iOS 9.3.2 Beta Reportedly Fixes 'White Screen of Death' Game Center Bug

[MacRumors]

A long-standing bug in Game Center that renders many games unplayable has reportedly been resolved in the latest public beta of iOS 9.3.2.

Game Center for iOS is a necessary component of many turn-based multiplayer App Store titles, which rely on Apple's social gaming network to enable gamers to invite friends, start multiplayer matches, and compete for high scores.

The bug, which first appeared in iOS 8, affects many popular games of the sort and involves the Game Center app launching as a white screen, crashing games to a white screen, and/or the Settings app freezing when Game Center's options are selected.

TouchArcade forum member and journalist Craig Grannell's video of the bug in action.​

MacRumors sister site TouchArcade, which has a thread in its forums discussing the bug spanning over 75 pages, now notes that the 'white screen of death' bug appears to have been resolved, although given the long-standing nature of the problem, gamers remain understandably wary.

Well, community members of ours who are brave enough to install beta iOS system updates have reported that Game Center is once again working for them in the iOS 9.3.2 beta. Now, before getting too excited, it's important to have a hefty dose of realism with all this: The Game Center bug is a vicious beast, and many people on our forums have thought they slayed it, only to have it return inside of a couple days. I'm cautiously optimistic, but by no means ready to strike up the band and declare the Game Center bug fixed.

The latest posts on the forum thread suggest that Apple's latest beta has resolved the problem for many affected users, although claims of official confirmation from Apple that the bug is fixed remain unsubstantiated.

Apple released the first beta of its upcoming iOS 9.3.2 update to public testers last Thursday, just a day after seeding the beta to developers.

Those who want to be a part of Apple's beta testing program can sign up to participate through the beta testing website, which gives users access to both iOS and OS X betas.

Beta testers who have signed up for Apple's beta testing program will receive the iOS 9.3.2 update over-the-air after installing the proper certificate on their iOS device.

Article Link: iOS 9.3.2 Beta Reportedly Fixes 'White Screen of Death' Game Center Bug

 

[bushido]

speaking off, i havent opened this app since iOS 6 or so. I assume it still does not sync ALL games automatically to the Cloud which would be the only reason to use it?

 

[Simche]

Wow, was a while I saw Game Center! Didn't know it still existed xD

 

[KALLT]

speaking off, i havent opened this app since iOS 6 or so. I assume it still does not sync ALL games automatically to the Cloud which would be the only reason to use it?

It does not sync anything, just achievements of games that have them. Game saves are synced separately with iCloud or something else.

 

[John Mcgregor]

What's a game centre?

 

[SMIDG3T]

Apple should get rid of Game Center and simply embed it in the apps themselves, not sure if that's possible but that'd be a lot better.

 

[XTheLancerX]

Does this fix the issue in having? All my supercell games such as clash of clans say I'm not logged into Game Center under the friends list so I can't view my friends bases or anything. Sort of strange.

 

[Thunderhawks]

Game center is a big bag of hurt!

 

[Boatboy24]

White Screen of Death + Game Center does not equal 'Bug'. That is a significant upgrade.

 

[babaroga73]

This bug occurs to me at my Apple TV 4 ... I did override it for a couple of days (with instructions from interwebs) , but it comes back stubbornly. "Cannot log in Game Center" , every other login works as expected. What it does, is that some games sync progress through it, so I can't play a game on one device and continue on another. Also, some games use it to save progress . eg. Jetpack Joyride. Annoying as hell.

 

[supremedesigner]

It doesn't work on my iPad trying to sync Clash Royale.

 

[EM2013]

I wonder which new bug will take its place.

 

[Burger Thing]

Game Center.

The iTunes Ping equivalent for Gaming under iOS.

 

[myrtlebee]

I really hope so. Has not been working on my 5S since January. Apple advertises Game Center as something given as part of buying an iOS device, and yet we are not getting what we paid for. I understand software glitches, but this has been happening for too long. And for those wondering, yes I called Apple and have since been in regular contact with a specific employee who has been talking with the engineers.

 

[Glideslope]

What's a game centre?

Microsoft Surface 4

 

[Oblivious.Robot]

I honestly don't recall ever opening that app, not just in recent memory but almost ever.

 

[pat500000]

White window of death. Apple is being too Microsoft ish

 

[vooke]

I've opened it but I just can't see its value

 

[mikesch]

In previous betas, I used to report this bug several times. Yesterday, I received an email by Apple telling me that the engineering team has implemented changes to fix this issue.

 

[imnotthewalrus]

Only time I'm ever even aware of Game Center is the 2 or 3 times I have to cancel it after getting a new phone or restoring an old...
I have always wished Apple would make it an optional download. I will never use it.

 

[Mike MA]

I would have forgotten game center entirerly, yet it wouldn't be activated again with every iCloud sign-up on my iPhone or iPad...

 

[ryanissamson]

Like iTunes and a host of other apple apps, Game Center is one that has no clear purpose.

 

[Beenblacklisted]

over under on a 9.3.3 update by the end of the month?

 

[Datalinks]

Game what?

 

[2457282]

Just to repeat what others are pointing to -- what exactly is the point of Game Center. I have never used it except that when I download a game I can use my Game Center log in for the game. This is certainly a service that Apple needs to do something with, like homekit. Services that really don't seem to do a whole lot.