Sony, Nintendo "freaking out" over iPhone

By Robert Purchese Published 16 April, 2009

EA founder Trip Hawkins wades in.

Electronic Arts founder Trip Hawkins reckons Sony and Nintendo are "freaking out" about the runaway success of games on iPhone and iPod Touch.

"It's by far our most effective platform," Hawkins - now boss of mobile company Digital Chocolate - told VentureBeat. "We make as much money with these games on one device as we do putting a game on 100 different cell phone platforms.

"Between the iPod Touch and the iPhone, I think the platform is freaking out Sony and Nintendo. Apple has sold 30 million units so far and it has created tremendous awareness. It has taken ground all over the world. But it has only penetrated one half of one per cent of its total market."

Apple recently revealed the top twenty paid-for applications downloaded for iPhone and iPod Touch - a list dominated (70 per cent) by games. Free games commanded less attention - 30 per cent - but had to trade blows with the likes of Facebook and Google Earth.

Trip Hawkins' comments and the Apple-published lists follow a wave of support for iPhone and iPod Touch gaming, particularly from GDC last month. One crazy person from Namco Bandai reckons those mobile games look as good as dedicated PSP and DS releases; and a raft of top-notch developer support - Bethesda, id Software - and big-name ports - Assassin's Creed, Spore, Monkey Ball, Metal Gear Solid - suggests others are equally enthusiastic.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds. @Clert on Twitter.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

You may also like...

Comments (87) Latest comment 3 years ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • DFawkes #1 3 years ago

    No they aren't.

  • Xerx3s #2 3 years ago

    lol.

  • Phishfood #3 3 years ago

    He "reckons" they are freaking out. This isn't news worthy.

  • GamesProgrammer Verified Games Team Programmer, Eutechnyx Ltd. #4 3 years ago

    Im quite impressed with how theyve broken into the market, but after playing on one there definatley not for me. But hopefully this will encourage sony that download games are a bigger market and we will start seeing even more box product titles on the PSN Store.

    Star Ocean 2 please!

  • Vistrix #5 3 years ago

    Mobile phone games have exploded in Japan over the past few years, they're extremely popular.

    Its a totally different story in the Western world though (it seems).

  • Dizzy #6 3 years ago

    TBH Apple have a much better distribution model and are in a much better place to gain the upper hand in the next few years. The iPhone is not as good as the DS as a games machine, but it is so much easier to get a game and it is getting a wide range of games now from hardcore to casual. A lot of iPhone games are impulse buys I reckon and that is good news for the developers who are looking to earn some cash.

    I think you can expect that MS will expand Live somehow to the mobile market, especially the market place.
    Edited by Dizzy at 16/04/09 @ 10:21

  • RickHard #7 3 years ago

    Mmm... still waiting for some REAL games to play on my iPhone : got tired a long while ago of the socalled games the AppStore has to offer :(

  • Wastelander #8 3 years ago

    It's not for me, but it's nice to see something shaking everyone up.

  • Dizzy #9 3 years ago

    "Mmm... still waiting for some REAL games to play on my iPhone : got tired a long while ago of the socalled games the AppStore has to offer :( "

    So what would be a real game?

  • GreyScale #10 3 years ago

    I love the iPhone as much as the next man, but I would be extremely surprised if Sony/Nintendo were anything close to 'freaking out'.

  • mcbain23 #11 3 years ago

    Flight Control high-score : 106

  • mikeck #12 3 years ago

    Fair play to the iPhone for having a good platform for handheld gaming, but Sony et al 'freaking out' that's laughable. That being said that's no reason to rest on laurels, so I'm sure they're very aware of the success of the games on iPhone and are keeping an eye on them.

  • jonsaan #13 3 years ago

    'games look as good as dedicated PSP and DS releases'

    Probably better I would imagine, but you can't control them properly. It's a moot point.

    Games made specifically for Iphone are great. Ports are not. Trying to shoehorn existing IP based around established control systems to a platform that needs innovation is a waste of everyones time.

  • penhalion #14 3 years ago

    Given that it is unlikely that Apple will stand still with their iPhone and iTouch products and their release scedule for new versions is yearly. I would say both Sony and Nintendo are at the very least taking note of the iPhone.

