Game Developers Like iPhone More than Nintendo DS, Sony PSP
According to Game Developers Research, their new study shows the iPhone platform is more popular with game developers than either the Nintendo DS or Sony PSP. Electronista sums up:
Demand for the iPhone has surged to where about 19 percent of all game developers are writing for the iPhone and iPod touch. The figure is more than twice as high as for the DS and PSP and results in three quarters of all mobile game developers writing for Apple's handhelds.
While no reasons were cited for the level of developer interest in the iPhone and iPod touch, they figure the high visibility of the Apple brand combined with robust developer tools and centralized App Store model makes for a compelling package. 75 million devices on the market probably doesn't hurt either...
Good news for iPhone, iPod touch, and eventually iPad gamers -- with developers come great games.
Editor-in-Chief of iMore, Executive Producer at Mobile Nations, co-host of Iterate and ZEN and TECH, cook, grappler, photon wrangler.
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I know I do. My psp can't handle my internet and also the iPod has downloadable content. I have no DS so I can't debate that but DSi may win due to a camera which the iPod lacks.
I honestly just don't see how people can prefer gaming on an iPhone vs PSP. I don't game on my iPhone at all
Games on iPhone are popular because:- - People have their phones with them all the time, so gaming on them is convienient. - Touchscreen suits a lot of casual games.
I hardly use my iPhone for gaming at all, though. Why? Touch-screen games just don't do it for me. Most games that I have played on the iPhone hae just frustrated me with their control scheme - be it touchscreen or accelerometer.
Developers will flock to it because the market is so big and easy to reach - that does not mean that the games on iPhone will be better (or even as good) as those on dedicated consoles.
Chances are those who own PSPs and the like also own an iPhone. Twice the love for developers per customer. iPhone 3GS is my first Apple product and I must say Apple is WAY ahead of the curve and according to rumors, when 4.0 comes out, they will seperate themselves even further. You have to admire their passion for development and unwillingness to change their model for carriers sake. Go Apple!!
@Steve
agree 100% - though I add that not only does touchscreen suit a lot of casual games, it is actually far better for most of those games.
I agree with Steve, iPhone's market is so vast compared to PSP or DS (and the games are up to 50x cheaper). Even by writing a crappy game, there's a chance thousands of people will buy it and hence, easy money. Some games are so badly made I regretted wasting my life trying them out. And with so many of these 'shovelware', I'm actually curious as to how many actually earned a decent profit.
In the end, I'd rather have a few games from quality developers, than thousands from half-hearted developers. And having to wade through all these crappy 'games' (if they can even be called that) to find a gem.
iPhone has the advantage when it comes to independent devs..thus it will see a higher number of devs overall but what matters is the quality of games they're kicking out.
But I'm not complaining..these iphone games are a port away from coming to Palm's App Catalog.
@Phodogg "Chances are those who own PSPs and the like also own an iPhone." Where is your proof? Have you done a study that correlates iPhone ownage to PSPs? Those kind of statements are completely uneducated. In my opinion, notice that I'm not saying it's scientific fact?, most developers flock to the iPhone because of the large customer base, ease of developing games (Most iphone games are not as complex as PSP games), and ease of access (only one place to get them as opposed to selling them in thousands of stores).
"Apple is WAY ahead of the curve and according to rumors, when 4.0 comes out, they will seperate themselves even further."
You must not read the sister sites? Typical Apple fanboy....I wouldn't say apple is WAY ahead of the curve anymore...maybe when the iPhone came out...but now I'd say other companies have surpassed the iPhone in every way. Also, wasn't it these high hopes that made the iPad such a bust? I remember reading all these far fetched ideas that never came to be in the iPad.... I'm willing to bet the same is to come of your precious 4.0.
Whats funny is alot of these iPhone developers are also developing their games for the Pre now. Many of those 3D games you guys enjoy are available on the pre app store now. I'm not trying to be a troll....It's just the apple elitism gets to me sometimes.
I agree Robbb, they said the same about the 3gs before it came and apple tv. I haven't seen anything truly innovative or groundbreaking since the iPhone itself, and the last few years have been spent improving it's shortcomings.
As far as gaming on the iPhone/Touch goes, it's convenient and a timekiller, but it doesn't match gaming on a PSP or DSi. Control via touchscreen just can't match physical controls. My son will grab his DSi before his ipod touch everytime.
