A question for people who play a lot of mobile (iPad/iPhone/Android) games

I saw some tweets from Cory about how he loves that he can do everything on his one device and it got me thinking because I've not really gotten into any mobile game the way I have with a Vita/DS/3DS. Did you guys really play a lot of portable games prior to owning your mobile device? I wonder if there is an intersection between people that were luke warm towards having a dedicated portable gaming machine (didn't have one or owned one but never really used it) and people who really have taken to mobile gaming.

I'm not exactly the audience you're after here, but I can give my own answer.

Last summer, I was really, really into gaming on my smart phone (WP7, if you were curious) and before that played a fair number of games on an iPod Touch. I had been lukewarm on the idea of a dedicated portable handheld before, but I was really taken by the idea of being able to play games on a device I was already using for phone calls, music, social networking, and so forth.

But I found myself increasingly dissatisfied with the actual experience of gameplay. Tapping, swiping, pinching, and tilting worked well enough in games built around it, but many games also seemed to rely on some manner of virtualized d-pads, analog sticks, or buttons, and I did not enjoy using those at all. They were unreliable, uncomfortable, and awkward to use. And even some of the games that weren't using virtualized physical controls felt imprecise or else forced me to obscure the gameplay with my fingers.

So when they announced the price drop, I bought a 3DS. I'd obviously enjoyed being able to game portably but wanted a better experience. I've now put hundreds of hours into my 3DS and am really satisfied with that experience in a way I never was with my smart phone or iOS device. I got an iPad 3 a few months back, expecting to spend time gaming on it, but aside from a bit of time spent with Ascension it completely failed to grab me. I always found myself going back to my 3DS.

To answer your question: I didn't own a dedicated portable gaming system and was lukewarm on the idea when I got really into mobile gaming on my smart phone and iOS devices. But that didn't last and I ended up migrating over to a system better suited to the kinds of experiences I was after.

I had a PSP before I had an iphone (and played it a lot) but haven't touched the psp since I got the iphone. I am explicitly NOT saying that the iphone offers a better gaming experience by any stretch of the imagination, but for the convenience of not lugging an extra device around I'd say it's "good enough" that I haven't seriously considered a vita or 3ds.

I have one of those giant Swiss Gear Pegasus backpacks for my laptop, which I already lug to work every day. That and cargo pants.

I also have an Xperia play. Minecraft would be great if it didn't make players stop the game, switch to touch controls then restart the game just to craft something. Or, I suppose I could play the whole game in touchscreen mode. It's not anything I can get used to doing. Asphalt 6 HD - purchased for a dime during a sale - has entertained me quite a lot as well. There is some quality gaming to be done at really good prices.

My biggest concern is battery. I've been in situations where I was at a workshop or gathering in the middle of nowhere then invited to dinner in downtown Austin. Oh, good. Fire up the GPS. 9% battery and a 25 minute drive. Broken power port in the car.

So, yeah. My "standard" traveling gear is a 3DS, smartphone and Sansa mp3 player. Sometimes the PSP comes along too. I'd rather have the bulk than phone with a drained battery.

Only games that work well on a tablet. Things like board games, card games, turned based strategy. Action and fighting games just don't jive with me.

Games with virtual gamepads tend to be difficult to handled, thus causing frustration.

Games built around the features of the device, like Infinity Blade, are great.

One trend I have found to be annoying is how some companies are implementing their micro-transactions. For example, some games give you the choice of either buying some items for x amount or spending x amount of time doing x in-game task to acquire the same items. Others, however, make it ridiculously difficult to acquire the items in-game, thus forcing you to purchase them. I cannot tell you how many times I have simply dropped a game because of this. the latest culprit, for me, was Zombie Ace on the iPhone, just to mention one if you want to take a look at it.

I played the heck out of my original Gameboy, Gameboy Advance, and then DS. I was so very in love with the DS, especially when I was doing a 2.5 hour commute (5 hour total...) into an unpaid internship. Having something like The World Ends With You to keep my attention for hours at a time was such a blessing.

I thankfully no longer have that commute, nor any commute that uses public transpo, so my undivided gaming time is limited to home.

I never really found playing on my wife's iPhone that fun. Hands would cramp. Everything was so tiny. The iPad, though, has been a joy. It gives these small bursts of instant play. Other than Kingdom Rush, I haven't played a game that keeps my interested for longer than 15 minutes, though... Which is fine, since I'm one of those, "why would I play a AAA title on a handheld, when my only extended playtime is spent at home?"

Dedicated handhelds are like OnLive/Gaikai. The technology is great, but not everyone is in a position where using that service/device fulfills a need.