    It is not inconceivable that apple could release a version of the iPhone with some kind of dedicated games control interface or an upgraded graphics chip (the old one is actually a generation behind whay PowerVR now have available for the same power consumption specs).

    The fact that Apps are developed by anyone with 99 dollars and some spare time is also making the platform extremely popular and acting to ramp up the amount of applications and games available on it at a much faster rate than either Nintendo or Sony had anticipated.

    The old model of only allowing the EAs and Activisions of the world to make games for the DS and PSP are now starting to burn the big two (Microsoft don't make handheld consoles and even if they did, XNA would be used, so we aren't counting them for this little war). I would be amazed if neither choose to create some kind of app store style development process for the PSP 4000 and DSiWare systems.

  • jonsaan #15 3 years ago

    Oh and isn't Trip Hawkins well known for making mentalist statements and business decisions?

  • Toothball #16 3 years ago

    I plan on never owning an Apple product. I've never been a fan of the way they do anything really.

  • Dizzy #17 3 years ago

    There will be more iPhones/Touch devices than PSPs on the planet this year. You can bet that Sony is taking notice (especially after Apple slaughtered their Walkman brand) and Apple might even overtake the DS next year. They are expected to sell between 20M-40M a year and the market penetration is just a a low 2% (mobile phones) so Apple have a long way to go possibly dwarfing DS numbers bu a larger margin.
    Edited by Dizzy at 16/04/09 @ 10:42

  • mingster #18 3 years ago

    good old Trip '3DO' Hawkins.
    not really the best at backing horses is he?

    Anyway Apples distribution model is way better than any platform and that's why it sells more.

    The iphone/touch control system is pathetic though it is not made for gaming on.

  • monkeylite #19 3 years ago

    hahaha

  • Stu #20 3 years ago

    Can we have a list of 'worth-getting' iPhone games? There's so much on the App Store its impossible to wade through it all. No reviews needed, just a list of titles, their genres and prices!

  • Velios #21 3 years ago

    APPLE WINS AGAIN !!!!

    /me kisses iphone

  • jonsaan #22 3 years ago

    iphone has sold next to nothing in Japan right?

  • stampax #23 3 years ago

    As much as i love the iphone, i've still never played a game on it for more than say five or ten minutes at a time...... and i've sat playing on the DS for much much longer.

    Althought to be fair, if you add up all the five minutes i've spent playing on games, that will probably add up to a fair bit....

  • jonbwfc #24 3 years ago

    "Can we have a list of 'worth-getting' iPhone games?"
    Start with any of the following

    Cooking Mama
    Super Monkey Ball
    Rolando
    Zen Touch
    Puzzle Quest
    Metal Gear Solid Touch
    Tap Tap Revenge
    Real Football 2009
    Flick Fishing
    Spore Origins
    Let's Golf
    iTrapped
    Flight Control
    Field Runners

    All of which are at pretty decent and all of which are available 24/7 for under a fiver with one tap of the screen. which is what is worrying Nintendo and Sony. Not that the iPhone is a better gaming platform than the DS or PSP, just that it's a much more consumer friendly one where publishers also get to keep much more of the cash from sales of the games they make. If you don't think those two things are significant, you're an idiot.

    Jon

  • just4funUK #25 3 years ago

    The success of the iPod touch/phone is down to how easy it is to use and to get apps on it. Also Apple has set the prices at the right price so both consumer and supplier both win.
    The question should be now will Apple look at joining the console Market with the next release of machines in about 2-3 years time? Could be very interesting if they do as the already have the infrastructure in place to deliver film and audio content to the machine which Sony and Microsoft are still trying to do.

  • just4funUK #26 3 years ago

    The success of the iPod touch/phone is down to how easy it is to use and to get apps on it. Also Apple has set the prices at the right price so both consumer and supplier both win.
    The question should be now will Apple look at joining the console Market with the next release of machines in about 2-3 years time? Could be very interesting if they do as the already have the infrastructure in place to deliver film and audio content to the machine which Sony and Microsoft are still trying to do.

  • Xerx3s #27 3 years ago

    "I think you can expect that MS will expand Live somehow to the mobile market, especially the market place. "

    I would be surprised if they didn't announce it this E3. With the features mentioned for 6.5 and 7... I always found it a bit weird that they natively support the pc, 360 and zune in their package but not the wm platform, even though there is a .netME framework out there.

