Hurdles to Mobile Gaming

Before mobile games can really stand strong, publishers and phone operators need to be more innovative, writes Marcus Dyson for The Guardian.

"Before mobile phone gaming is able to deliver a killer application, the hurdles preventing it from reaching its full potential have to be removed:

-- Mobile games can be difficult to get on to the handset. When games are available, they often only work on a selection of handsets, which limits the potential audience.

-- By the time a game is written — the development cycle is between six and nine months — the handset may be obsolete.

-- Games themselves are not well designed for the phone's form factor, which is by necessity vertical and by preference small, while a game-pad is typically horizontal.

-- Users are predominantly male, which narrows the market.

-- Mobile phone gaming has yet to deliver a killer application.

emily | 10:39 AM | SMS and Gaming |
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