Ah, cell phone gaming. It’s almost an oxymoron considering the poor attempts at real gaming on cell phones. Nokia tried and failed, in great part because the handheld gaming market is monopolized by Nintendo, with Sony’s PSP the only real competitor left. That is, until Apple positions the iPhone into being the handheld gaming rookie that could very well change the landscape.
While Nokia’s NGage was aimed at drawing gamers in from the get-go, Apple’s iPhone was sold as a portable internet appliance, tied to a decent phone that integrates easy desktop synchronization. In other words, Apple went after the atypical cell phone user, and then later decided to ramp things up a bit by tackling enterprise users. In other words, Apple ignored the gaming market in an effort to distribute the iPhone into people’s hands first as a phone, and then by luring in developers with the upcoming SDK.
So yes, the iPhone isn’t a gaming platform yet, and we were skeptical that Apple would move in the direction of handheld gaming at all, but as a somewhat casual enterprise, Apple has everything to gain by putting some needed focus into the interactive entertainment realm, and very little to lose.
When we commented that cell phone gaming was limited by poor control schemes, we were already onto the idea that cell phone gaming would require add-on accessories, and it seems that the iPhone won’t be long without similar peripherals, even if these peripherals currently require a jailbreak. Even without physical controls, however, virtualized buttons aren’t as bad as some might think.
Already we have proof-of-concept iPhone games like Kingdom Lores and Raging Thunder, which prove that 3D is not only possible on the iPhone, but also more-than playable. While both of these games work splendidly without physical controls, and will undoubtedly have similar games show up on the iTunes store, iPhone games don’t need to be limited to using the accelerometer or on-screen buttons, though the very fact that people needn’t tote along a controller accessory means the iPhone would potentially become the smallest gaming handheld on the block. That’s an interesting position to be in, considering that the iPhone does more than the PSP, and is even more powerful.
Earlier this year, Apple filed to protect their trademark in relation to gaming, and the iPhone’s position as the only unit of its kind with an accelerometer is an interesting jab at Nintendo, consider the latter’s focus on casual games built around their gyroscopic Wii. In other words, Apple can follow Nintendo’s lead in this arena, while at the same time getting a head-start on Nintendo since the DS doesn’t feature an accelerometer itself, yet.
Point is, Apple would be incredibly short-sighted not to capitalize on the handheld gaming market, particularly since they don’t need to take Sony and Nintendo on head-first. Rather, all Apple needs to do to build the iPhone into a veritable gaming power is to sell games to current iPhone users, and with that momentum push the iPhone gaming market ahead, delving into true competition later. Obviously, independent developers are already exploring what the iPhone can do for gaming, so it’s not a huge leap to assume Apple isn’t doing likewise. In fact, if Apple didn’t have plans in this regard, they’d be outright stupid.
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