    Also, with the recent halo mobile stuff that leaked, I think it's a safe bet.

    Not that it matters for me really, I will never see a mobile as a suitable gaming platform. It's a decent scummvm player though.
    Edited by Xerx3s at 16/04/09 @ 11:16

  • moggsy #28 3 years ago

    The scary thing for Nintendo and Sony is that Apple have broken into the games market with very little effort on their part. They've never been a company that was bothered about gaming.

    So what will happen with the next gen iPhone/iPod Touch now they've woken up to the potential of the games market?

  • Lebowski #29 3 years ago

    If iPhone had Football Manager it'd probably end the worldwide recession. That and CoD4: Star Wars Edition.

  • makeamazing #30 3 years ago

    I dont think they will be freaking out yet, but I suspect that its only time before Apple get more into games devices.. and who knows perhaps there will be a apple console or the next iteration of iPhone that will be more handheld like.

    So i think that its probably given both companies a wake up call, and we can see new handhelds from both Sony and Nintendo that might even have inbuilt phones.

  • Dizzy #31 3 years ago

    "Can we have a list of 'worth-getting' iPhone games?"

    I have :

    Dropship
    Fieldrunners
    Geodefence
    Rogue (free!! and awesome)
    rRootage (free)
    Dungeon Defence

  • siro #32 3 years ago

    Who said that from Namco Bandai? You're quoting yourself wrong there.

  • YobRenoops #33 3 years ago

    I just don't see it with the iphone. The barriers to entry are too high. You need a contract (with credit check for O2) to even get hold of one otherwise they're ridiculously expensive on PAYG. If they stopped the exclusivity with O2 and went across all networks then maybe a bit more but being tied to the contract doesn't help.

  • Gaol #34 3 years ago

    £0.00 to £4.99p
    or
    £29.99

    hmmmm
    Edited by Gaol at 16/04/09 @ 11:21

  • itsfuzzy #35 3 years ago

    Apple dont deserve top space in any games market. They have long sneered and jeered the games market.
    Claiming that they dont need to go down that road, its not their market. That was until people start using torrents to get their music.
    Now its all about the games to them. TV and printed media adverts everywhere for the iPhone games market.
    As quite rightly pointed out here Apple are only getting the upper hand as their distribution model is so slick.
    They will only really get involved in the market if the unit can be bought standalone without a contract to a network.

  • kangarootoo #36 3 years ago

    There seems to be an awful lot of talk here about

    a) whether iPhone games are real games
    b) whether the iPhone is a good platform for games

    I'm not sure either of these issues are relevant to the discussion at hand.

    "Freaking out" is a rather daft emotive term, which is acting to hide the actual point being made.

    Apple have a great delivery system, and a shed load of people own iPhones and iPod Touchs. And as a consequence Apple (a company that most would consider not at their heart to be a games company) are making a massive pile of money for relatively little effort.

    Apple seem to be filling the same role as eBay here. I.e. create a system that allows everyone else to sell shed loads of stuff, and then take a cut from every pie.

    Developers who make games for the iPhone seem to sell a fair few copies, so they are happy. Apple get a cut as mentioned, so they are happy. And no doubt Sony and Nintendo are looking at Apple and thinking "I would rather like to be making the same sort of money they are making, for the same relatively low investment".

    Whether this can be classed as "freaking out", I don't really know.

  • jamhead #37 3 years ago

    It's all down to personal taste of course, but I'm loving the games on the ol' touch. They're very much pick up and play, rather than lengthy in depth affairs though.

    In particular:

    Rolando
    Dr. Awesome
    Fieldrunners
    FlightControl
    Pinball Dreams
    Edge
    Wolfenstien
    iShoot
    Drop7

    Are they DS/PSP quality? Mostly not (rolando and fieldrunners possibly being exceptions), but then again I'm not paying £20-30 for them. Many are reminiscent of Amiga/SNES era games with better graphics.

    There are also loads of a-bit-crap-but-fun games to be had for free as well (JellyCar has been keeping me entertained for the last day or two).

    Add to the ease of distribution, the price (often 59p) and the fact that many apps have regular updates which make significant improvements (features, not just bugs) for free and that’s basically what does it for me.