The iPhone/iPod touch is the wii of mobile gaming. They have alot of games on the system, but not alot of them live up to the core gamer standards. It's for the casual users and as we have seen, there is a huge market for casual gaming. I prefer physical buttons though and the DS and PSP still have a great gaming library
@Robb 1) I never once said anything was scientific fact, mere opinion stating that developers get to enjoy the luxury playing in both worlds (ok we can add your dreadful Palm product to a world of it's own too...happy?)...all worlds.
2) Never asked for your opinion. 3) Get out from behind your computer and check out the real world you geek. Is it really that important?!?
These polls of "which do you prefer, iPhone or (blank)?" have become too much like a religious debate. So your likely never going to get a straight answer on these polls.
So I ask you, iPhone fanboys:
Who is better in bed, the iPhone or your girlfriend?
Who makes a better turkey sandwich, the iPhone or Subway?
Who's a better driver, iPhone or Jeff Gordon?
Who's going to win the superbowl, iPhone or Colts?
iPhone wins every time...
I would like to Thanks for the informative post. I really appreciate it. I hope that I can get more benefit from Important blog.
Subway is about the only thing better than my iPhone.
@Robbb
You are a little confused or maybe just your a hypocrite. You called out phodogg for his "uneducated" statement and you yourself said "... I'd say that other companies have surprise the iPhone in every". In what ways have companys surpassed Apple's phones? What product is this mythical "iPhone killer"? The market hasn't really seen it yet? If you are talking about "hardware technical specs" than some companies have definitely surpassed the iPhone tech specs. But Robbb, my poor typical little anti-iPhone fan, you simply don't understand Apple's very sucessful business model which focuses on OVERALL customer experience. Don't believe me... Go see Apple's 2009 audited financial statements (and Q1 2010 too) and revenue associated with their smartphone business and compare that to "other companies". Look at marketshare trends. There's you proof.
@fastlane
Amen to that!
@ Paris. Exactly. Apple set the high standard for a mobile device and every other company is playing mad catch up in technology and more importantly market share. Think of Apple as McDonalds. McDs has tried to be replicated by every burger joint in the US. While their concept and menu is simple, they (McDs) were the first to really pioneer fast food as we know it and remain the Champion in their respective industry. Now we have everyone racing to beat or "kill" the iPhone. It's going to take more than making commercials with U2 and Eric Clapton. Don't get me wrong I'm very open to new technology and am in no way Apple for life if something better comes along. I just haven't seen it yet.
@Phodogg You crack me up, why do you have to resort to insults? Unable to formulate arguments? Hell, you can't even back up your own statement. I'm just simply pointing out your flaws, but you are a typical blind follower. BTW I have a quite successful life beyond my desk.
@Paris Reed, Not once did I EVER mention that there was an iPhone killer out there. I honestly think apple is good for the industry. It drives competition and we all benefit from it, and the same can be said of other companies for Apple. This is how capitalism works. Also, you are correct I was a hypocrite in that statement. What I should have said was that I believe many other operating systems have surpassed the springboard os in ALMOST every way. This is from my own personal experience. I have had time to use them all. Apples user experience is just to limited unless you jailbreak, which by apple's standards voids their warranty. The only advantage I see in Apple is really the App store. But honestly, many developers are finding it more beneficial to build a product for every os.
Lastly, I'm not an anti-apple fan, I'm an anti blind-follower-of-thy-holy-apple fanboy person. I can't stand this false sense of superiority that TENDS to follow these people. BTW I don't mean all apple people...but you know who you are. But hey, that's them and I usually try to ignore that ignorant babel.
Oh yeah, Palm might not be the best product out there...but it's far from the worst. If I'm not mistaken many jailbreak dev's copied palms form of multitasking so that the iPhone can do the same.....So I guess Palm is doing some things right?
@fastlane
but the gap may close when Apple comes out with their own FIVE (hundred) dollar footlong in a couple of months...
@Robbb
I would agree that the smartphone competition between the major players (Apple, Palm, Android, HTC, RIM, Nokia etc) is great for the industry and consumer. However, Apple has really taken this industry by storm with the iPhone and competitors just cant "discount" Apple by any means (especially when you see their financials). My gut feeling is that other companies will "compete better" with Apple in coming years but they will have BRING IT BIG TIME. The app store IS NOT Apple's sole advantage and if you truly believe this then u really have not used an iPhone and should dismiss yourself from the conversation. Taking about minor OS features/technical specs is that important... its not one of key reasons why the iPhone has been so successful anyway (right?). I mean come on... The iPhone just JUST got MMS for crying out loud!!
