These days, when people aren’t talking about the Apple Tablet, they’re talking about how Apple’s next target is the Big Three gaming companies. The iPhone will topple them! iPhone is a revolutionary gaming device! Well, certainly a little optimism is warranted; the iPhone has inarguably changed the landscape of mobile phones, personal media players, and to a lesser extent personal computers. Why shouldn’t Apple extend its holy sovereignty to gaming?
It already has, in fact. But Apple has come kicking and screaming the whole way. The iPhone, you understand, was not meant to be a gaming device, and in Cupertino, Apple’s intentions are paramount. Apple could never accidentally create a platform for gaming; if it wasn’t meant for gaming (or enterprise, or medical use, or reading e-books, etc.) from the beginning, Apple doesn’t want it happening at all. Because if Apple didn’t intend it, it’s outside of the bounds they set into the platform (regardless of how well it works, much like tethering) — it breaks the mold and, ironically, that’s the last thing Apple wants.
It’s no secret that the Apple ecosystem is a gilded cage. It’s a nice cage, and large, and yes indeed that gilding is very attractive by Jove, but all the doors are shut until Apple opens them. If you think otherwise, you’re probably already scrawling some crude flame in the comment section below. Thank you for your insight. Really, though: Macs are a carefully-tended walled garden of semi-delights (to mix several metaphors), and that’s part of why they’re so good at what they do. Attempts at expanding the garden have been made in fits by Apple, with varying success. Serious music production has never really caught on, nor scientific or medical applications, and any real expansions (personal media, mobile, and video primarily) have been engineered by Apple and not third parties. Why should it be any different for gaming? If Apple doesn’t do it, no one will. And Apple’s not going to do it.
But this is all getting rather vague. There are more substantial objections to an Apple expansion into gaming than my half-baked theories on their corporate philosophy. I’ll just enumerate them here in list form. I’m using the iPhone as the basis for these, but the points apply to the tablet without serious modification.
Hardware
The iPhone isn’t a gaming machine. It’s a smartphone. This produces limitations which are for some invigorating, and for some troublesome. For instance, you’ll never see a decent platformer on the iPhone. FPSes are awkward. RPGs take up too much space. You’re essentially limited to casual games and things like tilt-to-control racers. There are some notable exceptions; John Carmack loves the platform, for instance, and will probably be making some interesting stuff. The iPhone may be suitable for some games, but it wasn’t built for them, and that makes a difference for Apple.
Battery
Part of the hardware objection, but worth noting on its own, is the fact that battery life would be off-the-charts bad. How long can you really play a high-quality title on the iPhone? An hour maybe, before you’re down to 25% battery? Remember this is also your lifeline to email, the web, and so on. Unlike a DS, you can’t afford to let it run down. A portable game system needs to be as efficient as it can, and the iPhone is already an energy hog. No one wants to be tethered to an outlet to play their favorite handheld. And the thing already explodes when you use it too hard.
Developers
A few developers are putting out real iPhone games, but where is your Valve, your CryTek, your Rockstar? These are the people who make AAA titles that sell millions and make billions. Ubisoft may outsource some company to make a little Assassin’s Creed 2 clone to cash in a bit on the mobile contingent, but it’ll just be a way to sell the real game. They’re not going to spend $50m to develop a truly amazing game for the iPhone. No one will. Hardly anyone does as it is for existing handhelds (Dragon Quest IX notwithstanding). Apple could align itself with developers, but my feeling is they wouldn’t mix well. Apple is pretty much oil to their partners’ water to begin with due to their iWay-or-the-highway (clever, no?) approach to “collaboration,” and I don’t think that the major game studios would take a shine to it either.
Pricing
Do you see people hitting that “purchase” button when a game costs more than $10? Neither do I. Real games cost upwards of $40-50 when they come out. That won’t fly in an App Store or iTunes environment, where the emphasis is on multiple small, easy-to-swallow buys.