    It is certainly true that some conversions are very poor (Onslaught - an old classic favourite of mine, being a good example of a bad port) but decent developers seem to be able to put in place decent alternatives if they can be bothered (wolfenstien). The lack of buttons doesn't have to be a show stopper.

  • Xerx3s #38 3 years ago

    "And as a consequence Apple (a company that most would consider not at their heart to be a games company) are making a massive pile of money for relatively little effort. "

    The problem/grace that all apple products have. ;p

  • kangarootoo #39 3 years ago

    @Xerx3s

    I think we can never really ignore the possibility that Apple do well because they are giving people what they want :)

  • skillian #40 3 years ago

    Apple seem to be filling the same role as eBay here. I.e. create a system that allows everyone else to sell shed loads of stuff, and then take a cut from every pie.

    It's the iTunes model rather than eBay, surely?

    I don't think many people should be surprised that the iPhone sells lots of games. The games are about 10% of the price of games for those other platforms, they can be bought from anywhere with a few clicks, and the hardware gets daily coverage in the press and on the internet.

    Once it was clear the iPhone was going to be a success, Apple didn't really have to do much to sell a lot of games.
    Edited by skillian at 16/04/09 @ 11:36

  • aldo_14 #41 3 years ago


    "It's by far our most effective platform," Hawkins - now boss of mobile company Digital Chocolate - told VentureBeat. "We make as much money with these games on one device as we do putting a game on 100 different cell phone platforms.


    My mobile (not an iPhone) came with Digital Chocolate games preloaded on it. They were fucking awful.

  • MisterCraig #42 3 years ago

    Surely Puzzle Quest dominates on the iPhone. Has it got online? I haven't ever been able to get a match on the 360 version. Wouldn't mind the achievement.

  • kangarootoo #43 3 years ago

    @skillian

    iTunes and eBay are pretty similar, though I concede iTunes is a better comparison as Apple have SOME work to do for each track or game added to the catalogue (whereas eBay staff don't have to take active involvement in any given sale).

  • sneetch #44 3 years ago

    Sony, Nintendo "freaking out" over iPhone

    So despite the headline they're not actually "freaking out". Some random bloke thinks they must be. Tabloid-tastic!

    Here's some headlines for you for tomorrow. :)

    Sony, Nintendo "encourage everyone to go on murder sprees"
    Sony, Nintendo "plot to destroy Europe and the US at advanced stage"
    Sony, Nintendo "have secret moonbase"

    That said, I'd love to see Nintendo/Sony drop their prices to within an ass's roar of Apple's prices.

  • skillian #45 3 years ago

    Here's some headlines for you for tomorrow. :)

    Sony, Nintendo "encourage everyone to go on murder sprees"
    Sony, Nintendo "plot to destroy Europe and the US at advanced stage"
    Sony, Nintendo "have secret moonbase"

    Followed by a thoughtful article about how outraged EG are about the Daily Mail shaping stories to fit their agenda and sell papers.

  • Bander #46 3 years ago

    iPhone games make money for Trip because iPhone users have more money than sense.

    Almost all games and apps for other phones have a demo mode that allows you to try before you buy, and it's been that way ever since smartphones came into existence. The App Store skips this, so people are just buying blindly.

  • mingster #47 3 years ago

    ass's don't roar they bray.

  • BlueDot #48 3 years ago

    @Bander, next version of the iphone OS will allow demos.

  • Greebo #49 3 years ago


    "next version of the iphone OS will allow demos"

    Many games have free 'Lite' versions which are cut down and allow you to try before you buy.

    That said, the odd 59p on a game that turns out to be rubbish isn't the end of the world and you can see user reviews and star ratings from the app page, so you rarely buy completely blind.

  • Bander #50 3 years ago

    @BlueDot, by the time it's ready, competitors like Blackberry's App World and Nokia's Ovi will provide equal competition, in addition to still providing the option to bypass the stores altogether so developers and users don't have to stick to rules set by the manufacturers.

  • Psiloc #51 3 years ago

    Rules that make sure stuff works properly.

  • canIdoyabombsforya #52 3 years ago


    If Apple are bringing new gamers into the market, this could be good for Nintendo and Sony in the long run. Just like other companies may benefit from the Wii bringing in new gamers.
    So it begs the question, why are hardcore gamers giving Nintendo so much abuse and not Apple?

