I added Google Play Services version 2.0.0 to my project, but during game testing, sign-in doesn’t work. In the canvas, I’m displaying the sign-in status text, and it always says “Canceled.” The editor version is 6, all settings in the Play Console and Google Cloud are correct. I tested with both SHA-1 keys, and nothing happens—there’s simply no response when trying to sign in. Has anyone encountered this issue?
Adding here for future reference.
Why Authentication Fails with Google Play Services (and How to Fix It)
If you’ve ever run into authentication errors while working with Google Play Services, chances are it’s due to a mismatch in your SHA fingerprint. Here’s a quick breakdown of how it works and what you can do to resolve it.
How Google Verifies Your App’s Requests
Whenever your app sends a request to Google Play Services, Google checks to ensure it’s coming from an authorized source. This is done to:
- Confirm that only verified apps can access your game’s data.
- Prevent malicious actors from spoofing requests and tampering with your backend.
What’s a SHA Fingerprint, Anyway?
A SHA fingerprint is a unique string generated from the keystore used to sign your app’s executable (APK or AAB). Think of it as a digital signature that helps Google identify and trust your app.
Different Builds, Different Fingerprints
The tricky part is that the SHA fingerprint changes depending on how your app is built and signed. Here’s a quick comparison:
| Build Type | Keystore Used | SHA Fingerprint |
|---|---|---|
| Debug Build | debug.keystore |
Unique SHA |
| Release Build (Manual) | Your release keystore | Different SHA |
| Play Store Download | Google’s signing key | Another SHA |
How to Fix It
Find Your SHA Fingerprint (Using keytool or from play console based on the environment)
Add SHA Fingerprints to Your Google Play Console
Final Tips
To save yourself hours of debugging:
- Make sure you register all relevant SHA fingerprints for each build type you use — debug, release, and Play Store.
- Update them anytime your keystore changes.
It’s a small detail, but getting this right makes your app’s connection to Play Services smooth and hassle-free.
What you need to do to ?
For each executable-keystore pair there will be a SHA. Just make sure the SHA for that executable is added in the play console.
For more information have a look here (from tutorials of Essential Kit plugin). Irrespective of the plugin you use, same rules apply.
Cheers,
VB Team
Hello!
I have a question: what would cause (on Android) the Play Games account to silently sign-in while, at the same time, GameServices.IsAvailable() and GameServices.Authenticate() to return that the service is not enabled?
My goal is “simply” to get a user authenticated so that I can reliably get their display name. Am I perhaps using the wrong approach?
Note: I setup the SHA and all that (but I am currently using no leaderboards nor achievements).
And I also get [com.voxelbusters.essentialkit.cloudservices.CloudServices:onSyncronizeFinished] Finished syncronizing... Error = Unable to login to google play services : Not allowed to force relogin.
If you are getting service is not enabled, one of the below reasons can be true.
- You might have not enabled the feature in our essential kit settings or
- You have aggressive code stripping which strips our classes (pls let us know which unity version you are on as our plugin is compatible with all stripping settings).
Try our GameServicesDemo scene once.
Once you call Authenticate in the scene, it should allow you to login. If you get an error message, most likely your SHA setup is wrong.
You can contact our discord support(Essential Kit’s) for quick help.
Thanks,
VB Team
Hello, thank you!
If the sign-in pop-up (from Google) still get showed, does that mean that something is indeed working?
I have enabled the toggle for Game Services and Cloud Services. Before I didn’t set up the SHA on google and I got a different error, after adding the message changed.
I will explore the code-stripping but the settings are default regarding to that.
Is there any other setting that I need to enable for this? Btw, by enable, I mean that the toggle is ON in the Player Prefs for Game Services.
If you see the login popup with your player profile icon and username, It means sha setup should be fine.
May I know what actually is the error? If you try our GameServicesDemo and let us know what doesn’t work, it’s easy to find out what could be wrong.
Thanks,
VB Team
Ok, here are the results of the testing with the GameServicesDemo:
- In Unity, it “works” → shows “You” as display name.
- On Android, I get AuthStatus: NotAvailable when clicking “Authenticate()”
- Also “[com.voxelbusters.essentialkit.cloudservices.CloudServices:onSyncronizeFinished] Finished syncronizing… Error = Unable to login to google play services : Not allowed to force relogin.”
What’s interesting is that the Play Games toast popup with my user shows up nicely when the app starts. So, something is clearly working. (The “Hey, there XXX” message)
My goal is just to be able to do the following:
- Get a Display name and local user Id
- Be able to do cloud save/sync across devices
This is what I have:
- Game Services feature toggled ON
- Play Services Application ID set
Did you finish the oauth setup on cloud console? Also please share the complete logcat log to have a look.
Thanks,
Ayyappa
Yes, I did. How do I validate that it is complete?
As the app starts, the Play Games sign in works automatically but not if I try to authenticate.
I have published the cloud project, setup the SHA1, oauth, verified ownership, etc. Can’t figure out what’s missing.
P.S. No major logcat output to report.
Ok. I would request to connect on discord to closely look into the case.
Meanwhile, please create an apk with GameServicesDemo scene alone and I will DM you the email id to add as a tester to test on my end for reproducing the issue.
Thanks,
Ayyappa,
VB Team
Is there any sort of debugging I can do on my side? I feel this is a black box and I would love to know how to figure it out myself.
For instance, how to check the response from Google to see if the issue is SHA1/GCloud related or some other setup issue? Can you tell me what code to edit for debugging?
P.S. After reading you mentioning adding testers, I realized that I had added my 2nd phone as a normal tester but not as a Play Games tester. That fixed the issue…
I guess that should definitely be in the docs, otherwise people might waste time like I did 
Unfortunately, there is no standard way to check the SHA error as some devices throw the log with expected SHA, many devices don’t.
However, glad you got it resolved. Yes, testers section in Play Services section is specifically for testing this feature. I will make a note of the testers section if it’s helpful.
Update: I just noticed we mentioned about the testers section over here. But anyways, I will make it more explicit and focused! Thanks for suggesting!
I added this hint along with the existing info to highlight.
If you are sure the SHA fingerprints are setup correctly, make sure your testing email account is listed in the play services testers list in google play console.
Thank you so much for the support! You are doing a great job 
I was trying to find what was giving me the “authentification status : canceled” error and this is what fixed it for me.
Hi everyone,
I’m currently facing an issue with Google Play Games Services sign-in in Unity. The login flow always ends with Google Login Fail (Canceled), even though I’ve double-checked the configuration.
Here’s what I’ve already verified:
- Correct SHA-1 (both upload & app signing) added to Google Cloud Console
- Using the official Google Play Games plugin (v2.x)
- App is signed and installed from Play Store (internal testing)
What I’m unsure about is the Data Safety / OAuth configuration in Google Play Console.
Since Google Play Games authentication relies on Google Cloud OAuth, I selected OAuth in Data Safety → Account creation. However, Google Play Console then requires a Delete Account URL, even though:
- My game does not have a custom account system
- I only use Google Play Games for authentication (no email/username/password stored by me)
My questions are:
- In Data Safety, what options did you choose when using Google Play Games only?
- Did you select OAuth, or “My app does not allow users to create an account”?
- Did anyone experience sign-in being canceled due to missing / incorrect Delete Account URL or Data Safety setup?
I’m wondering if Google is rejecting the request because it’s not considered an authorized source, as Google verifies every request sent to Play Games Services.
Any insight or real-world setup examples would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Can you share the complete logcat log to look into?