How much does an iOS hit cost to make?

One of the reasons often given for the current smartphone gaming boom is that titles are cheap and quick to develop. However, judging by numbers offered up by Flight Control developer Firemint, that thinking may not be entirely accurate.

The Australian developer told Pocket Full of Megabytes that its most recent effort, Real Racing 2, cost $2 million and took 18 months to develop.

Given that the iPhone version sells for £3.99 while its optimised iPad counterpart costs £5.99, these numbers might raise eyebrows.

Although not directly comparable, a 2009 report from Japanese publisher Marvelous showed that the cost of developing a DS game generally topped out at around $500,000. The end product would then of course retail for significantly more than an iOS title.

Here's hoping the investment has paid off for Firemint. The game is currently sitting at number 40 in the iPad top grossing chart following its launch in December last year.