  • ArcMonkey #53 3 years ago

    How can you compare unit sales between iphone/itouch and DS or PSP? One's a phone/media player that can play games, the others are dedicated gaming machines. How many people buy an iProduct primarily to play games on?

    I also don't think there are many (if any) games with the depth and content of a good DS title.

  • Bander #54 3 years ago

    @Psiloc: Which is certainly going to be one of the benefits of Ovi. But it still means developers have to hold back if they chose to go through it for the market exposure.

  • sneetch #55 3 years ago

    @mingster
    ass's don't roar they bray.

    It's an Irish expression; if you say something is within an ass's roar of something else then it's not all that close but within a mile or two. Obviously, I'm speaking figuratively and mean perhaps not the same as Apples prices (as the dev costs are higher) but closer than they are now.

    (Also, while we're being pedantic roaring is a synonym for braying see http://www.thefreedictionary.com/bray (Thesaurus section))

  • Pac-man-ate-my-wife #56 3 years ago

    Anyone who can't see that Apple have changed the landscape for digital game distribution and mobile gaming is deluding themselves. Apple have created a game changing platform akin to the impact that PlayStation did when it was first introduced.

    You can bitch and moan about 'real' games, that the control system doesn't work, that Sony and Nintendo aren't looking very closely at the iPhone model but you'd be wrong.
    Edited by Pac-man-ate-my-wife at 16/04/09 @ 13:15

  • kangarootoo #57 3 years ago

    "because iPhone users have more money than sense."

    Translation

    "because iPhone users have more money than me... and that annoys me"

  • kangarootoo #58 3 years ago

    @Pac-man ate my wife

    +1

  • Rodchenko #59 3 years ago

    As much as i love the iphone, i've still never played a game on it for more than say five or ten minutes at a time...... and i've sat playing on the DS for much much longer.

    But that's at the heart of the strategy: You play a title for five minutes, get bored, and try another title for five minutes ...rinse, repeat. That's how they make their money.

    What I like about the model is that it opens up business and distribution for small and unknown developers. What I don't like so much is that -- as a consequence -- there is a lot of shovelware on there.

  • skillian #60 3 years ago

    Apple have created a game changing platform akin to the impact that PlayStation did when it was first introduced.

    Sorry, but I really think that's a hugely exaggerated statement.

    What iPhone games has my mum heard of? Which movies have been slated based on iPhone games? What percentage of the population own an iPhone? If you're under 18 you can't even buy one.

    It has breathed life into a stagnating mobile phone games market, but I see no evidence to suggest it has had as big an impact on the games industry as the PlayStation.

  • asharkman #61 3 years ago

    That guys name is Trip, that's a cool name.

  • Goodfella #62 3 years ago

    @skillian, you seem to be ignoring the fact that millions of people have an iPod touch, same thing but without the phone calls.

  • Bander #63 3 years ago

    "If you ask me, it's people that mindlessly buy crappy movie tie-ins for their kids Wii at £30 a pop that have more money than sense."

    There's no arguing that really. Shops that are open all the time are a great way to cash in at the expense of the foolish though. I bought two books online last night after some beer drinking, and it's not as if I can read them simultaneously.

    "If they want to produce a free Lite version for people to try, that's up to them."

    Isn't it in Apple's rules that 'Lite' software isn't allowed to make reference to itself as a demo, meaning that it has to be able to stand alone as a game/app? Depending on the type of game, that's likely to be quite off-putting to the developer.

    "because iPhone users have more money than me... and that annoys me"

    Probably true, given that I've noticed a lot of bankers wanting to show them off recently. But my current and previous phones were definitely in the same price bracket as the iPhone, and my next is likely to be either a Nokia N97 or a Samsung i9810.

  • Dizzy #64 3 years ago

    "@ skillian, you seem to be ignoring the fact that millions of people have an iPod touch, same thing but without the phone calls. "

    20 million of those sold.

    Oh.. and BTW Touch sells VERY well in Japan (for those that seem to think that somehow Japan is 90% of the games market).
    Edited by Dizzy at 16/04/09 @ 14:20

  • Pac-man-ate-my-wife #65 3 years ago

    @skillian

    It's not just the platform and marquee titles; it's the model for distribution, the way developers get paid, the ease of development, the lack of barriers to tiny developers.

