Handheld Gamers Moving From Dedicated Devices to Smartphones

[CFreymarc]

We're unfunky and obsolete, (and out of time) and out of timeeee....

This is one many owe me a drink for.

When the iPod launched in 2000, I wrote that the biggest competitor to this was the Sony Walkman. In a classic Japanese manner, they looked at the iPod with no public comment and massive internal concern. When the iPhone launched, again same behavior just to keep their product momentum going.

While you can critique it, Sony dropping the Palm OS and doing their own device was the biggest strategic mistake they made in thirty years. If anything, Sony should have bought Palm over five years ago and then they would have a chance to make it against Apple.

Instead, they are still have their "not invented here mindset" of product design and rotate in designers that never have a chance to live or evolve with a product.

 

[IbisDoc]

If Sony does this right, the PSP phone will be a game changer. Touchscreen gaming is worthless, and decent games are unplayable on the iPoducts. The casual gamer might enjoy tilting their phone at various angles to rotate a smiley face ball into a hole, but there would be a huge market for a phone and real portable game machine.

The iProducts currently benefit from the absence of a decent alternative. Sony made a mistake by waiting so long to provide this alternative......yet another example of their terrible business practices.

 

[0098386]

As a gamer (not a casual gamer) I have to disagree with the article.

iOS does have some quite fun, albeit "nibble" style games. I bought an iPod touch last month to replace my laptop and so I could see what the fuss was about with games. So far I have bought 40 games (surprised at how cheap they were) and downloaded 30 more free/promo ones. Some are great (Angry Birds) but I find it very hard to find the cream of the crop, and its very hard to trust sites like Touch Gamer that seem to roll off great reviews on games that wouldn't get 50% on dedicated handheld systems.

What I'm seeing is more of a market shift, of a rising up of casual games. It's worth noting that iOS and DS/PSP games are 2 completely separate markets. Similar to what the Wii started in 2006(ish).

There are still no iOS games that compare to New Mario DS. There are still no RPGs that compare to Persona 3, Ys Seven or Pokemon. Still no racers that compare to Gran Turismo or Mario Kart.
There are cheap imitations yes and they're in abundance. But that's exactly it. iOS is all about cheap, disposable games.

DS/PSP games in general are better. There are higher standards.
iOS games are cheaper.
There are more iOS games.
iOS games are more convenient to get.

Since I bought my iPod and acquired more games for it than I ever did in my 5-6 years of owning a DS... I still find myself going back to the Nintendo machine for my gaming fixes.

 

[LagunaSol]

If Sony does this right, the PSP phone will be a game changer.

Unlikely. Just one more disparate hardware configuration to further muddy the Android waters. Good luck selling games to the small sliver of devices that have Sony controls, to a crowd proven not to want to pay for software (the Android folks).

Touchscreen gaming is worthless, and decent games are unplayable on the iPoducts.

 

[Doctor Q]

I'm still trying to figure out how to use my convenient-to-carry NES controller with my iPod touch games.

Image from slashgear

 

[CFreymarc]

As a gamer (not a casual gamer) I have to disagree with the article.

iOS does have some quite fun, albeit "nibble" style games. I bought an iPod touch last month to replace my laptop and so I could see what the fuss was about with games. So far I have bought 40 games (surprised at how cheap they were) and downloaded 30 more free/promo ones.

What I'm seeing is more of a market shift, of a rising up of casual games. It's worth noting that iOS and DS/PSP games are 2 completely separate markets.

There are no iOS games that compare to New Mario DS. There are no RPGs that compare to Persona 3, Ys Seven or Pokemon. No racers that compare to Gran Turismo or Mario Kart.
There are cheap imitations yes. But that's exactly it. iOS is all about cheap, disposable games.

Since I bought my iPod and acquired more games for it than I ever did in my 5-6 years of owning a DS... I still find myself going back to the Nintendo machine for my gaming fixes.

DS/PSP games in general are better. There are higher standards.
iOS games are cheaper.
There are more iOS games.
iOS games are more convenient to get.

You have some very valid points, but you have to ask how many "real gamers" shift to casual gaming? I don't see this as a fad but a serious demographics shift.

To apply the overused automotive analogy, when there were only manual transmissions, people that drove had to get a lot of experience to drive. When automatic transmissions came out, many that used a manual out of necessity and not passion shifted to automatic transmissions. You can get a manual transmission for almost any car (yeah, yeah you can't for a Prius) but those that have a passion and desire for that much direct control and operation are only 20% of the "real gamer market" before smartphone games started to come on the scene.