Apple has set a really high bar for SMARTPHONES and i personally think the iPod success is one of fundamental reason behind the iPhone'success. The iPod is simply in a class of its own. I am not "Apple fanboy" at all but i love my iPhone (im a happy PC guy).
Also, what you must keep in perspective is that the iPhone (Apple OS X) is only under AT&T. So imagine if/when its released to Verizon (nearly 90 Milion wireless customers) and Sprint and TMobile(officially) and others carriers. Apple has the ABILITY to gain a stranglehold on marketshare. However, I think Apple has to upgrade the 3GS to not fall too far behind the "tech spec/hardware" race.
You all have some interesting points, but I just think it always comes down to what you provide your 3rd party developers. With the App Store, Apple produced a Microsoft-Class SDK that made things really accesible a RAD (rapid application development) for developers. This is what a SOFTWARE COMPANY is good at doing. Since the original Playstation, Sony has been ridiculed for giving its developers complicated and undocumented tools to work with. For instance, the PS3 uses parallel-processing, but it just recently that we've seen games that really take advantage of the hardware; whereas MS and Apple have built toolkits into their Operating Systems and SDKs to aid developers with this in the desktop computing world. Same goes for Nintendo, while DEVs may not complain about a bad SDK, Nintendo just doesn't provide them with a clear path to success.
iPhones, or mobile in general, is no different from the same trends scene in the desktop computing market. He who provides they're 3rd parties with a greater chance of success are traditionally showered with the benefits. Now I cannot comment on the quality of the PSP and DSi SDK, but I can say that they're pipeline for getting those games to the end-user is still based on the old model, retail. The App Store is critical, as it provided the clear path for getting this software to the users by aggregating and categorizing (which could be better) these applications.
Good SDKs and 24/7 availability make this a must-implement for developers....it has nothing to do with fanboy-ism
@ImJusInCredible, I think Sony has taken on the same model. I'm not sure if it's Apple based or not tho. I'm not sure if Playstation's online store has been around longer or not but with the new PSP GO you are able to purchase all of the games online as well. I believe Nintendo is still way behind on the curve.
@Paris Reed I'm curious to learn why you believe Apple is still so far ahead of the curve? You say they are but fail to mention how. (This is a serious question and I'm not trying to be a smart***)
@Paris Reed BTW, the Iphone uses it's own OS I believe it's called SpringBoard. Where as the OS for you computer is OS X. Someone correct me if I'm wrong?
@Robbb Well, you're sorta right....iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad all use iPhone OS. Back when the first iPhone was released, it was said that iPhone OS was made by removing the desktop-based fat from OSX, while adding mobile-esq layers like Cocoa touch and optimizing for a smaller battery. Springboard is the "desktop" interface and launcher.
this is because development for the iPhone pays more immediate dividends. considering all the bored, easily manipulated iPhone users who are willing to pay for most any app - this is obvious. to startup an iPhone app company is nearly effortless, a startup business in the actual gaming world, well that's a bit more difficult
The article talks about why they like developing on iPhone OS platform, SDK is trivial in terms of cost, SDK is highly useful to move apps to multiple hardware platforms, and market has shown people feel like throwing away a $1 for no good reason, just for a time killer.
I don't see how anyone can play a video game on. The iPhone or touch I have gta and duke nukem and don't play either due to the lack of real joysticks it's got to be the worst idea ever I downloaded so I wouldn't bash the idea and not know what I was talking about no serious gamer would disrespect themself and choose a iPhone over a ds or psp waste of money
I play a lot of games on my iPhone, mainly because I HATE carrying multiple devices (PSP, iPhone). I mainly only play games in the off chance my day is slow or I'm waiting bored, and usually I don't have my PSP with me. BUT, I ALWAYS have my iPhone with me. I have been around Windows Mobile and know gaming on ANY WinMo sucks compared to iPhone/iPod.
hurr, only game worth playing is MW2 on 360.
iPhone gaming is convenient, but lets be honest games are the VERY LAST REASON anyone buys a PHONE. The best game ive seen was Chinatown Wars on the iPhone, Driver was pretty good too.
If there is a big benefit here is that Nintendo will be forced to push the hardware envelope while keeping things fresh and bringing new experiences to their customers.
@Devildrifterx: It doesn't matter how hard Nintendo or Sony pushes the hardware envelope. It's not going to change the fact that I hate carrying multiple devices. Even if Nintendo portable games had xbox 360 graphics, lots would still play on their iPhones for the sake of convenience. I ALWAYS have my phone with me. My portable gaming system ... Not so much.
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