NEWS: CES: iPhone hurt mobile gaming, expert says

chris · 01-08-2008, 05:02 PM

From MacWorld:

While it would seem that the growth of smartphones, with their bigger screens and faster processors, would be good news for mobile gaming, handsets like the iPhone are in fact hurting the mobile game industry in the short term, one expert said Sunday.

Apple’s iPhone is a capable phone that holds promise for the future of gaming, said Travis Boatman, vice president of worldwide studios for Electronic Arts’ mobile division, speaking during a panel session at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. “But it’s a replacement for someone who had a Razr before. They still want their content but there’s no distribution platform in place so there’s a negative impact on the industry,” he said.

Because Apple so far hasn’t allowed iPhone users to download just anything, iPhone users may be giving up games that they played on a phone they previously owned, he said. “These devices are capable and powerful,” he said. “They’ll be great in the long term but it will take some time as people adapt to devices.”

The article in it's entirety can be found at MacWorld.

Hawk · 01-08-2008, 05:11 PM

very interesting. I initially thought this was going to be about hacked iPhones running versions of NES, Gameboy, and Playstation, but seeing that it's refering to mobile gaming as an industry, I know better now.
Sad but true, Apple's iPhone "lockdown" is hurting more than just mobile gaming. There are other aspects that are unavailable for download as well.

x999x · 01-08-2008, 05:21 PM

This article does make a very valid point, especially for those people who subscribe to games rather than flat out buy them. It's almost a ritual with me to load Pacman onto every electronic device I own. I would have preferred to use Hannaho's licensed mobile version, but thats just not gonna happy on my iphone, so the NES version will have to suffice.

Based off that alone I can see how I've inadvertently hurt Namco and Hannaho with just one game, Pacman.

gerstyd · 01-08-2008, 05:28 PM

You are all missing the point of the article, and the point is to look at this article...oh my god, I just drooled all over my keyboard.

x999x · 01-08-2008, 05:31 PM

Originally Posted by gerstyd

You are all missing the point of the article, and the point is to look at this article...oh my god, I just drooled all over my keyboard.

Lol I think you missed the point of the discussion.

If you had a Macbook tablet, you'd have no keyboard to drool over.

gerstyd · 01-08-2008, 05:33 PM

Originally Posted by x999x

Lol I think you missed the point of the discussion.

If you had a Macbook tablet, you'd have no keyboard to drool over.

So true! But, I think my company may be buying me one. I need a tablet computer for certain mobile things, and showed my IT guy the mac tablet, and he said he would try to get it approved. ZING! I hope.

x999x · 01-08-2008, 05:40 PM

Originally Posted by gerstyd

So true! But, I think my company may be buying me one. I need a tablet computer for certain mobile things, and showed my IT guy the mac tablet, and he said he would try to get it approved. ZING! I hope.

I hate you. In a sibling rivaly way ofcourse!

I asked for a new computer at work and they give me a dell... A DELL!!!

The iphone has made me so comfortable with a touch driven OS that I find myself motioning to put my finger up to the Apple menu on my mac sometimes. Had I had that blasted Macbook tablet I could finally give in to the urge!

/sulking in corner

Youngbinks · 01-08-2008, 05:40 PM

I never really thought about other versions of gaming on my phone, other than the NES emulator I have on it currently. I also never subscribed or bought any of the games offered on my previous phones. I guess I'm really only into gaming when I'm at home these days, what with the rise of the XBOX, and Playstation, Wii and others.

gerstyd · 01-08-2008, 06:06 PM

Originally Posted by x999x

I hate you. In a sibling rivaly way ofcourse!

I asked for a new computer at work and they give me a dell... A DELL!!!

The iphone has made me so comfortable with a touch driven OS that I find myself motioning to put my finger up to the Apple menu on my mac sometimes. Had I had that blasted Macbook tablet I could finally give in to the urge!

/sulking in corner

Don't get jealous yet. It isn't approved. They will probably end up buying me a stupid HP.

gerstyd · 01-08-2008, 06:31 PM

Speaking of that computer I drooled over, I just noticed the graphics card. Why would they put a graphics card in that sweet machine that is way out of date?