I want an Android app that detects when I open a game and starts a countdown for a set number of minutes. When the timer ends, it should give me a short window—such as two minutes—to tap the screen and confirm that I'm still awake or playing. If I don't respond, it should return to the home screen or turn off the display. If I do respond, the countdown should restart and repeat the check again later.
I often play games in bed and fall asleep while playing. My phone's game booster keeps the game active, so the device can run all night, drain the battery, and become very hot. I haven't been able to disable that feature through the phone's normal settings.
I've found apps or built-in options that can start a timer when a game opens, but I haven't found one that repeatedly asks for confirmation and takes action if I stop responding. How difficult would this be to build with AI assistance and no programming experience? Would it be more practical to hire someone, or is there an existing Android automation app that could handle it?
3 Answers
Before building anything, check whether your phone has Digital Wellbeing, app timers, bedtime settings, or a game-related battery setting that can be changed. These may not repeat the exact wake-up check you described, but they could limit how long the game runs and reduce the chance of the phone staying hot all night. A physical timer or charging limit may also help protect the battery.
On Android, MacroDroid is probably the best place to start. You can create a macro that triggers when a selected game opens, waits for a set period, shows a notification or confirmation prompt, and then performs an action if you don’t respond. You may need to experiment with permissions and actions such as returning to the home screen or turning off the display. It can feel complicated at first, but this is much easier than building a complete app from scratch.
An AI coding tool can help generate parts of this, but it won’t make the project simple for someone with no development experience. Android restrictions, background timers, game detection, screen control, notifications, and battery-management permissions all need to be handled correctly. You’d still need to test, debug, and possibly adjust the app for your specific phone. Hiring an Android developer would be the more reliable option if the automation apps can’t do what you need.
I’m on Android, so I’ll try setting this up. The app looks promising, although the interface is a little overwhelming for me.