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AdMob: Add SSV Options For Rewarded Ads In Godot

Alex Johnson
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AdMob: Add SSV Options For Rewarded Ads In Godot

Enhance the security of your rewarded ad implementation in Godot by adding Server Side Verification (SSV) options. This article explores the need for SSV, the current limitations of the Godot AdMob plugin, and a proposed solution to enable secure and reliable reward attribution.

The Importance of Server Side Verification (SSV) for Rewarded Ads

Server Side Verification (SSV) is a crucial component of a secure and robust rewarded ad system. It provides a mechanism to validate ad rewards on the server-side, ensuring that rewards are only granted for legitimate ad views. This process is vital for several reasons:

  • Binding Reward Callbacks to Authenticated Users: SSV enables you to reliably associate reward callbacks with authenticated users. By passing a unique user identifier (user ID) along with the ad request, you can accurately map rewards to the correct user account on your server.
  • Validating Reward Legitimacy: SSV allows you to verify that rewards are genuine and not the result of fraudulent activities. Your server can use the data provided by the ad network, such as the user ID and custom data, to validate the reward claim and prevent abuse.
  • Supporting Multiple Environments: SSV facilitates the management of different environments, such as development, staging, and production. By using custom data to identify the environment, you can ensure that rewards are correctly processed in each environment.

Without SSV, you are forced to rely on less reliable methods of reward attribution, such as matching by timestamp. These methods are prone to errors and can be easily exploited, leading to inaccurate reward distribution and potential financial losses.

Current Limitations of the Godot AdMob Plugin

The current Godot AdMob plugin lacks the ability to set Server Side Verification (SSV) options for rewarded ads. While the plugin allows you to load and display rewarded ads, it does not expose an API to configure the user ID and custom data required for SSV.

Specifically, the following limitations exist:

  • No SSV Configuration API: The plugin does not provide a method to set the GADServerSideVerificationOptions or serverSideVerificationOptions on GADRewardedAd and GADRewardedInterstitialAd objects. These options are essential for passing the user ID and custom data to the ad network.
  • Limited Access to RewardedAd Object: When a rewarded ad is loaded, the plugin only provides an ad_id and response_info through the rewarded_ad_loaded signal. There is no direct access to the underlying RewardedAd object, which would allow you to configure SSV options directly.

This lack of SSV support significantly hinders the ability of developers to implement secure and reliable rewarded ad systems in their Godot games. Without SSV, developers are vulnerable to fraud and inaccurate reward attribution.

Proposed Solution: Adding SSV Options to the Godot AdMob Plugin

To address the limitations of the current Godot AdMob plugin, we propose the following solution:

  1. Add Methods to the Native Plugin:

    • Implement native methods on the AdmobPlugin singleton to set the SSV options for rewarded ads and rewarded interstitial ads.
    // Pseudocode / Objective-C-ish
void set_rewarded_ad_ssv_options(String ad_id, String user_id, String custom_data);
void set_rewarded_interstitial_ad_ssv_options(String ad_id, String user_id, String custom_data);

  2. Expose Wrapper Methods in GDScript:

    • Create thin wrapper methods in the Admob.gd script to expose the native SSV configuration methods to Godot developers.
    func set_rewarded_ad_ssv_options(ad_id: String, user_id: String, custom_data: String) -> void:
    if _plugin_singleton == null:
        Admob.log_error("%s plugin not initialized" % PLUGIN_SINGLETON_NAME)
        return
    if not _plugin_singleton.has_method("set_rewarded_ad_ssv_options"):
        Admob.log_error("set_rewarded_ad_ssv_options() not supported by native plugin")
        return
    _plugin_singleton.set_rewarded_ad_ssv_options(ad_id, user_id, custom_data)

func set_rewarded_interstitial_ad_ssv_options(ad_id: String, user_id: String, custom_data: String) -> void:
    if _plugin_singleton == null:
        Admob.log_error("%s plugin not initialized" % PLUGIN_SINGLETON_NAME)
        return
    if not _plugin_singleton.has_method("set_rewarded_interstitial_ad_ssv_options"):
        Admob.log_error("set_rewarded_interstitial_ad_ssv_options() not supported by native plugin")
        return
    _plugin_singleton.set_rewarded_interstitial_ad_ssv_options(ad_id, user_id, custom_data)

  3. Configure SSV Options After Ad Load:

    • In your game code, configure the SSV options immediately after the ad is loaded, using the ad_id provided by the rewarded_ad_loaded signal.
    func _on_admob_rewarded_ad_loaded(ad_id: String, response_info: ResponseInfo) -> void:
    # Example: set SSV options for this loaded ad
    if Auth.user and Auth.user.id != "":
        Admob.set_rewarded_ad_ssv_options(
            ad_id,
            Auth.user.id,
            "PROD"  # or per-environment custom data
        )

    # existing logic...
    rewarded_ad_loaded.emit()

This solution provides a simple and effective way to enable SSV for rewarded ads in Godot. By exposing the necessary API methods, developers can easily configure the user ID and custom data, ensuring secure and reliable reward attribution.

Benefits of the Proposed Solution

Implementing this solution offers several significant benefits:

  • Enhanced Security: By enabling Server Side Verification, you can protect your game from fraudulent activities and ensure that rewards are only granted for legitimate ad views.
  • Reliable Reward Attribution: With the ability to pass a user ID, you can accurately map reward callbacks to the correct user accounts, eliminating errors and improving user satisfaction.
  • Flexible Environment Management: Using custom data, you can easily manage different environments, such as development, staging, and production, ensuring that rewards are processed correctly in each environment.
  • Improved Data Analysis: SSV provides valuable data that can be used to analyze ad performance and identify potential issues. By tracking user IDs and custom data, you can gain insights into user behavior and optimize your ad strategy.

Conclusion

Adding API support to set Server Side Verification (SSV) options for rewarded ads and rewarded interstitial ads in the Godot AdMob plugin is crucial for enhancing the security, reliability, and flexibility of rewarded ad implementations. The proposed solution provides a straightforward and effective way to enable SSV, empowering developers to create secure and engaging rewarded ad experiences.

By implementing the proposed solution, you can protect your game from fraud, ensure accurate reward attribution, and gain valuable insights into user behavior. This will ultimately lead to a more sustainable and profitable rewarded ad strategy.

For more information on Google AdMob and Server Side Verification, please visit the official Google AdMob documentation.

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