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探讨iPhone 5对手机游戏开发领域的影响

发布时间:2012-09-14 16:57:18 Tags:,,,

作者:Eric Caoili

i0S开发者将对iPhone 5的问世作何反应呢?总体上看,这款新型智能手机将如何影响游戏行业呢?Gamasutra就此采访了各个大小工作室,以此了解他们对iPhone5的感想。

对许多人来说,昨天苹果产品发布会就是为了迎接这款改进版的iPhone 5(游戏邦注:比如,植入的A6处理器的运行速度比之前的手机快2倍),但却未给人们带来过多的惊喜。它最明显的特征就是屏幕加长到4英寸——比前几个系列加长了半英寸。

iphone(from gamasutra)

iphone(from gamasutra)

除了两家工作室在台上亮相,展示了他们针对新iPhone和iPod Touch开发的新成果之外,苹果并未腾出过多时间亮出这一新设备对游戏开发者的好处。

《Waking Mars》联合开发者David Kalina表示,他对苹果产品发布会没有任何印象。不过,他希望能在下周发售后购买一台iPhone5。

Simogo的Simon Flesser也表示出对iPhone5没有印象,他担心iOS新一代设备会越来越像Android和PC平台。同时,他也质疑苹果是否有必要每年都推出更新换代的移动设备。

Flesser表示:“我个人已对这些设备失去兴趣,它们无法提供像第一代iPhone、DS或Wii那种全新且让人兴奋的互动方式,让我们真正体会到新鲜感。”

虽然Gamasutra采访的独立开发者似乎对iPhone 5不感冒,但是CrowdStar、Gree、FreshPlanet及Wooga这些较大型的移动社交游戏开发者都迅速表达了对此次发布会的兴奋之情。

Wooga首席执行官Jens Begemann及Gree工作室运营副总裁Anil Dharni均表示,他们相信更长的屏幕及更快的芯片便于开发者制作出更具沉浸式的游戏体验,同时也包括给人印象更深刻的画面(EA移动和社交游戏负责人Nick Earl也表示了同样的观点。)

Begermann补充道,Wooga渴望利用iOS 6操作系统绑定Facebook这一功能(苹果透露iOS 6将于下周发布)。

Game Center(from halfpeeledapple.com)

Game Center(from halfpeeledapple.com)

同时CrowdStar首席执行官Peter Relan也赞扬苹果简略提到的“时间转换的多人游戏模式”支持功能,iOS 6的Game Center更新将会囊括这项功能——此性能允许用户纪录游戏过程,以后允许朋友或其他人过后挑战其之前的游戏数据。

iPhone5将如何影响开发者及游戏行业?

当前的游戏已能在iPhone 5的大屏幕上呈现出良好的效果(只是由于iPhone5的额外空间,它们的画面会被加框),开发者可能会匆匆更新自己的游戏,来适应更加宽广的屏幕,准备迎接9月21号这款智能手机的发布。

Tiger Style的Kalina期望,iPhone5的更高分辨率(1136*640)及16:9的屏幕宽度比这些特性,能推动更多的iOS开发者在设计游戏时在画面分辨率上留有余地。这是Kalina的工作室一直牢记的方法,因此,他并不认为更新自己的游戏来适应新手机需要花费很多精力。

Simogo也表示他不认为更新自己的资产来适应全新的屏幕宽度会影响游戏运营。至于iPhone 5的额外功率,该工作室则表示他们不确定自己的游戏是否需要在此做文章。

Simogo的Flesser解释道:“我们不希望去年设备上的游戏显得很劣质,所以,即使理论上我们能设计出更加精美的东西,但是我们仍受到老式设备的‘束缚’”。

FreshPlanet首席执行官Mathieu Nouzareth对此表示认同,他指出开发者将需要一段时间才能挖掘利用iPhone 5的性能:“从短期上看,依赖此设备的用户基础太少了,所以我们必须采用最小的通用标准。”

虽然,Gree的Dharni对于利用iPhone 5提升的技术标准制作游戏的前景表示兴奋。但他表示:“我们现在面临的情况是,具有主机质量的游戏将可在所有类型的移动设备上运行——这对开发者和玩家来说都是一大利好消息。”