Brand
Apple doesn’t do games. They don’t put out games, they don’t make it easy to play games, they don’t encourage developers to make games for their platform. This is the last time Apple and Mac users were excited about games:
Seriously. Ever since the Great Halo Disappointment, nobody has considered Apple’s gaming enthusiasm as being anything other than a lark. Meanwhile, Nintendo is so completely identified with games that one implies the other in almost any context, Microsoft is hard at work building a gaming platform that dovetails with their entire ecosystem, and Sony is actually gathering steam with the PS3, as its lower price leads more people to find that it actually might be the most powerful and versatile system on the market. Apple struck at mobile phone makers when they were at their most complacent and vulnerable; gaming consoles and companies are stronger and more successful than they’ve ever been. It would be an insanely bad time to take a swat at them.
Content
Pop quiz: what game had the most lucrative launch of all time? If you answered Modern Warfare 2, an extremelyviolent and graphic game being accused of turning kids into terrorists, then you are correct! Apple is already choosy when it comes to what appears on its devices, and the kind of ultraviolence that sells games probably isn’t going to fly. Apple isn’t as positively warm and fuzzy as Nintendo usually is, but it would be a pretty major shift to start pushing games like MW2.
They don’t want to
Don’t you think that if Apple had any inclination to make the iPhone or Mac into a gaming platform, they’d have at least shown a little of that by now? Where’s the gamepad accessory for the iPhone? Why isn’t Apple courting the big developers to get some titles on Macs? There’s no indication that Apple is interested in games except as a class of apps to take a cut on. Almost all game development so far has been driven by the “there’s gold in them thar iPhones” mentality.
They don’t need to
This readership more than any other should be aware of Apple’s solvency in this worldwide financial crisis; indeed they have thrived mightily. The iPhone shows continual growth, they gain a tenth of a point of OS market share every month or two, and they’re making money hand over fist via iTunes and the App Store. Why the devil would they want to get into gaming, a market that would expose all the company’s weaknesses, bring their best hardware to its knees, and complicate their entire strategy — one which is working perfectly? I’m not saying that Apple doesn’t like to rock the boat, but they don’t do it when they stand a good chance of being thrown in the drink.
There you have it. Of course, with my luck, Apple will probably announce a huge gaming initiative tomorrow.
All that said, Apple does have an increasing presence in gaming. It owes this in no small part to Nintendo, which has popularized casual and mobile gaming to a huge extent with the Wii and DS. The iPhone may take a bite out of the more casual games coming out for the DS, but beyond that I don’t see a major effect. And as long as it’s enough for Apple to make a few bills, they’re not going to try too hard to change that.
I’m undecided as to whether I believe Apple is actually angry about the iPhone and iPod Touch being used as gaming devices.
Yes, I hear the author’s argument regarding what Apple’s mindset likely is, given past history. But I also recall Jobs going into significant-yet-not-overwhelming detail about how the devices are being used as gaming devices in September’s Apple Event. He admitted that this was unexpected, but he went to some length to convince the audience that this was a good thing, that the iPhone/iPod Touch outstripped all other mobile gaming devices by a wide margin (both in terms of sheer number of titles and device capability), etc.
Typical Cupertino propaganda? Perhaps. Or maybe the devices’ use as gaming systems is just too much of a plus for them to get their panties in a bunch over the fact that they didn’t see it coming.
One more point:
The content of this article does not address the stated question of “Should Nintendo fear the Apple Juggernaut?”; rather, the content addresses the question of whether Apple *intends* to put an effort into video games. The latter does not wholly answer the former.
One must also consider whether Nintendo should be afraid of an Apple that doesn’t even try to compete in the mobile gaming device arena. Even an *indifferent* Apple could steal away much of Nintendo’s market share, depending on which metric(s) you use to measure that.
This is especially true given Nintendo’s virtual monopoly in said arena. Until recently, if a customer wanted a mobile gaming device, he had to go to Nintendo for one– even if their games ($30/title, significant time investment, complex, etc.) weren’t the type he was interested in. But now, customers who desire a mobile gaming device whose games could be categorized as free/cheap and/or minimal time investment and/or simple, etc. have an alternative, superior option. That dynamic alone could hit Nintendo hard.
Mmm, I hear you, but as I said at the end, I can see Apple taking a bite in that minimal time investment area, but in every other area it’s not interested in putting out the effort it takes to create traction among gamers.
