title: GAE python backend for game loop
body: <p>I'm having a rough time trying to get a loop setup with GAE and backends. My goal: A main game loop to track timers (enemy move in 3 seconds, cooldown ready in 5 seconds, etc etc). I think a resident backend with a thread is the way to go. So far I have only been able to get a backend to show up in the dashboard after appcfg.py backends update. Now I'm just struggling to figure out the next step. Here are some specific questions:</p>
  
  <ol>
  <li>how do I develop a backend thread if its not supported in the development server?</li>
  <li>does using backends and a thread sound like a reasonable approach for a game loop?</li>
  </ol>
  
  <p>the most helpful thing would be a basic example that includes backends.yaml, main app .py file, and backend .py code . This is how I imagine an example would work:</p>
  
  <ul>
  <li>a request is sent from the browser to the app. </li>
  <li>the app communicates to the backend instance and sets up a timer in a thread</li>
  <li>once the timer is complete... what happens next? response to browser, or back to app?</li>
  </ul>
  
  <p>I've read the docs numerous times and its not sinking in anymore. I've tried to figure it out, but progress is extremely slow. And I can't find a useful, newbie-oriented example online. Any help would be much appreciated! thanks,</p>