Thanks. I will try this again when I have the mental patience for it.
My computer has so many APK files that won't delete because the only tutorial I can find on Youtube is over 5 years old and the creator isn't responsive.
But to answer your other questions;
I am using RPG Maker MV and trying to upload to Itch.io.
Later, I will need to upload to the app store.
If you already have the .apk, you don't need android studio. That's why I'm confused, but let's go by part.
It's one thing to create the .apk using rpg maker, it's best to consult directly on the official rpg maker forum or if you consult here, you must be clear. Your problem is how export a rpg maker MV game to Android.
I'm not saying this to annoy you, if not, because by asking clearly what you need, it's easier for people to answer you.
To create the .apk you need the android SDKs, which you can download using android studio (That's why I think your problem is creating the .apk).
In google I found the following information:
https://www.wikihow.com/Deploy-an-RPG-Maker-MV-Game-to-Android-with-Android-Stud...
When you have a working .apk, then you upload it to itch like any other game. But uploading the game to itch has nothing to do with creating the .apk
Okay, what you shared is slightly different from the Youtube video. But neither fully aligns with the current Android Studio.
I already did everything up to step 9.
Here is where things differ.
Step 5) doesn't match up exactly. I'm still able to put in the majority of what's shown. But not all of those options are there.
Step 9) there is no "Sync" option. I've looked everywhere and clicked on random things to find it. I do NOT have that option.
Step 10) This wasn't in the video, but there is no way for me to change my apk name. In fact, there is no "Manifests" folder.
They reset the "Step" numbers in that link for some reason.
Step 1) The Icon piece wasn't in the video either. And I haven't tried that either.
Step 2) When I click on "Build" tab, I don't get a "Build" nor "Build APK" option. I have no clue how I did it before. I clicked stuff there and it happened. But none of them worked for me in any kind of way.
I'm sorry I can't help you more, but I don't use rpgmak, so except what google says, I couldn't give you more instructions.
Step 9) there is no "Sync" option. I've looked everywhere and clicked on random things to find it. I do NOT have that option.
That sync option should appear as a bar between the file’s tab and the contents, like so:
If you do not see that bar, then it may mean that Android Studio failed to sync the project the first time, when you opened it, and it may be related to this other problem:
Step 2) When I click on "Build" tab, I don't get a "Build" nor "Build APK" option. I have no clue how I did it before. I clicked stuff there and it happened. But none of them worked for me in any kind of way.
This should be called Build Bundle(s) / APK(s) now, but if you do not see that option it means that Android Studio had problems reading the Gradle project and will not show that option until you have fixed the issues.
Android Studio / IntelliJ is a bit taciturn when there are Gradle problem, and it seems that everything is OK until you manually open the Build tool window and see lots of errors described there:
You can open the “Build” tool window in the Edit→Tool Windows→Build menu. Sometimes the error messages a bit obtuse, but it should give you enough clues to advance and at least sync the project the first time.
Step 10) This wasn't in the video, but there is no way for me to change my apk name. In fact, there is no "Manifests" folder.Maybe RPG Maker no longer creates the manifests folder, but there must be an AndroidManifest.xml somewhere. You can locate files within Android Studio with Ctrl+Shift+N or the Navigate→File… menu.
To itch you must upload the .apk inside a zip[…]
There is no need to zip the APK, because an APK is already a kind of ZIP file, therefore you only add an extra, useless step for the player to install the game into their devices.
is there a significant difference between Aab vs apk file for users?
Yes: users can not install AAB files directly.
You can read more information about Android App Bundles in the documentation, but the gist is that AAB are intended for publishing to Google Play where APK are for installation to the devices. In fact, Google Play generates APK files from the AAB when the user installs a new application from there. Google Play requires AAB because it allows them to generate smaller APKs based on the user’s target device.
You also can generate APK files from an AAB with Google’s bundletool, therefore you could install an AAB to you device, if you wanted, but it is cumbersome for most users.