If a five-minute timewaster is what you want, you’re not a lost sale for Nintendo. Apple isn’t going to push on Nintendo’s core business, though it may reduce the amount of filler games on the DS and PSP.
Nintendo games are now the 5 minute time wasters. MSFT and Sony don’t have to worry as much, but Nintendo is aligning itself in exactly the same market these days.
Except that Apple has said that the Touch is their gaming device. That’s why they didn’t update it with camera, GPS, compass or any other thing that would make it great.
They’re working the angle for sure, but a couple ads saying “hey did you know this thing has games” isn’t really a big step. Just a good way to sell some apps.
Should I assume that you passed over my comments because you believe them to be without merit or because they’re overly long?
I ask because I’m just so…desperate…for any human contact…whatsoever. By mandate, we only get one hour outside solitary confinement a day, and the Warden let me use mine on the interwebs. Pretty please?
the games are very lackluster on the ipod and iphone. very poor, and not very well designed. zune HD has nice games though.
He’s not kidding! I read that on Bing.
Zune HD has way more luster, too. Not lacking one bit.
And with the number of Zune games released now almost reaching the *double* digits, there’s guaranteed to be something for everyone!
I think Apple has already taken a pretty big initiative to get into the gaming space with all those iPod Touch ads. I saw them on billboards, IGN, gamespot, etc. front and center taking up half the page. The ad pretty much defines the iPod Touch as a gaming device even more than a music one.
That being said, I agree that they still have a long way to go in order to even compete on the same level as the big 3. However, the upcoming surge in casual gaming is helping push it along extremely fast.
I think your conclusion is generally correct, though a lot of your reasoning is flawed.
Comparisons between console systems/games and mobile systems/games just don’t work because the targets for them are very different. Your points about cost, battery life, content, developers, and hardware all make deeply flawed comparisons that set aside the fact that game developers have been interested in the mobile space for quite some time and now have an excellent opportunity to make money with it. Not a lot, mind you, but they don’t need to put a lot into it. A AAA title for a console and a AAA title for a phone look very different and someone holding out for better graphics or tight precise controls on a game made for a phone is delusional.
Will Apple set themselves up to make money from this channel? Certainly not. All of the other hardware manufacturers for gaming hardware also have a vested interest in writing the software (we’ve all heard that the hardware is sold at a loss and it’s all about the licensing fees, right?) and Apple is, for the philosophical reasons you mentioned (which are dead on), not interested in game software and they know that an Apple game platform would have to look very different from an iPhone. And they know that it’s a tough market to crack and an unforgiving one to try to stay in. It ould demand a new device and Apple’s not one to break new ground unless they think they can win. And they can’t. Not without the company taking a radical swerve in an unforseen direction.
Apple doesn’t owe anything to Nintendo for the rise of gaming on the iPhone. No one is buying an iPhone for the games and no one would suggest they are. The iPhone user base, however, is full of people who have a lot of money and have shown a tendency to spend it on luxuries. That describes a gaming audience well. There have been games available on phones for quite some time now; the only reason this is on the radar now is the ease of buying things and the single platform that makes targeted development easy. But the games that do well are casual ones, and there’s nothing any company could do at this stage to change that.
Where is Rockstar?
Ummm…
http://theappera.com/2009/08/31/rockstar-prepares-iphone-debut-gta-and-beaterator-arriving-fall-2009/
And have you heard of a little company called “Electronic Arts”? Or LucasArts?
The weirdest and most confused article I’ve read for along time.
Nintendo is struggling with their DS strategy, the PSP Go is getting mixed reviews, Xbox has no mobile strategy none of those have an answer to the AppStore and none of those have an answer to the low prices that. iPhone games go for.
Add to that that the developer entry level on all those platforms is considerately higher, and man, if you think that Apple has a walled garden, then look at the Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft fortyfied orchards. I mean, really.
But then to top it all off the author wheels out the old chestnuts that we all depend on D-pads and joysticks to play games, that we all need ten battery packs and that a ‘real’ game has to cost at least 40 quid, because otherwise it’s not gaming, right?