I see the proprietary handheld gaming systems go the way of the dedicated gaming consoles in living rooms. That is, they will never get the massive following they have before but there will be a market with fads and trends oscillating between open and closed systems as features that first come on out proprietary systems go into open systems.

It is just a matter of time that these motion tracking technologies that are hot this season on consoles make their way into desktop monitors and projection screens.

 

[a.gomez]

hmm, guess they left Japan out - seeing how the PSP just moved a record 327K units this past week and sold 2.4 million copies of a Capcom game at the same time.

giving Capcom 5,800 yens a pop and a 2.4 percent jump in shares

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-...er-hunter-sells-2-million-units-in-japan.html

Love these unidimensional reports from no name research firms

 

[shartypants]

A phone is something you have to have with you anyway, so makes sense.

 

[sinsin07]

If the future of hand held gaming is shooting a bird a stack of objects, or maintaining a farm with "mana" with in app purchases to speed the progress, I'd best hit BB and pick up all the cheaper older good titles for PSP/DS while they are in stock. 200,000 plus (or whatever the number) mind numbing quick fix IOS games will never have the fun of GTA, SOCOM, etc on device with no tactile feedback. Looks like the non gamer lemmings win.

 

[0098386]

hmm, guess they left Japan out - seeing how the PSP just moved a record 327K units this past week and sold 2.4 million copies of a Capcom game at the same time.

giving Capcom 5,800 yens a pop and a 2.4 percent jump in shares

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-...er-hunter-sells-2-million-units-in-japan.html

Love these unidimensional reports from no name research firms

Exactly.

You have some very valid points, but you have to ask how many "real gamers" shift to casual gaming? I don't see this as a fad but a serious demographics shift...
I see the proprietary handheld gaming systems go the way of the dedicated gaming consoles in living rooms. That is, they will never get the massive following they have before but there will be a market with fads and trends oscillating between open and closed systems as features that first come on out proprietary systems go into open systems.

I do believe there is a shift too, however it's not such a huge shift that is going to remove the existence of dedicated handheld systems, like what some fans and sites are saying.

Another thing - each generation of games console has more sales than the previous generation. I don't know why you're saying that home consoles have less of a following than what they used to.
http://vgchartz.com/

All in all gaming is getting more followers. More handheld sales (DS being the best selling game device ever), more PC game sales, more console sales, more gaming-enabled smartphone sales.

 

[iOrlando]

Actually, any parent of Elementary School children can tell you that the DS is in no danger of going away any time soon. Go to any after school event and you will see a bunch of kids on DS's with groups of kids huddled around them. If it's not a DS, it's an iPod touch. When they get older, they go for the smartphones, but when your kid tells you that "every kid" has a DS, they aren't kidding these days. A lot of it probably comes down to parents. Not all parents are going to stick a cell phone in their elementary school kids hands, but most will buy a $1-200 "gaming" device.

Whether the DS stays relevant in the future will depend on Nintendo and how they can compete with the changing market. As for the PSP, only the uncool kids have them. Sony missed the handheld bandwagon by a long shot and the PSP Phone just looks like a last ditch effort to try to save themselves.

sure DS is still popular, but the iPod Touch is more useful and better value. Nice video player for trips, iPod for car, communication such as facebook, etc.

If you like your specific gaming buttons..sure go DS, but more and more kids (i was specifically thinking 5th-6th grade and up) are moving to iPod touch.

 

[sinsin07]

sure DS is still popular, but the iPod Touch is more useful and better value. Nice video player for trips, iPod for car, communication such as facebook, etc.

If you like your specific gaming buttons..sure go DS, but more and more kids (i was specifically thinking 5th-6th grade and up) are moving to iPod touch.

Hmm, better value how? The iTouch is much more fragile than a DS. Why would anyone want to give such a fragile device to a child age 5 to 10? How many kids have lost a DS? How much easier is it to loose a Touch. The only good thing about the touch for a kid is cheaper games and the games can't get lost. But seeing as how kids treat their DS, pants pocket, back pack etc, how easily do you think they will crack their Touch screen, or get is accidentally washed?

 

[IbisDoc]

Unlikely. Just one more disparate hardware configuration to further muddy the Android waters. Good luck selling games to the small sliver of devices that have Sony controls, to a crowd proven not to want to pay for software (the Android folks).

You're forgetting about owners of the large "sliver" of devices that currently use iOS, some of which would very quickly switch to a (well-done) PSP phone so that they could play decent games. Not every purchaser of Apple products is so fanatical that they would settle for simple games that shoot birds into blocks, if there was an alternative. If the PSP phone plays music, videos, has a decent collection of apps, plus has a far superior gaming experience, it has the potential to be a game changer.

However, Sony's recent track record is very poor, so they are likely to screw this up somehow.