The iPad is great for me, because if I want to take 5 minutes to step away from mixing a track I can instantly get into a game that doesn't suck me in too hard... If I ever had to revert back to a long commute or was stuck somewhere away from a computer for hours regularly with lots of downtime then I'd buy a 3DS/Vita in a heartbeat.

I've owned gaming handhelds of one kind or another since the late-'70s. Starting with Mattel's LED titles up through Sony's PSP, they've always been a part of my gaming diet.

Oddly, my portable habits changed before I even got an iPhone a couple years back. I had a launch PSP along with an ungodly amount of games for it, but for the last two years of the handheld's cycle, I just lost interest. I think having an old-school iPod in tow coupled with the rise of podcasting made me gravitate toward listening to talk programs more and more on my daily commute to and from work.

Picking up an iPhone only served to distance me more from dedicated handhelds. With it, I had a single device that met all my needs. I always have it on me. The games are cheap and easy to aquire, and I can listen to podcasts while playing games.

The quality of mobile games gets slandered, but I've found that smart shopping has revealed true gems that fit my quick pick-up-and-play gamestyle just fine. I do agree that many titles that try to emulate portable and console gaming experiences (virtual sticks, etc.) kind of suck. But the ones that take advantage of the platform (Groove Coaster, Puzzlejuice, Infinity Blade, etc.) freakin' rock.

Now I look at Vita and the price of its games and realize that I'm just not part of that market anymore. I'm no longer interested in console experiences in the palm of my hands. I have home consoles for that. My portable consumption is simply more geared toward the mobile space...price, instant access (downloadable games), quick play sessions.

I also like just having one device on me at all times. The convinence factor in this regard can not be overstated. Having one device that does it all is a powerful influence and builds a lot of loyalty.

Internet, phone, GPS, email, camera, photo album, music player, movie watcher, book reader, game player, social media device, and tons, tons more. All in a device smaller than a deck of cards. This is the stuff we dreamed of as kids, completely 100% sci/fi material.

My experience largely mirrors Clockworkhouse's, except I had a DS before the iPhone.

When I got the phone, I thought I would never need a dedicated handheld again, probably spent $100 on games for it over the first year of ownership, drank the kool-aid. I really liked two of the games, out of probably 25 that I had - Game Dev Story and Space Miner: Spare Ore Bust. Notable duds for me included Sword & Sworcery and Infinity Blade. When I got a new phone, an Android this time, I told myself I wouldn't spend a dollar on games. I've held to that so far.

One sentiment here I've seen so far that I don't understand is that phones are better for quick experiences. Both the Vita and 3DS have sleep modes, and my favorite 3DS game (Theatrhythm) is best played in three minute chunks.

Blind_Evil wrote:

One sentiment here I've seen so far that I don't understand is that phones are better for quick experiences. Both the Vita and 3DS have sleep modes, and my favorite 3DS game (Theatrhythm) is best played in three minute chunks.

I still carry around Devil Survivor 2 for quick, five minute Free Battles.

My case holds six games, plus one in the machine. There are more than a few that short bursts of gameplay.

Blind_Evil wrote:

When I got the phone, I thought I would never need a dedicated handheld again, probably spent $100 on games for it over the first year of ownership, drank the kool-aid. I really liked two of the games, out of probably 25 that I had - Game Dev Story and Space Miner: Spare Ore Bust. Notable duds for me included Sword & Sworcery and Infinity Blade. When I got a new phone, an Android this time, I told myself I wouldn't spend a dollar on games. I've held to that so far.

This sort of mirrors my experience. I had a GBA and a DS but both were given to me as gifts and I didn't use them aside from a handful of tent pole releases. Lately, I'm more in a position to do portable gaming because of my lunch hours. I get why carrying around another dedicated device for gaming could be an issue for many people and why as great as I think the Vita is, some of the experiences it offers don't jive with someone who only has 5 minutes here and there to play. In those cases, I think mobile games fit that, they just don't jive with me. I've bought 25-30 games on the iPad my girlfriend and I split earlier this year (which I did just to try iOS games out) and I play maybe 3-4 of them with any regularity, the biggest of which is Pinball Arcade. I found Infinity Blade to be a pretty tech demo that lasts 15 minutes, has the depth of a spoon and has the biggest problem of most iOS games: Constantly nagging you to buy stuff even after you've already paid for it. At least that game doesn't require additional purchases to make any decent progress like Flight Control Rocket does.