Not to give the impression of a fanboy, let me cite Nintendos Iwata, he should know:
“If we can’t make clear why customers pay a lot of money to play games on Nintendo hardware and Nintendo software and differentiate ourselves from games on the mobile phone or iPhone, then our future is dark,”
And that is the real question, can they?
+1, Nicely put
“Nintendo is struggling with their DS strategy”
Not sure what part of the world you live in, but it doesn’t sound like you’re including Asia in that blanket statement of yours. Nintendo isn’t struggling at all.
The iPhone is non-existent out there, the DS is king for portable gaming consoles. Even the PSP can laugh the iPhone out of the proverbial room.
I have a Nintendo DS, but ever since I bought the iPhone/iPod Touch, I never touched DS again. In terms of mobile gaming, the touch interface on the iPhone can be more advantageous. For example, one of the most popular games on the iPhone is FieldRunners, which is a Tower Defense game that requires the play to move and place different pieces. Playing the game on the iPhone with one’s finger is very natually, try doing that with a bunch of buttons.
I have 10 pages of apps, 80% of them games on my iPhone. I am not looking back.
Same for me! Me and my wife had a DS each, then got the iPod touch, originally for music and video. But once we’ve enjoyed those cheap and great games from the app store we firstly sold one of the DS and now even our last one is getting dusty lying somewhere. I mean just look at the graphics of a 40$ DS game and to that of a 5$ iPod touch game and you’re not willing to spend those 40$ anymore. The recent “The Settlers” is a great example for this which also shows a HUGE advantage compared to the DS which wasn’t even mentioned in this article: updates. Settlers on DS was buggy and unplayable. A game like this would get bad comments on the app store until the developer fixes these bugs. Try this on the DS or any other gaming platform, except the PC.
Apple has been recruiting game developers like Graeme Devine and seem to be working to enhance the platform specifically for game developers.
As Carmack says, $1M projects can pay for themselves on the AppStore.
Just look at former EA executive Neil Young’s latest game Eliminator Pro fully leveraging in app purchasing- already one of the top grossing apps.
For portable gaming platforms the iPhone and it’s clones will be a real problem the coming years.
Their (dedicated gaming platforms) appeal is going to be significantly reduced as casual buyers and users won’t even look in their direction due to games already in their pockets through both Android and iPhone leaving dedicated gaming portables only with dedicated gamers which I doubt will sustain a business like Nintendo.
The $40 game requirement is junk. Take a look at the fore mentioned Fieldrunners. I paid $5 for it and I play it much more often then I did say Advance Wars on the DS which I payed over 4x as much for. That being said, I play it more because I always have the iPhone with me as opposed to always carrying a DS around.
Look at it this way: You paid jolly dollars for a bad-ass expensive iPhone. You want to do more than make calls on it, get directions, IM, watch YouTube, etc. You want to blow off some steam or enjoy the technology in a new way.
If Apple made a pure game machine, I think it would die just like Apple TV. The beauty in Apple devices is their potential to integrate technology into our lives at a very immediate level.
The iPhone is the worlds greatest mobile multitasker. That’s it.
And Steve Jobs initially said that the iPhone/Touch didn’t need native programs and that web apps were enough. So what? Time has shown that apps – and particularly game apps – have enormous money making potential for Apple. They aren’t idiots and nothing is carved in stone just because they haven’t made such moves in the past.
Apple started the whole idea of gaming on an iPod really early on… remember brick attack on the black and white screens with the scroll wheel?
Also, Apple has made games for the iPod and iPhone. Take Texas Hold ‘em, for instance.
If Sony couldn’t take down the Nintendo juggernaut in the mobile gaming area, Apple doesn’t stand much of a chance either.
But, I think it’s the wrong view to take. What the iPhone is doing is expanding the gaming market to many adults who wouldn’t dare be caught with a Nintendo DS on the subway. And whenever a company expands its market, that’s good for all the other companies that cater to that market.
The main graphic for this is hilarious. I just bought Minimae on my iphone yesterday– which is a clever clone of Dragon Warrior, the old 8-bit Nintendo game represented in the graphic.