 

[drewface]

This is only because the DS and PSP are at the end of their life cycle. It's like comparing sales of the Wii to the Gamecube. The 3DS will definitely not go unnoticed.

 

[sinsin07]

I keep hearing the term "casual gaming" in the derogatory regarding iOS, but I have no idea what it actually means. What defines a "casual" game exactly? Is StarCraft a "casual" game? Because it sure would work well on the iPad.

Do a search on Appshopper, iphone/games

Pick any the first page: http://appshopper.com/iphone/games/

Unlikely. Just one more disparate hardware configuration to further muddy the Android waters. Good luck selling games to the small sliver of devices that have Sony controls, to a crowd proven not to want to pay for software (the Android folks).


rolleyes:

You mean like the websites you can go to to get ipa's for all manner of cracked IOS software for a jailbroken iPhone/iPad/iTouch?

 

[iOrlando]

Hmm, better value how? The iTouch is much more fragile than a DS. Why would anyone want to give such a fragile device to a child age 5 to 10? How many kids have lost a DS? How much easier is it to loose a Touch. The only good thing about the touch for a kid is cheaper games and the games can't get lost. But seeing as how kids treat their DS, pants pocket, back pack etc, how easily do you think they will crack their Touch screen, or get is accidentally washed?

I can get midnight blue colored DS for $169 from walmart tonight or iPod touch from walmart for $214. So we are talking about a $44 difference.

I think spending $44 more and getting facetime, an ipod, video player, basically a mobile computer is well worth it and makes ipod touch a great value vs DS.

also what are the odds of losing DS games, leaving DS games over a friend's house?

 

[genosseinski]

not all iphone games are casual. gameloft, ea, activision, team17 and a bunch of other big developers have created some decent ones. like worms, nfs, movie-games, monkey island, gta, command&conquer, fifa and all that stuff. usually they are quite hard to control, but some are really thought through. the "calm" games (eg strategic games) are actually a lot easier to play than on non-touchscreen gaming devices. And just so much cheaper.

of course iphone gaming is dominated by fun'n'easy stuff like angrybirds or doodle jump, but it's just not fair to neglect all the premium titles available on the AppStore.

 

[sinsin07]

I can get midnight blue colored DS for $169 from walmart tonight or iPod touch from walmart for $214. So we are talking about a $44 difference.

I think spending $44 more and getting facetime, an ipod, video player, basically a mobile computer is well worth it and makes ipod touch a great value vs DS.

also what are the odds of losing DS games, leaving DS games over a friend's house?

Are you a Elementary School child?

The scenario went like this:

Originally Posted by baleensavage
Actually, any parent of Elementary School children can tell you that the DS is in no danger of going away any time soon. Go to any after school event and you will see a bunch of kids on DS's with groups of kids huddled around them. If it's not a DS, it's an iPod touch. When they get older, they go for the smartphones, but when your kid tells you that "every kid" has a DS, they aren't kidding these days. A lot of it probably comes down to parents. Not all parents are going to stick a cell phone in their elementary school kids hands, but most will buy a $1-200 "gaming" device. ...snip

Which you responded that the iTouch is a better value. Well better value is subjective. It depends on the needs of the user. Do Elementary school children really need Facetime?

You still have not addresses the durability issue, even with your 5th and 6th grade example. The iTouch cannot take much abuse.

If we look at a late teen or young adult scenario it still boils down to what is more important, casual games or a true gaming experience. Do you want to Play SOCOM, GTA or any number of well made first person shooters, or Angry Birds? The value is relative.

 

[jimbobb24]

True for me

Used to have a PSP. Games were great, it was fun. But I found it too expensive and I rarely got new games.

My wife got an iPod touch, and suddenly she was gaming. For the price of one PSP game we got 15-25 new games. The quality of the games continues to improve and has gotten absolutely amazing. Interface is not perfect, but buy once and play on the (now) iPod touch, iPhone, and iPad is amazing. Our money goes further, more fun experiences, and it is always with us. I sold the PSP, it was just collecting dust.

Now it is PS3, PC, and iOS only.

 

[jimbobb24]

Do you want to Play SOCOM, GTA or any number of well made first person shooters, or Angry Birds? The value is relative.

Not to argue with any of your other points, but by your construction you make it seem like you want people to choose between GTA and FPS with the DS or Angry Birds - an iOS game.

The iOS GTA version is better than the DS version and cheaper. Lots of FPS...probably more than the DS and they look better. With the iPhone 4 and iPad its not even close, the DS is a dinosaur.

DS is still great, but the variety of games on iOS is truly mind-blowing. I sometimes cannot believe it.

