Consumers are shelling out big money for high-end phones with hi-resolution screens and eye-popping features. But mobile gaming is still all about casual.
More than 7 million smartphones were sold in North America in the first quarter of 2008, according to Gartner, doubling the number from the same period last year. That trend is expected to continue, the market research firm said, as operators eyeing increased consumer revenues put more marketing muscle behind the powerful gadgets.
Just as important, smartphones – which not long ago meant phones with e-mail access – are increasingly created for the consumption of content. Apple Inc.’s iPhone is at the fore of a growing wave of multimedia-friendly handsets that includes Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.’s Instinct, Research In Motion Ltd.’s BlackBerry Pearl, the LG Electronics Co. Ltd.’s Voyager and Nokia Corp.’s N95.
And developers have taken note, as a quick stroll through Apple’s new App Store demonstrates. In addition to some highly dubious offerings – one offering challenges users to hold a button for as long as possible, and are 10 tip calculators really necessary? – a handful of innovative gems can be found, including a remarkably complex subway mapping application for New York.
Simple still rules
Even on the newest mini-computer, though, casual games seem to be the key. Apple has plugged the store by touting Super Monkey Ball, an iPhone version of console classic from Sega Mobile that asks users to navigate the sphere-encased primate through a series of challenges simply by moving the device. And one of the most popular third-party games for the iPhone has been Ms. Pac-Man from Namco Networks. So where are the multi-player shoot ’em ups? Where are the frighteningly complex sports titles that require hours of homework to play?
Some of those exist, of course. But the overwhelming majority of players still fancy the pick-up-and-play games, it seems.
“I think it’s inherent that you’re (talking about) a device that’s always going to be limited in some way,” said Jason Ford, VP of strategy and planning for Namco. “As mobile gaming proliferates (into the mainstream), it’s reaching people who play games but probably do it in a much more casual way. Whether it’s board games, games on the PC, they’re just inherently more apt to do that, whereas maybe the earlier adopters tended to be more hardcore in nature. And there are not as many of those who are not reached already.”
Namco last week rolled out “Pac-Man Fever,” a collection of top-selling games from the franchise for BlackBerry devices. The venerable game-maker also owns familiar titles like Galaga, Dig Dug and BurgerTime Delight – games that cash in on their arcade legacies and, more importantly, offer easy-to-grasp concepts and simple gameplay.
Trickle-down technology
Which is not to say that even the simplest casual titles can’t embrace some of the new technologies and features that cutting-edge devices bring to the table. Handcircus’ Rolando employs the iPhone’s touch screen, for instance, and Super Monkey Ball uses its accelerometer to control the action and offers knockout graphics. And while casual gamers may not know a 3-D polygon from a game of Pong, they appreciate eye-catching visuals.
“Casual gamers care about graphics, although they might not be able to express it to you,” said Ford, who headed Sprint Nextel Corp.’s gaming business before moving to Namco. “I use the analogy of walking into a wedding reception with no background music. People would say the atmosphere is OK, but couldn’t name what was missing. But if you had background music, they’d say it was fine, but wouldn’t be able to articulate that.
“I think everybody’s always looking for bigger, better, brighter. Do you necessarily need to set the logo on fire and spin it because you can? No. But if it adds to the gameplay .”
And there’s no shortage of companies lining up to make casual titles for high-end phones. Established players have rushed to port their successful casual titles to the iPhone, joining an army of smaller publishers looking to leverage smartphones with quality casual games. Publisher X, a San Francisco-based outfit, offers a half-dozen titles for the iPhone including Capybara Games’ Critter Crunch and a pinball game from Zen Studios. Phantom EFX has staked its business to the iPhone, vowing to publish more than 40 casino games for the device.
Those kinds of games are a good fit for most mobile gamers, according to Michael Cai, director of broadband and gaming for Parks Associates. While a tiny fraction of wireless users spend an hour or more per gaming session, Cai said, most gamers play 20 or 25 minutes at a time, “so it’s really less engaging.”
“Although the processing power and graphics capabilities and user interface of phones have improved dramatically, the console and PC are still the devices for long-form, more sophisticated gameplay, and the play patterns on the mobile phone are still more suited for the more casual style of play,” Cai said. “That’s why Tetris has been so successful.”
Inherent limitations
While the iPhone is undoubtedly the flavor of the month – or, perhaps, the year – for developers, the growing number of iPhone killers has already attracted attention from the developer community.
However, even the most game-friendly phone is still a phone first and foremost – at least thus far – and fails to deliver the kind of experience that can be had on consoles, PCs or even portable devices like the Nintendo DS, which has sold more than 20 million units in the United States alone. The industry’s lone viable “gaming phone” – Nokia’s N-Gage – flopped miserably when gamers quickly discovered the device was a tiny, inferior version of established platforms.
The gap between gaming devices and phones is still closing, though, and the divide may soon be bridged. Sony is rumored to be developing a phone-enabled version of its PlayStation Portable, Cai noted, leveraging its stake in the Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications joint venture. And other connected gaming devices are sure to come to market as technologies such as WiMAX and, eventually, LTE come online. But even those will have to have the support of network operators to succeed, Cai noted. “You have to make sure the carrier is pushing your game,” he said. “Right now it seems most of the carriers are still focusing on casual-style games.”
Meanwhile, complex game-makers are hoping to use mobile as an extension of their titles on other platforms. A sophisticated role-playing game, for instance, could allow users to shop for weapons on the phone before going to battle on the PC. But as the space struggles to expand beyond the 5% or so of mobile users who pay to play, it will need the simplicity of casual games to bring newcomers into the fold, said Ford.
“There are a bunch of hidden people out there,” Ford maintained. “If they just got to experience this they would become full-on addicts.”