CrowdStar和Wooga均表示,他们希望iPhone 5能延续苹果智能手机的特性:疯狂出售,创造出更多的手机游戏用户,另外还能吸引不玩游戏的新用户。

iOS开发者的制作成本将会提升

iPhone 4S发布不到一年的时间,新一代苹果智能手机就问世了,这突显移动硬件循环周期很短,相比之下,传统的家庭主机的循环周期为5-6年。

这些硬件产品更新换代周期的缩短,也给一些开发者带来了潜在的风险,有些开发者可能无法赶上制作成本快速增长的步伐,导致无法为最新平台制作游戏,而他们却需要与其他采取这一行动的开发者相竞争。

然而,Wooga的Begemann表示,这就是免费游戏定期更新的优势,开发公司一般将20%的预算用于发布前的开发阶段,80%用于发行后期的工作。

Begemann指出:“这些服务型的游戏需要不断地投入成本,然而它也在不断地创造收益。当我们继续为游戏投资时,我们很高兴看到,改良的硬件让我们从游戏中获取更多收益,同时为新用户引入更加丰富、更具沉浸性的游戏。”

但是,CrowdStar全球业务发展主管Randy Lee并不认为小型或者独立开发者会处于劣势,因为他们锁定的市场对游戏视觉效果,或者极其复杂的内容并没有过高要求。

Lee补充道:“有些开发者会将画面效果发挥到极致,创造出更具沉浸性的游戏体验。同时也有一些开发者更侧重休闲和广泛性。只要看下热门排行榜,你就能在那找到针对不同用户的各类游戏。”

Tiger Style的Kalina表示,让独立开发者加入走在设备性能前沿的军备赛,这样的做法非常愚昧。他表示,与其关注每个新硬件的发布,游戏开发者应重视制作可能吸引大量用户的游戏体验。

Kalina解释道:“如果小型开发者需要花费更多的时间才能赶上发展进程,这只能说明竞争的数量和质量都在提高,这也是拥有最健康、最多样化市场环境的苹果所带来的副作用。”

尽管有些游戏开发者必须用更多预算参战,但FreshPlanet的Nouzareth仍想提醒手机游戏工作室:“从长远上看,成本增加是不可避免的,但是相较于主机领域,移动设备上所需的成本仍相对较低。”(本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译,拒绝任何不保留版权的转载,如需转载请联系:游戏邦

iPhone 5: Game developers react

By Eric Caoili

How are iOS developers reacting to the iPhone 5? How will the new smartphone affect the industry as a whole? Gamasutra spoke to studios both small and big to learn their thoughts about the next iPhone.

For many, Apple’s press event yesterday delivered welcome refinements for the iPhone 5 (e.g. a new A6 chip promising two times faster performance across the board) but few major surprises. Its most obvious addition to the iPhone line is the 4-inch screen — a half-inch bigger than any previous iPhone’s display.

And other than bringing a couple studios up on stage to demonstrate what they could accomplish with the new iPhone and iPod Touch’s improved specs, Apple didn’t devote much time to showing what game makers can accomplish on its new hardware.

As a result, David Kalina, co-owner of Waking Mars developer Tiger Style, tells Gamasutra he was “underwhelmed” by the event and announcements. However, he expects he’ll enjoy owning an iPhone 5 after it releases next week.

Simogo’s Simon Flesser (Beat Sneak Bandit) is unimpressed by the iPhone 5, too, and says he’s worried the iOS platform is becoming more and more like Android and PC with every new generation. He also questions the need for annual refreshes of mobile devices.

“I have personally lost a lot of interest in devices that do not offer something that feels truly fresh with new and exciting ways of interaction, like the first iPhone, the DS, or the Wii,” says Flesser.

Though the indies that Gamasutra talked to seemed uninspired by the iPhone 5′s unveiling, bigger mobile social game developers like CrowdStar, Gree, FreshPlanet, and Wooga were all quick to express excitement over the announcement.

Wooga’s CEO Jens Begemann (Diamond Dash) and Gree’s studio operations SVP Anil Dharni (Zombie Jombie) both believe the taller screen and faster chip will enable developers to create more immersive experiences, as well as more graphically-impressive games. (EA’s head of mobile and social games Nick Earl expressed a similar sentiment.)

