfer your village from your iPhone or Android to the emulator, follow these steps.
- Make sure your Clash of Clans app is open on both devices and go to the in game settings on both devices.
- In the settings, you will notice an option to “link a device” at the bottom as seen in the screenshot below.
- Select the old device that you want to move your game from, and the new device you want to move your device to.
- You will then need to select whether you want to transfer the village from iOS to Android or Android to Android. You will always transfer it to an Android device since you want to run the app on an Android emulator.
- You will then need to enter in the device code from the old device onto the new one and validate it. You may need to wait a bit for it to be copied over and for you to be able to play on the new device.
- Once this is done, you will be able to play your village on both devices!
You’re now ready to play Clash of Clans online and hopefully have everything setup and ready to rock! Let us know if you have any other ideas or tips that you have found helpful. Also, we appreciate if you share this post with your friends so everyone can play CoC no matter whether they’re on a smartphone, desktop, or laptop!
