Apple’s iPhone has evolved into quite the multifaceted device. While it was initially lauded for being an easy-to-use smartphone with a fantastic web browser and outstanding movies/music capabilities, it quickly became a prominent gaming system. In fact, games have been dominating Apple’s App Store for iPhone and iPod Touch
From August 2008 to the same month in 2009, more apps were released in the “games” category than any other and, as a result, the iPhone (and iPod touch) became a new handheld gaming platform, one that impacted Nintendo DS. The Japanese game device maker acknowledged that the iPhone and iPod touch were among the reasons why its profits declined drastically in the most recent quarter.
Are any of you taking iPhone gaming seriously? Or do you think it’s more of casual gamer thing? I’m loving Civilization Revolution and greatly looking forward to Ghosts Attack. If you have any iPhone game recos, I’d love hear ’em!
It's a fad. People want good games where ever they can get them, but most games aren't good.
@Sandrock323 I completely disagree. It's a new market and the demand isn't going to go away any time soon. The reason why the games aren't good is because iPhone game development is still in its infancy. Despite the middling quality, the iPhone/iPod Touch is still a hot platform and there's a ton of money to be made there.
The ton of money to be made there, part is the one that will hold it back the most. I view the iPhone like I do the Wii, popular and oversaturated with shovelware. I give them both a couple of years before the well dries up. (Wii going first as it has been dying down allot recently.)
@Sandrock323 Hmmm, I think your definition of a "fad" is suspect. As for the Wii dying down, it really had nowhere else to go. The system did ridiculous numbers for years — in a poor economy! Even though sales are slowing down, it's still outselling the competition and will have the highest installed base at the end of this console generation. You consider that a fad?
If it can't hold that audience beyond the first (for lack of better words) hardware release, then yes it is a fad. Sustained loyalty is the only way from preventing it from being a fad. Take gaming as a whole, it isn't a fad because it keeps bringing people back each gen. If no one bought a SNES, then the NES would have been a fad. Obviously that didn't happen and Nintendo managed to keep people loyal to its products till now, but there are many gamers that stopped supporting them this gen or are unsatisfied with what they got. Mainstream consumers are rarely loyal, so most of Nintendo's current consumers are to unreliable to push it beyond a fad.(Plus, I don't take the mainstream seriously as all mainstream is is a ever changing set of fads.)
Sorry, got to wrapped up in my rant to connect the iPhone into that. I don't think the iPhone will go away in time soon, but games on it will die down. Hopefully, that will cause the games released on it to mature and become a serious gaming venue, but only if big publishers take it seriously. (which most non-Japanese don't when it comes to handheld/mobile gaming)
@sandrock
You are missing the larger picture. I get that you don't care for the platform or its offerings. That isn't the discussion though. The Iphone and Ipod Touch are indeed gaming platforms. The games are cheap, easy to start and quit, and often fun. They aren't episodic story driven games…not yet anyway. They are pick up and play while you wait for something. The 3GS has a lot of upside on the gaming front.
The Iphone is selling more games or having more games introduced because there aren't any network restrictions against them…not yet anyway. ATT doesn't lock down SimCity like it does GV or Vonage or most other productive pieces of software.
As far as fads go….you can't honestly think that a new Wii won't sell do you? Name recognition is a powerful thing. Sony and MS prove that.
@Sandrock323 You really don't think people are going to buy the Wii's successor? Sure, it might not sell as well as the Wii, but I think you're crazy if you think it will be unsuccessful.
I also think you're way off on the iPhone market. Certainly the early, trashy games will get weeded out, but more and more quality stuff will pop up every month. As for non-Japanese publishers not taking it seriously, I'm not sure what you mean by that. Certainly Square Enix, Namco, Konami, Sega, and others are taking it seriously.
I meant that western devs don't take it seriously. Most of them treat it as a way to create another port of a game. Also, PS2 was the most popular console last gen, but the PS3 is sitting in last place right now. Name recognition works, but not well enough to guarantee a Wii 2 will be a huge success. As for the iPhone, if other smart phones catch up, then it would be hard for them to keep these iPhone games exclusive. I'm all for mobile gaming to finally be a worth while experience, but I don't see the iPhone as a single platform. More like a part of a larger platform.
@sandrock
Sony bit off a huge chunk with PS3 though. For one, it was 600 dollars and it was touting bluray…which cost then $30 per movie. Hard to push that sale. The brand name itself has never faltered though. It isn't seen as a lesser machine or anything but a "playstation".
On your Iphone summation, I agree. That market will grow and there will be multiplats. However that has already happened though. Bejeweled for example. The 3GS is no slouch for gfx and power in a portable handheld. Where the Iphone can distance itself is when it has a multiplayer game where you use your cell connection to just log in and do stuff.
@Sandrock323 Your example of Western developers doesn't work either. Ngmoco was started by a high-ranking EA executive. Tarver Games was started by EA LA's design director. BioWare used the iPhone to create an interesting ME tie-in. It sounds like you don't know much about the market.