    Big franchises are appearing on the platform as developers begin to take it seriously.

    And why does your Mum hearing about game mean it's game-changing? My Mum wouldn't be able to tell you a single 360 title, yet you can't deny that Live has transformed the gaming landscape.

    What percentage of the population own an iPhone? I don't know, but I do know it's sold 17 million since launch (and it's 30 million if you include the Touch). That's serious numbers.


  • sneetch #66 3 years ago

    @Bander
    "because iPhone users have more money than me... and that annoys me"

    Probably true, given that I've noticed a lot of bankers wanting to show them off recently. But my current and previous phones were definitely in the same price bracket as the iPhone, and my next is likely to be either a Nokia N97 or a Samsung i9810.

    How do you know they were bankers? Were they wearing "I'm a banker" t-shirts or badges?

  • skillian #67 3 years ago

    @PMAMW.

    I'm not denying it has had an impact , I'm just denying it has had an impact similar to the release of the Sony Playstation. Surely if it has, then big franchises would be more than "beginning to take it seriously".

    edit: @sneetch

    You can tell a banker from the other end of a Tube carriage, they'rre not hard to spot ;)
    Edited by skillian at 16/04/09 @ 14:40

  • Weezer #68 3 years ago

    Okay, Sony and Nintendo might not be 'freaking out' but is it a coincidence that DSi now sports it's own download store and Sony are continually banging on about how this is going to be a great year for PSP?

    Very quickly iPhone and iPod Touch have taken a chunk of money out of Sony and Nintendo's pockets. Maybe not much, but enough to get their attention - and really without trying very hard. Case in point: I just bought PuzzleQuest Galactrix for DSi at about£30. It kept me entertained for a fortnight but not much else. I could easily have bought the top 15-20 best games in the App Store which wold probably have kept me entertained for much longer.

    I actually bought the DSi solely for the store, but typically for Nintendo, there's fuck-all of any interest on there (for me). I've no idea how long I'll have to wait for it to be populated with half-decent titles. The App Store now has over 5,000 titles - they can't all be shit...

    So not freaking out, but I would guess at 'a bit concerned'.

    EDIT: My fave games are…

    Field Runners
    7 Citiies TD )(great)
    Fantastic Contraption (awesome)
    Tiki Towers (awesome)
    Besiegement
    Tap Defence
    Sentinel (okay)
    Edited by Weezer at 16/04/09 @ 14:51

  • Pac-man-ate-my-wife #69 3 years ago

    @skillian

    Surely if it has, then big franchises would be more than "beginning to take it seriously".

    You're are looking at it backwards. The 'mere' fact that they are taking it seriously means it has had a massive impact.

  • Bander #70 3 years ago

    How do you know they were bankers? Were they wearing "I'm a banker" t-shirts or badges?"

    No. I just listen to them.

  • skillian #71 3 years ago

    @PMAMW

    I guess we'll just agree to disagree. As I said I agree it has had an impact in gaming, but I can't see any evidence that impact is anywhere near as big as PlayStation's.

  • Pac-man-ate-my-wife #72 3 years ago

    @skillian

    I think it's because you are talking about the PlayStation legacy - looking at it from our current knowledge of what's come since - whereas I'm talking about impact that's it's arrival had (or "will have" in the case of the iPhone) on what came after.

    But it's cool to disagree without resorting to a slanging match, perhaps we're the new breed of EG comments posters. ;)

  • kangarootoo #73 3 years ago

    @skillian

    I think you splitting hairs a bit too much. It was a subjective oberservation that we can't measure, especially as the Play Station is pretty old now and iPhone is only relatively new.

    Lets meet back here in 8 years and find out who was right :)

  • septimus #74 3 years ago

    Maybe if the iPhone was made by MS more users on this site would like it rather than just troll/bitch about it.

    It's a good platform, get over it.

  • kangarootoo #75 3 years ago

    @Bander

    Well thanks for being civil. I wasn't really picking on you or your income, more just having a general stab at the phrase "more money than sense", which is far too often simply an insult disguised as objective commentary.

    The implication is always that the person has no sense (rather than suggesting they simply have pots of cash). And far too often on these pages we tag those who have different tastes as being stupid or "sheep" or any other insult... rather than simply accepting that some people want a different product for their money.