I agree with the sentiment. I have been an Apple fan since the apple II (I was 6 years old at the time). All my friends had Atari’s and I had the super awesome Apple II with FAR SUPERIOR games. But Apple’s success with games has always been accidental, and not a serious motive. I hope, before too many years pass, they will take gaming more seriously… but I don’t want such an undertaking to cost them quality in the other areas that they are already so great at.
I don’t think that they should fear Apple because competition leads to innovation. Nintendo have been in the gaming industry too long to be concerned about outside developments! When you consider the money that both Sony and Microsoft have allocated and how Nintendo have produced this generation then I’m sure they will feel confident!
How insane is it to pretend that apple never intended the iphone / ipod touch to be a gaming platform! I don’t know how many of their billboards I pass by every day here in Los Angeles, but every single Ipod Touch billboard has only one thing on it: Games. They show like 7 ipod touches, each running different apps, and guess what? All those apps are games. And they’ve been running this campaign for as long as I can remember. Given that the ipod touch is basically identical to the iphone, and given that they market the ipod touch as a gaming device, you’ve got to have your head up your ass to think that Apple doesn’t intend the iphone to be a platform for games.
Because billboards tote the iPhone/iPod Touch as a gaming device, therefore it is one?
Wow, so clueless on so many levels.
Really? “There’s no indication that Apple is interested in games except as a class of apps to take a cut on.” As Gabriel points out, all of that advertising, which isn’t free, is a major investment in encouraging gaming on the iPhone and iPod Touch. It’s not just another set of apps – how many other sets of apps get commercials targeted just at that set?
Effectively, Apple is investing in the development community by spending huge advertising dollars in promoting all games on the iPhone. Apple is spending _more_ than Nintendo in general game advertising, and unless you are a major game maker like EA, Sony, Steam, Rockstar, Konami, etc, you love that this advertising benefits you – it’s advertising you couldn’t afford on your own. So Apple is spending on the development community.
If you look a bit more closely, major titles from EA such as Command & Conquer and 2K Games such as Civilization are appearing on the iPhone, so there are AAA titles. It’s not like Valve, Crytek, and Rockstar are pumping out lots of DS games, and isn’t this an iPhone vs DS vs PSP comparison really?
The iPhone is definitely limited as a platform, but it’s real, it does compete in the short-time gaming segment, and it is taking market share from the other handheld platforms.
I can see I’m going to get nothing but contrary opinions from this crowd! I should have known.
Look, Apple’s history is one of carefully-planned products which beat established players at their own game. The iPod, the iTunes store, the iPhone. All huge upsets against complacent industries.
In this case though, what we have is Apple taken off guard by the degree to which their new device provided a platform for the increasing demand for casual games (thanks Nintendo, and Microsoft too actually). That’s why they have game ads now, why they’re pushing games now instead of a year or two years ago, that’s why they’re reacting. Because they didn’t see this coming. They’re reacting to market forces instead of creating them, and that’s why they won’t take down Nintendo or the others, who have created and defined the gaming world.
They’ll do what they can to milk it, but I think you give them too much credit when you suggest that they always held this card in their hand.
Yes, everything Apple touches is gold, Apple TV, Pippin, Newton, Macintosh TV, Air, etc.
Heh heh, the Pippin.
I’ve argued this over and over and the answer is – not even close.
Unless kids latch onto some free / cheap game on the level of Pokemon / Zelda / Mario Nintendo and their portable gaming empire will just march on.
Anyone basing Apple “winning” due to casual gamers is crazy – they are labeled such as they DON’T game much .. to them it’s a short diversion. They also don’t spend money on games so great you have a iPhone/Touch loaded up with short free / cheap games that offer limited gaming experience.
Want to know what happens to 95% of games I download on iPhone? I delete them as they are boring, simple and why not another 50 just came onto AppStore so maybe one will not suck as much. The LONE game I have kept is Paper Toss .. a classic.
The only one making money is Apple – selling iPhones/Touches.
Love to see some sales on games:
1. on volume based on price
2. comparasion to DS on like titles so Madden for example
Also you failed to bring up iPhone / Touch break pretty easy. DS takes a damn beating and keeps on working.
