I personally am hoping that the AppStore will begin to have some big games that aren't toned down, if you look at the AppStore, you see many quality games but most are pickup and play pretty much. Real Racing and a few (Ronlando ) others have the "console" experience, while other "big" games tone down the graphics on the iPhone for no real reason (or perhaps limited power on the original and 1st gen touch) while they could enhance the game and give a console experience (e.g.Real Soccer 09). However, though it's simpler than developing for consoles, good games require a long development cycle. Real Racing took what, 6 Months? NFS? 8 Months? Gang$tar? (There's a quality game if you ask me! The quality will improve over time as long as people buy big apps. If people buy only free apps or 99c games (as my friend puts stupidly, "1$ is too much for something on a phone" ITS A FRICKIN IPHONE!!!).
I agree with what everyone is saying. The appstore has grown a lot. We have plenty of quality games available. The games may not be as impressive or long as on other systems such as the DS and PSP, but remember we are paying between $4.99 - $9.99 for high quality releases. That doesn't even mention all the great games you can get below those prices. Also keep in mind that it's only been 1 year. I can't wait to see whats out a year from now, and even 2 years from now. Looking back we will all be blown away as to what these devices are capable of.
There has never ever been any platform or gaming device that has seen so many quality games released with in such a shorttime span.
Look at the ps3 (no offence to ps3 owners) that took quite a while to get lots of good games. At the start there were only a few. Now look at what's out and what's to come.
This complaint, coming from so many, I simply don't understand. It's a mobile platform. What the hell did you expect? The platform, due to both the market the platform is within (mobile) and the userbase, is one that errs toward pick up and play experiences. Now, these pick up and play experiences need not be "easy" (as pick up and play is not synonymous with lack of difficulty but rather denotes ease of use) as games like Eliss and quite a few of the shmups prove, but the platform is not really conducive to "long epic" style games. Why? The majority don't play for hours at a time on such platforms, but minutes at a time. So the developers have to serve that minute gaming market primarily. The "longer epic games" like, say, The Quest are the niche games on this or any other mobile platform market. It's a bit different for games in the portable system game market as well (again, I have to point out that iTouch/Phone is NOT a portable game system, but a mobile platform - different markets) but not too different in that the focus isn't really on "long epic and deep" games. Mind you, the portable game market (of which PSP and DS are part), due to the focus of that market, the make of the devices themselves, and wants of the userbases err toward longer offerings than mobile platforms like iTouch/Phone, but even still those offerings are far shorter and more "pick up and play" than home console games. The only portable game system that went against that grain was PSP...and that didn't work out too well for Sony compared to going with the traditional portable game system model went for Nintendo. Portables are conducive to lower investment dev cost development with pick up and play offerings, which is why developers became iffy on PSP (which went more toward bigger budget home console in a portable style offerings) and flocked more toward DS. With mobile platforms (again, different than portable game systems) it's even lower cost development and quicker to pick up and play offerings that rule the roost. Why? Again, device focus and targeting the wants of the majority of the userbase. Rolando and even stuff like Real Racing, tbqh, err more toward the portable game paradigm, but even then are not "console" style experiences for good reason. Only real difference between 2nd and 1st gen Touch as far as power is concerned is the clockspeed of the CPU. Usually this amounts to nothing more than higher and/or smoother framerate in games. Graphics as in "polys per second and texture quality" usually is not toned down. And people DO buy big apps. They DO buy games at $9.99 upon initial release. The larger developers, who usually are the ones developing games that show of the power of the platform or are more console centric if they wish to tap into that niche, are the ones that can sell at $9.99 because they've proven to find a willing consumer base at those prices. They need not rush to the bottom but instead, over a larger amount of time, drop price in increments.
*ahem Our dear, late, lamented Dreamcast begs to differ. *sighs Man...the days when Sega actually gave a **** about quality seem so long ago.
First, thanks for the constructive and thoughtful reply. Though the 1st gen and 2nd are basically identical (a little more powerful than the DS) and are well suited for more casual games such as the ds with a smattering of more complex ones (now that I think about it, BIA looks better on the iPhone than the DS), now that we have the 3GS, and hopefully a new touch, which are *roughly* comprable to the PSP so we can reach a higher tier of games to the tone of GTA (I'm referring to level of graphics and depth and amount of gameplay), such as gang$tar, which I believe is one of the first "large" games to hit the AppStore. I reiterate my previous comment on how big games take time to make and at the beginning, it is hard to justify the resources and time. But, slowly, games are increasing in quality. Looking back, you see that the best games (depth) were the likes or Cromag Rally and Enigmo, and now we're at Real Racing and Gang$tar. Things are definatly picking up. The main obstacle is that only the big studios can really make the biggest games and even they are leaning toward small (8lb gorilla). On your point of the markets being different, as I said, the 1st and second gens fall relatively clearly into the mobile category with a device that happens to have *relatively* good gaming potential and a good method of distrobution. I feel that the 3GS is on the line at this point with it's good graphics capability and beefed-up processor so it's at the point where the user chooses to get small or complicated games. P.S. Sorry if my posts are a little confusing, it's late and I'm on my phone.
may be things will change in another 6 months or so. i think there will be a natural dropoff of developers who will give up developing for the iphone because they can't make money on it. many of the developers are just trying to cash in right now, but it's pretty clear that their games are pretty bad or copycats. hopefully the good developers will survive and be rewarded for their effort and not be forced to sell games for $.99.
i personally dont know what people are crying for either. when i first got my iphone, i think someone said something about cube runner being the leet skeet game to have.... now there tiger woods, nfs, zenonia, the kings, real racing, and thats literally just to name a few. all u poor asses who sit here and complain that u arent getting 15 hrs worth of gameplay out of ur .99 game should just stop talking plzzzzzzzz
