iPod Apple TV will play iPod games

[BoyBach]

[W]e do find it rather interesting that casual games company PopCap (the studio that supplies titles such as Bejeweled and Zuma oh so many platforms -- including the iPod) might have slipped on some Apple TV plans. Greg Canessa, Xbox Live Arcade executive that recently jumped ship to PopCap, told Wired the following about his new job:

"It will be about taking the stable of franchises and games out of PopCap's studio and adapting, customizing it for different platforms -- adding multiplayer, new play modes, HD, customizing the user interface and display for Zune, iPod, Apple TV, Nintendo DS, PSP."

- Engadget

Is he mistaken or is it a slip up?

 

[adrianblaine]

I'd like to know how they plan on adapting Zuma to work with the Apple remote.

I can see it happening, but they would have to have some other kind of input device.

 

[lancestraz]

I'd like to know how they plan on adapting Zuma to work with the Apple remote.

I can see it happening, but they would have to have some other kind of input device.

The Apple remote, Wii style.

 

[mrgreen4242]

The Apple remote, Wii style.

Heh, that'd be neat, but an awful lot of expensive technology to put into the Apple TV, as well as a pain in the butt setup for people who want simple plug and play Apple style stuff.

What I think would be cool is the click wheel from the nano on a remote, along with a couple other extra buttons (power, for example). That would solve the iPod games on the Apple TV problem, plus make the remote unique, exciting, etc etc.

EDIT: What would be particularly cool is to make the remote an iPod shuffle as well... that is put 256mb of flash memory in there, a headphone jack, and a BT connection to the AppleTV so you can manage whats on the remote via the TV screen. Impractical and silly? Yes. Cool? You bet.

 

[adrianblaine]

The Apple remote, Wii style.

Wii wish and hope...

 

[adamcz]

What I think would be cool is the click wheel from the nano on a remote

This is a terrific idea. It wouldn't be prohibitively expensive to implement, and would give a small boost to video game downloads. It's also a way for Apple to plant a zero-risk seed for a future in living room video gaming.

The only people who would download iPod games to play on their tv are those who don't already have a console, but it's a small idea that would at least pay for itself.

The only thing that makes me skeptical is that the iPhone, and presumably near-future iPods won't have a click wheel. It will be confusing to have to download games that were specifically written for the version of iPod you own. Will an iPhone game play on the TV? Probably not.

 

[adrianblaine]

I've been thinking about it, and I don't think you'd want to rely on an infrared connection with a game controller. People swing controllers all over the place, even when the swinging doesn't do anything for the game, it's just a natural reaction. How well would it be able to track a moving object? I don't know much about it, but even when I think I'm aiming at my MBP pretty well, it doesn't respond (sometimes).

 

[mrgreen4242]

I've been thinking about it, and I don't think you'd want to rely on an infrared connection with a game controller. People swing controllers all over the place, even when the swinging doesn't do anything for the game, it's just a natural reaction. How well would it be able to track a moving object? I don't know much about it, but even when I think I'm aiming at my MBP pretty well, it doesn't respond (sometimes).

Seems to be working well for the Wii. In any case, I agree with what you are saying (having IR be the ONLY connection for the controller) which is why it needs BT. That, and to transfer you 256mb of music to the remote so you can take it with you.

Ooh, idea... if they made the AppleTV a mini iPod shuffle w/ BT they could also stream the audio of whatever is on TV to the remote, which would then play it back over the headphones (they'd have to do some significant work getting it sync correctly, but it's doable). This would be great for those with poor hearing or spouses who like to read.