    And I tell you what, I wish I had more money than sense. I'd be loaded ;) *



    * this is of course a joke. I frequently have bugger all sense.

  • sanctusmortis #76 3 years ago

    I'm surprised the article didn't metion C5's Gadget Show recommending it above the DSi and PSP as a games platform...

    Anyway, Apple have done with iPhone what MS wanted to do with XBLA and XNA: create a simple store where tiny games can be bought 24/7 for a reasonable price, ensuring a good deal for consumer and creator alike whilst keeping a nice share for the publisher. The reason Sony and Nintendo should be worried is simple: it's selling, and a lot of industry journalism and reviewers are turning their focus to it and away from them.

  • Pac-man-ate-my-wife #77 3 years ago

    @ sanctusmortis

    ... and a lot of industry journalism and reviewers are turning their focus to it and away from them.

    So much so that we might even get a button in the toolbar on the left one day... ;)

  • UncleLou #78 3 years ago

    Games cost between something like 70 cent and a 4 or 5 EUR, are getting better all the time, get updated a lot based on user feedback, and are available 24/7.

    They might not be freaking out, but I'd be very surprised if Nintendo and Sony weren't watching that with raised eyebrows.

    Anecdotal evidence, but still: I've bought a fat DS at launch and then a Lite, and subsequently maybe 30 or 40 games in the following years. I haven't bought a single one since I got a Touch more than a year ago. Nintendo's price policy doesn't help. I'd rather buy Flight Control for 79 cent in the appstore than pay 40,- € for Air Traffic Control, even if the latter has a little bit more content.

  • skillian #79 3 years ago

    Lets meet back here in 8 years and find out who was right :)

    Bring beer.

  • Chim_chimma_nee! #80 3 years ago

    A 'console' with one button?
    Nothanks...

  • UncleLou #81 3 years ago

    Damn casual kids. Back in the days, we would have been glad if we'd have had a button to play games.

  • Pac-man-ate-my-wife #82 3 years ago

    @Chim_chimma_nee!

    One button, eh? I wonder how all those people using iPhones manage to type a number in or send an email...

  • riz23 #83 3 years ago

    It's amazing how many people here just refuse to accept the significance of what is going on with this platform. Whether you believe they are real games or not there is a lot of many being made right now. What the hell is a real game these days anyway?have you looked at the games charts recently. Wii fit anyone? Apple know how to make desirable tech and they make it accesible. Ovi and other content delivery services will not match the app store. Nokia just don't get it.

    My personal fave games: Slotz, Sway and Flight Control

  • lolife.se #84 3 years ago

    But the most important thing.. To develop games for the iWhatever, you need to do it on a Mac, or at least in OS X, however you get it running.. Eeew... :-)

  • spookyzombie #85 3 years ago

    It would be quite cool if they brought out some kind of mini pad that clipped in to the bottom of iPods. That way they could certainly compete with PSP games and design a load of new stuff too.

  • skillian #86 3 years ago

    Re; a mini clip-on pad for the iphone - you're not the first to think of it, and stuff is in the works:

    [link url=http://gizmodo.com/5041574/iphone-game-pads-are-coming-to-enhance-gameplay-tenfold
    ]http://gizmodo.com/5041574/iphone-game-p...[/link]

    But it's true that Apple are unlikely to endorse it, so it may not ever happen or it may require you to jailbreak your phone.

  • m0thr4 #87 3 years ago

    @skillian
    What iPhone games has my mum heard of?
    I don't know.. is she even a gamer? The iPhone is simply a phone/PDA/iPod hybrid that also happens to play games (amongst many other things). Games are not the main selling point of the iPhone at all.

    Which movies have been slated based on iPhone games?
    What an odd thing to ask. You mean because Uwe Boll or Paul Anderson aren't making shit films about iPhone games, that Apple have somehow failed?

    What percentage of the population own an iPhone?
    Roughly 1.6% of the UK's population own an iPhone. It has been selling faster than either the PS3 or the Xbox 360.

    If you're under 18 you can't even buy one.
    Who gives a flying fuck? Certainly not iPhone app developers. Under 18's don't exactly have much disposable income and the iPhone is marketed as a grown-up's toy.
    Edited by m0thr4 at 28/04/09 @ 23:08