The question surrounding any gaming-capable Apple TV was the obvious question of input: how would you control the games on the TV? Well, we now know: MFi controllers will be supported, and SteelSeries is releasing a new controller, the Nimbus, designed for Apple TV. But the main interface method is going to be that Remote with the touchpad and motion controls.
The lack of a controller will be a problem for the types of games that will be playable on TV. Not including a full-fledged game controller means that games optimized for traditional controllers will still only be supported to a limited degree. Though, I would expect more MFi games, as with a big TV to target, there’s at least a larger possible audience. That’s at least promising, but there will be no MFi revolution. After all, gaming on the Amazon Fire TV didn’t take off in any significant way thanks in large part to it featuring just a TV remote. The history of pretty much any optional accessory in games says that if it’s not included, adoption will be limited, and I don’t expect MFi controller game developers to suddenly be getting rich. Though, if they can now justify pricing games closer to their console and desktop counterparts, then that could be a good thing, and for indie developers, any extra money helps. What won’t hurt is that controllers can be used to navigate the Apple TV interface. Using a controller won’t stick out like a sore thumb, though many of the features on the Apple TV are built around that touchpad.
But gaming should be a bigger deal thanks to the Apple TV remote being more functionally capable with its touchpad than the aforementioned Fire TV remote. While the Roku remote at least featured a gamepad and two buttons to use, the motion controls and touchpad of the Apple remote should introduce some new and superior interface options. Plenty of games that would be terrible with a remote could suddenly become playable on a TV thanks to the touchpad. Plus, all the buttons minus the Menu button will be available for developers to use for gameplay. This is far from a death knell for games on the Apple TV, and may in fact be a good thing. I like console-style games, but I’m interested to see what developers would do with the remote’s interface possibilities. You can laugh about the gimmickiness of the games on the Wii, but you know you had fun with many of those motion games. And the smaller, casual nature of mobile games along with the rise of free-to-play means that plenty of small, fun experiences could exist on the Apple TV alongside bigger, console-style games that require a controller. Plus, games doing things with remotely-connected iOS devices is full of potential. Eon Altar at PAX was a cool example of something you could do with remote controllers, and I hope it comes to Apple TV as it’d be an interesting experience on there, with the main game on TV interfacing with other devices.
I do expect more stories of people throwing their remotes through their TVs, just like we had back in the days of the Wii. That the remote loop is a separate accessory seems like a potential pain point for Apple, so stay tuned in the next few months for some sensationalism surrounding that.
Still, it will be interesting to see just how games adapt to the Remote, and what new TV games centered around that Remote will come for the new Apple TV. These are interesting times as the TV finally comes in play for iOS game developers.
