November 14th, 2008 by Tim Greenhalgh
Catching up with an old mobile games colleague today made me think again about potential for different genres on the infernal device. When we were busy at the codeface, the complexities of Java game development for different handset ranges were mind-numbing, even without the costs involved. Now, the focus seems to be on the iPhone and G1 on the one side, and Symbian smartphone, Windows Mobile on the other.
Whatever platform, the build and port costs have been contained, with coding dollars now used more productively in the complexity of the games themselves, rather than the on addressing the idiosyncrasies of Java implementation on different devices. That’s great news for the gamer, who has collectively suffered from poor quality games and for the producer, who has seen the majority of game revenues siphoned away by intermediaries. It’s quite an experience to see, for example, Metal Gear Solid running flicker-free on the N95.
I’d guess that the next big battle will be around distribution as third-party providers face a squeeze from the AppStore and clones that will spring up around the handset manufacturers. We might well see the vast majority of games and other apps distributed by five or six companies, including device manufacturers and network operators.
On the social media side, it’s still pretty clear that unless there is a rapid roll-out of high-speed, robust networks with always-on capability, the multiplayer environments will remain experimental and niche for the next five years at least, maybe double that.
Meanwhile, companies like Nokia continue to believe in group play and do embrace user generated content with a passion. As that matures, the sharing-community aesthetic should open new doors for brands seeking to engage in conversations with with their customers.
Tags: mobile games, Social media