I challenge any iPhone “gamer” to get a DS and scribble naughts – one of the most original fun games I’ve played yet on DS.
The thing you’re missing and that Apple is missing is that they are absent from the living room. I was shocked that Apple has stood by and let the AppleTV languish…the day they wake up and make iPhone/iTouch type apps work on AppleTV, soup up the AppleTV so it can run real games and integrate mediacenter type functionality, there are a lot of companies that are hosed.
That’s very true, I neglected that little foray of Apple’s, certainly now languishing as you say.
It’s not an important point to the rest of your article and I might have missed what you meant in the 3rd paragraph when you said “Serious music production has never really caught on”. Pro Tools is /the/ standard tool that is used in professional music production tool and is only available on Mac. Music studios all over the world have it for recording, and mixing, and it’s used throughout for music and sound all media production, eg film and television. Cubase is also very popular and Mac only.
Pro Tools is for Windows as well as far as I know. I know Cubase though, I probably overstated that point somewhat. But I don’t think Macs have any sort of majority on audio engineering.
Neither Pro Tools or Cubase are only on Mac – only Logic and Digital performer are. But Logic is a huge player in the market, and a reason for many moves from Windows to Mac, including my own. The majority of professional studios use Mac based Pro Tools Rigs, I’ve never seen a one running on Windows, although I am sure they exist.
As the OP said above, I’m not taking away from the article, but this point is very much wrong. Considering the market share macs have, there is a disproportionate amount of music made on Macs. Open a serious music production magazine like sound on Sound in the UK, and flick through it, and you’ll quickly see how big Mac is for audio.
Sorry I was wrong, I checked and you are correct. Pro Tools is available on Windows .My experience is that the Mac version is by far the most common.
You sir our wrong Steinberg Cubase is on Windows as well. A number of my music / studio friends have older Mac’s that are getting long in the tooth and some are locked out of upgrading to Snow Leapord.
,
All of them are considering moving their music production environment to Windows 7. The cost of Mac hardware is just not worth it compared to the current hardware for a much faster Windows 7 machine. Right now you can get a QUAD core, 6gb, 320gb box for under $600 .. a similar Mac G5 is close to $2500 .. just not worth it anymore.
The G5 line of processors was discontinued when the moved to Intel processors in 2006.
Make a third party gaming controller and I’d buy it. I just downloaded a San Andres clone called gangster and it’s pretty cool. Lasts about 2 hours on my touch though. But hey, put a battery into that controller and bam done. Another 2 hours at least whereas with most batteries you get much more.
I can see the touch eventually being the better device when compared to nintendo, but notfor another 2 years or so.
/typed on my iPod touch
The iPhone is a great platform for casual games and it really hits Nintendo right in the DS. Apple is very happy to have games on the iPhone, as long as it does not dominate the device, in my humble opinion.
One important thing to notice about the DS, Wii, and iPhone is the include a ton of ways to interact with the real world and the device that are not in traditional game platforms or controllers. This is a big deal and part of what makes them so compelling. When MSFT adds the Natal we will see a revolution on that platform as well.
I think that the iPhone is a very capable game platform.
It’s already got more distribution than the XBOX, and the types of games that you can push are comparable to any handheld on the market as well as the Wii.
If you think that just because the ceiling for game prices is around $10.00 that nobody will develop for it, I think you are crazy.
If the “big boys” don’t target the iPhone, they might as well assume the position and wait for the next round of big boys who will use the platform as a springboard to take over the gaming business.
They always said the makes of the C64 never imagined everything that could and would be done with those machines and it was always a favorites for me.
I think that is the sign of a great device. It is so flexible that it is hard to imagine all of the possibilities.
I am a big fan of the iPhone and think potential far outweighes the drawbacks which I am sure will be refined over time.
Good luck Apple…
Nokia already tried to do it, they made the best mobile platform and distribution model with N-Gage, but it failed.
You want descent gaming, go to a DS or PSP. It was proven that these 1/2 solution, and devices that try to do a bit everything have a miserable tragic destination.
Look at the pricing of the top grossing apps that are games right now–
$3
$7
$1
$7
$7
$5
$7
$10
$10
$5
There is only 1 game app in the top 20 that’s 99¢, people are willing to spend more money on quality games on the app store.
