The Ultimate Mobile Gaming Platform?

[patcom8]

This would be unbelievable. I have waited a very long time for the phone to come out, and waited even longer for this next generation mobile gaming platform. Also after seeing the new attachments that people are making to give the iphone a few extra buttons and a Dpad, this thing would be SICK. lets start developing games already!

 

[cmaier]

This would be unbelievable. I have waited a very long time for the phone to come out, and waited even longer for this next generation mobile gaming platform. Also after seeing the new attachments that people are making to give the iphone a few extra buttons and a Dpad, this thing would be SICK. lets start developing games already!

working on it

 

[IrishJK09]

The thing is, Apple isn't trying to compete with existing product categories (such as handheld game platforms like DS or PSP, or such as current phone-based games). Much like Wii competes only tangentially against 360 and PS3, Apple has an opportunity to define a new product subcategory here.

I expect the iPhone will become a huge platform for gaming, but it will largely be a new type of gaming. First, on phone, people prefer casual games, because they can play for a few minutes at a time, pick up where they left off, etc. The casual games for iphone are going to blow away what you can play on other phones, both because the screen is one of the best, and because it can take advantage of the accelerometers, camera, and multitouch. These types of games won't lose anything for the lack of hard buttons.

More serious games will also succeed, but these will not be games or categories we are currently familiar with; don't expect a lot of FPS, etc. Think creative variations on current game categories. And RTS and turn-based games, of course, would be quite playable w/o a keyboard.

I agree on the iPhone becoming more of a subcategory, as opposed to direct competition. Your mention of the Wii as it stacks up to the PS3 and 360 is a very good example, and I wish more people realized that the Wii is its own animal, but that is a discussion for a different board on a different day...

From the word go, driving and flight simulation have been the two categories that stood out to me as the sure things, but I never thought about RTS/TBS. You are definitely on to something with that idea, and how it will translate wonderfully to the touch screen; I only hope that the developers of these games see the idea and seize the opportunity.

Civilization: iPhone Edition. Age of Empires: iPhone Edition. Medieval: iPhone Edition.

Ok, the titles need work, but they are just a few of the games that would carry over very well. Very good idea, very good indeed.

 

[xintelinsanex]

I don't think Age of Empires would work well. First of all Age of Empires is a Microsoft product. If Microsoft is indeed working on a Zune phone, they would not want to help the iPhone platform. And besides, Microsoft does not have any games that support the Mac platform. Additionally, there is too much going on in AOE to make it fun to play on such a small screen.

 

[cmaier]

Personally, I think Civ is the greatest game of all time (of course, I'm an old guy, so that might explain it). I can easily imagine something like Civ on iPhone; if I didn't have a day job, I'd tackle something like that. AoE would be harder, but I can imagine a simplified version that would work well, especially given the touch interface. Also, things like simcity, the various "tycoon" games, etc. would work.

I also think, given time, we'll see iphone-as-an-extension. In other words, imagine you're playing a game on your mac or PC, and it spawns a mini-game that you can take with you on the iphone. The results on the iphone are then reflected back into the game when you return to your pc.

 

[Ahambone]

Will the iPhone's battery be able to hold up if it becomes an all-out mobile gaming platform in addition to everything else it already is (and plans on being)? Maybe I'm being pessimistic, but I can't see a phone running a graphics intensive game and giving ANYTHING in the realm of acceptable battery life.

 

[pocketpupsnet]

I hope the new round of games will convince my fiance (pc programmer) to convert to mac.

 

[cmaier]

Will the iPhone's battery be able to hold up if it becomes an all-out mobile gaming platform in addition to everything else it already is (and plans on being)? Maybe I'm being pessimistic, but I can't see a phone running a graphics intensive game and giving ANYTHING in the realm of acceptable battery life.

I've been experimenting with the games I wrote (admittedly they are 2D, not 3D), and I have been very impressed with battery life; I think the processor, even at full throttle, is a minor power consumer compared to the radios and the screen.

 

[cmaier]

I hope the new round of games will convince my fiance (pc programmer) to convert to mac.

what kind of programmer? (what sort of programming?)