Derp.

The latest snag: if you upload an application APK file, there's no way to replace it with another copy of the same version number.

Why would I want to do this? Well, I made a mistake in packaging and had to build a new copy. Nothing else has changed, so there's no reason to change the version. I also don't want to bump the version because then I would have a different version in Play than I have in the Amazon or Apple stores. I haven't published the app yet, so there's no reason this isn't allowed other than the Play developers couldn't conceive that this is a valid thing to do.

Now, I can delete the old, bad copy first, but there's a snag: if you delete the only APK for an application, all of the associated metadata, images, in-app purchase setup, and so on also gets removed. I made that mistake last week and won't repeat it. I only have one APK uploaded right now so I can't delete it without losing the other work.

As I result I'm forced to cut a "new", older version of the app to upload and keep in Google Play as a decoy placeholder. Then I can delete the version I want to replace without losing the metadata, at which point I can upload the new, current version of the app.

Amazingly smart, and consequently convinced they know everything about everything and some of that over there too.