Begermann added that Wooga is eager to take advantage of the deep Facebook integration promised with the upcoming release of the iOS 6 operating system, which Apple has just revealed it is shipping next week.

CrowdStar CEO Peter Relan (Top Girl) also praises the briefly-mentioned “time-shifting multiplayer” support that will be included with iOS 6′s Game Center update — the feature allows users to record a gameplay session, and have their friends or others compete against that session data later.

How will iPhone 5 impact developers and the industry?

While existing games should appear fine on the iPhone 5′s bigger screen — just letterboxed due to the extra space — developers are likely rushing to update their titles to accommodate the wider display, and have them ready for the smartphone’s launch on September 21.

Tiger Style’s Kalina expects the iPhone 5′s higher resolution (1136 x 640) and 16:9 aspect ratio will push more iOS developers toward becoming resolution-agnostic when designing their games. It’s an approach his studio has always kept in mind, so he doesn’t think updating Tiger Style’s games for the new phone will take too much effort.

Simogo doesn’t believe that updating assets and adjusting its games for the new aspect ratio will have a great impact on its operations either. As for the extra horsepower of the iPhone 5, the studio isn’t sure that it can do much with it, at least not if it wants users with older iPhones to enjoy its games.

“We do not want our games to feel inferior on last year’s device, so even though we theoretically could do even greater stuff graphically, we are still ‘hindered’ by older devices, so to speak,” Simogo’s Flesser explains.

FreshPlanet CEO Mathieu Nouzareth (SongPop) agrees and says it will be some time before some developers will want to push the iPhone 5′s capabilities: “[In the] short term, the user base is too small to rely solely on this, so we have to rely on the smallest common denominator.”

Gree’s Dharni, though, is excited by the prospects of producing a game that takes advantage of the iPhone 5′s improved specs. “We are now facing the reality of console-quality gaming being playable on all kinds of mobile devices — which is really exciting for both developers and players,” he says.

And on a general level, CrowdStar and Wooga say they’re most looking forward to the iPhone 5 continuing to do what Apple’s smartphones have done for years: selling like gangbusters, creating a bigger mobile gaming audience, and attracting plenty of new consumers who wouldn’t be playing games otherwise.

Rising costs for iOS developers

The release of the next Apple smartphone less than a year after the iPhone 4S underscores just how short the mobile hardware cycle is compared to the traditional five-to-six-year cycles for home consoles.

With these condensed hardware generations, there’s a potential danger that some developers might not be able to keep up with the rapidly increasing costs of creating assets and making games for the latest platform, as they try to compete with others doing the same.

Wooga’s Begemann, however, argues that this is where developers of free-to-play games that are regularly updated have an advantage, especially since companies typically allocate around 20 percent of their budget to pre-launch development, and 80 percent to post-launch work.

“These games that are services constantly have costs, but also constantly generate revenue,” says Begemann. “As we continue to invest in our games, it’s great to see that improved hardware allows us to get more out of our games and bring richer, more immersive games to this new audience.”

But Randy Lee, global business development head at CrowdStar, doesn’t think that smaller or indie developers are at a disadvantage, as the markets they’re trying to reach don’t necessarily require the most visually impressive or even complex games.

Lee adds, “There will be the developers pushing the limits of graphics to create more immersive experiences. There will also be developers who are more casual and broad-based. Just look in the top charts, there are always a variety of games that target different users.”

Tiger Style’s Kalina says it would be foolish for independent developers to engage in an arms race to stay ahead of the device power curve. Instead of trying to target every new hardware release, he says game makers need to focus on creating experiences that appeal to the widest range of people possible.

“If smaller devs have to spend more money to keep up, it’s only because the quantity and the quality of the competition keeps rising, which is a side effect of Apple having the healthiest and most diverse marketplace,” comments Kalina.

And even if some developers have to contend with bigger budgets, FreshPlanet’s Nouzareth reminds mobile studios, “[Rising costs are] inevitable in the long run, but costs on mobile devices are still relatively low compared to console.” (source:gamasutra)


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