How much do you think the developer makes on a $30 DS game per copy sold?
Man, I don’t get this. Im an older gamer, used to game on the pc & xbox 360, but I haven’t for a while, its hard for me to find the time for those systems (games more complex take more time). but i play games on my iPhone at least 4 days a week.
My wife never played computer or console games, but she sure plays allot of iphone games. I’m not saying that the iPhone games are like console games, but I have fun with them, isn’t that what its all about? Cell phones/media players are expanding the market and also taking people away from dedicated portable game systems. (thats why I don’t have a DS or PSP) This will continue. Nintendo will either have to make a portable device that does more than just games or they will have to go the sega route and just make games for other portables. Sony Is in a little better position since PSP plays movies/music. but they might have to make a gaming software stack for their cell phones to fully compete. Younger kids who have time will still use dedicated portable game systems for a while, but even they will move to one device for every thing (phone/movies/music/chat etc..)
Peteo – I think you’ve hit the nail on the head. I carry my phone with me everywhere. I also have a DS, but I only take that with me on planned trips. So like it or not, the phone (or phone/multiple-use device) is a better platform for portable gaming from the standpoint of total gaming time played than the portable systems. The author, Devin Coldewy, doesn’t seem to get this. That’s not to say the iPhone is the endgame in this, but it’s a step in the direction that portable gaming is going.
Hmm maybe crunch gear spoke to soon when they said apple does not care about games:
Apple looks to hire AAA game developer for in-house iPhone team
http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/09/11/13/apple_looks_to_hire_aaa_game_developer_for_in_house_iphone_team.html
I don’t want to jump on the “oh wait, your article is wrong!” bandwaggon here, but Apple is extremely serious about music production.
Besides Logic, GarageBand and users (like Trent Resnor) who prefer Macs, you have:
Apogee, who has a partnership with Mac. They make some of the best converters in the business.
Pro Tools, Reason and Waves, three of the biggest companies in music production who deliver to both Mac and Windows.
Schools, like Full Sail and Berklee, who generally teach on Mac.
Now, like I said, I don’t want to jump on this bandwaggon, I just wanted to point this out. You can delete it if you want, I won’t be offended. I think your points are pretty solid.
nintendo should have been a better company than apple, but they let apple surpass them
You seem to assume with the beginning of the article that everyone who’s ANYONE obviously gives a crap about what Apple’s doing any minute of any day. This is the first I know of an Apple tablet (other than some fanboy’s mockups right after the Iphone came out that he probably faps to daily.)
Anyway, the problem with all of this is that while the Iphone may be perfect for casual gamers, any somewhat serious gamer will not sacrifice one thing that does things really well for another that does ten things mediocrely (is that even a word?) It’s like expecting a professional photographer to use a cameraphone to shoot a wedding. Not going to happen.
I’m not disputing that the Iphone is good for casual gamers because all cell phones, not just the Iphone, are good for playing casual games Keep in mind that there are more people with cell phones other than Iphones and they have already proved themselves to be a casual gaming platform.
I sold my PSP to buy an Ipod touch, and I’m glad I did. Maybe the Ipod doesn’t have great graphics or awesome gameplay, but it delivers. I mean, a portable is just for a flight, for waiting on a line, stuff like that. If I wan’t hardcore eye-popping mind-blowing gameplay and graphics, I play with my xbox or ps3
The big trick is, Nintendo and Sony have to convince you to buy a video game machine. Apple doesn’t. Apple has to convince you to buy an iPod or an iPhone, a device that does something totally different that people will buy just for those features (music, phone); but it plays games too.
My 65 year old mom is NEVER going to buy a handheld game device–but she plays games on her iPhone. Cribbage and things that are totally under the radar of any kind of gadget or gamer website :)
And the math is in Apple’s favor. According to Wikipedia, they’ve sold well over 200 million iPods. And as people upgrade iPods–something most people will do to keep their music libraries rather than switching to a Zune or something else–many people will upgrade to the iPod touch. And at some point the iPod touch will be the only choice for a “big” iPod when the Classic is discontinued.