 

[wildmac]

The iPad gaming scene is even hurting Facebook. Many of the games are being optimized for the iPad itself, independent of Facebook. Plus they play better without the browser restrictions.

 

[sinsin07]

Not to argue with any of your other points, but by your construction you make it seem like you want people to choose between GTA and FPS with the DS or Angry Birds - an iOS game.

The iOS GTA version is better than the DS version and cheaper. Lots of FPS...probably more than the DS and they look better. With the iPhone 4 and iPad its not even close, the DS is a dinosaur.

DS is still great, but the variety of games on iOS is truly mind-blowing. I sometimes cannot believe it.

Only a non-gamer could make such a leap. Substitute whatever PSP/DS game you want, I was not going to list every great PSP/DS game nor was I trying to force a choice.

The GTA IOS and DS versions both stink.

Now lets look at the variety of games aspect of your comment. You have a wife I see. Do you really think the DS is targeted mainly at your demographic? Sure there are commercials showing adults playing mind games on the DS, but is that platform for adults or kids?

I have to agree with you with a caveat, variety of games on iOS is truly mind-blowing, especially when you consider how much is just fodder, repeats, rehash and just plain dumb. All I can say is if the games on IOS can satisfy your game fix, you are not the target audience for PSP or DS.

When this epic "game changer" for the Ipad comes out tomorrow, I will be purchasing the game to give it fair chance. But with no tactile feel I hope it's not a waste of money, and I also hope that the game has enough to last for a few hours at least.

Now back to Black Ops on my 73 inch screen.

 

[Liquorpuki]

The 3DS is coming out in March. That thing will shift the portable market back in the other direction. And if Sony ever bothers to put out a PSP with 2 analog sticks instead of doing dumb stuff like releasing the PSP Go, people will go back as well. iOS gaming is only growing because the other major players haven't done anything significant for years.

iOS games tend to be either casual games (Angry Birds, Words with Friends, anything with the word Doodle in front of it) or clones of console/portable games that have been reduced to 1985 NES controls because of screen real estate (anything Gameloft puts out). On the otherhand I can see hardcore gaming shining on the iPad but the market there is still pretty sparse.

 

[Popeye206]

As a gamer (not a casual gamer) I have to disagree with the article.

iOS does have some quite fun, albeit "nibble" style games. I bought an iPod touch last month to replace my laptop and so I could see what the fuss was about with games. So far I have bought 40 games (surprised at how cheap they were) and downloaded 30 more free/promo ones. Some are great (Angry Birds) but I find it very hard to find the cream of the crop, and its very hard to trust sites like Touch Gamer that seem to roll off great reviews on games that wouldn't get 50% on dedicated handheld systems.

What I'm seeing is more of a market shift, of a rising up of casual games. It's worth noting that iOS and DS/PSP games are 2 completely separate markets. Similar to what the Wii started in 2006(ish).

There are still no iOS games that compare to New Mario DS. There are still no RPGs that compare to Persona 3, Ys Seven or Pokemon. Still no racers that compare to Gran Turismo or Mario Kart.
There are cheap imitations yes and they're in abundance. But that's exactly it. iOS is all about cheap, disposable games.

DS/PSP games in general are better. There are higher standards.
iOS games are cheaper.
There are more iOS games.
iOS games are more convenient to get.

Since I bought my iPod and acquired more games for it than I ever did in my 5-6 years of owning a DS... I still find myself going back to the Nintendo machine for my gaming fixes.

Dagless.... I have to agree with you.

I do think with time, there will be better and more in-depth games for iOS. I think developers all just rushed what they could to get something out there. Remember, it's only been 2 years that they could do this. But 5 years from now, I think we'll see much more involved and elaborate games. Probably lots of co-operative play and maybe an alternative way to add controller like interfaces to your iPod Touch or iPhone? I think it's just a matter of time.

Nitendo and Sony have to be worried. They will get outdated or out classed by connivence over time unless they do something "game changing" soon.

 

[sinsin07]

The 3DS is coming out in March. That thing will shift the portable market back in the other direction. And if Sony ever bothers to put out a PSP with 2 analog sticks instead of doing dumb stuff like releasing the PSP Go, people will go back as well. iOS gaming is only growing because the other major players haven't done anything significant for years.

iOS games tend to be either casual games (Angry Birds, Words with Friends, anything with the word Doodle in front of it) or clones of console/portable games that have been reduced to 1985 NES controls because of screen real estate (anything Gameloft puts out). On the otherhand I can see hardcore gaming shining on the iPad but the market there is still pretty sparse.

Yeah, but the iPad defeats the whole "portable always with me" argument. What will the "IOS gaming rules" pundits say now?