My two biggest personal issues with mobile titles are the lack of depth and the Skinner Box IAP model they're all going to. When I start reading things in the gaming press like "$0.99 premium games", there's a real problem somewhere. That's why I backed the Republique project. They claim they're aiming for a single player experience with deep story, characters and mechanics and that type of thing really excites me to see on a system like that. The Vita and the 3DS are far from perfect but at least there, I pay a higher price and get a complete, deeper experience that doesn't require me to constantly chip in a buck here and a buck there in order to make it what the designers intended. I'd rather pay less for the hardware and more for the games than more for the hardware and just get a bunch of graphical storefronts masquerading as entertainment. I love free-to-play on the PC but the way most mobile publishers are doing it is just gross.

A lot of this comes down to personal preference and the way my free time is allocated and mobile's success shows I don't think like most people so that's fine. I do hope that the ecosystem can continue to evolve and be able to allow the particular experiences I want while still making a healthy profit for developers. That way, everyone can play what they want to play. The mobile industry is still in a huge gold rush bubble that hasn't settled yet and everyone's trying to figure out a long-term business model that cheap and finicky mainstream consumers won't get bored with. They aren't there yet but they'll figure it out.

My kid is playing on my PSP while I'm able to post in the forum with my phone.

This is also a benefit of dual wielding. Especially when he helps me get past rough spots in twitchy games.

I had a PSP and a 3DS, GBA and the like. My wife (then girlfriend) bought me an iPod Touch, I started with free games. Due to job problems, I ended up selling all of the above.

Thankfully, i got a good job and I now have an iPad 3, and it's my primary portable gaming system. My job has a contract for iPhones, so I have one, but I only use it for quick fixes.

I work on a lot of mind maps, have SSH terminals into work computers, VNC/RDP sessions open, and knowing I can jump to get a turn in for a boardgame (most of which I suck at) or get in a turn with an async game is nice (also most of which I suck at ).

All of that being said, there are problems.

  • A lot of control schemes are wonky, virtual sticks can be very inaccurate, touch controls can obscure the screen and cause unintended effects when the touch effects in the code are looking for multiple states (one, finger, 2 fingers, swipes, holds etc.) When it's done right, it's pretty seamless, but finding those games can be a royal pain in the ass.
  • - Freemium garbage. One of the games I was looking forward to was Strikefleet Omega. When it was released, I played it for 2 missions and deleted it. I've never seen so many ads to buy the multiple in game currencies. And it's all over the place in so many games. + I don't mind the games that a free to download, then X price to unlock the full game. I like having gameplay before dropping my money.
  • Shallow games. There are a lot of them. There are deep games on the platform, they're either harder to find, or cost a (little to a lot) more. Ascendancy, Aquaria, Bastion, Junk Jack, Starbase Orion, Battle Academy, Autumn Dynasty, Sworcery, a boatload of card and board games are examples of some deep games.

All in all I see both sides. There are negatives to gaming on the iOS/Android, there are positives too, for me at least.

What kind of games do you want to play on the mobiles, out of curiosity? That might help make a more informed decision.

i have lots of mobile consoles mostly for collection purposes. i can mostly be found playing with my iphone ipad and 3ds. although occasionally i play my psp. I own home consoles like a ps3 and a wii but i rarely play them, for some reason I cant get into them as much not being able to take them on my commute to work/ at work.

Ulairi wrote:

I saw some tweets from Cory about how he loves that he can do everything on his one device and it got me thinking because I've not really gotten into any mobile game the way I have with a Vita/DS/3DS. Did you guys really play a lot of portable games prior to owning your mobile device? I wonder if there is an intersection between people that were luke warm towards having a dedicated portable gaming machine (didn't have one or owned one but never really used it) and people who really have taken to mobile gaming.

My entry into mobile gaming began with the GBA SP. I played it mainly on vacations/car rides/bedtime/etc., as at home it wasn't generally enough of a draw to tear me away from PC gaming (with its nice big screen and booming speakers and all of that jazz). The trend largely continued with the DS Lite/Dsi that I grabbed.

My decision to purchase an iPod 4G last February was motivated primarily on having a light gaming machine that would "incentivize exercise", one that I would only play while on the treadmill. It's worked well for me so far (over 30 pounds lost since last February, hooray!) If I want to play a bit of Ash, or Scribblenauts, or Waking Mars, well, it's time to hop my butt on the walkin' machine. I've used the iPod for podcasts and audiobooks as well, but its main home is next to the treadmill.

ClockworkHouse wrote:

I'm not exactly the audience you're after here, but I can give my own answer.

I would imagine the audience would be people who didn't play portables much until they got a smartphone. My answer would be that there have been a few interesting games on the iPhone and it was a fun novelty for a time, but there are few games I regularly play on the iPhone, having reverted to the Vita and DS.

My first mobile system was a Sega Game Gear. My favorite system was the GBA SP. Played a ton of games on that. I'd love a phone that could play SP-level games with some physical controls. Otherwise I'll always play a Vita or 3DS.