在微软Windows Phone 7即将来临之际，Pocketgamer记者采访了游戏开发商PressOK娱乐、PopCap、CodeGlue、Revo Solutions等公司有关部门的负责人，但面对同样的问题，Revo Solutions这家罗马尼亚游戏工作室的主要开发者安德烈·汉格勒斯（Andrei Hanganus）给出的答案与前三者均看好WP7的观点颇有分歧，他认为WP7还有不少需要改进的空间。

由Revo Solutions开发、SGN公司出品的空战游戏《天空的荣耀》（Skies of Glory）将投放WP7平台，在iPhone和Android平台上已可支持实时多人在线游戏玩法，他希望微软也能完善Xbox Live的多人游戏模式配置功能。下文为访谈内容：

Skies of Glory

问：为何会面向WP7开发游戏？

微软发了一封电邮，邀请我们参与WP7平台的游戏开发。不知道他们为什么会主动找上门，因为我们公司的媒体曝光率还不多，所以也非常感谢Pocket Gamer这次对我们的采访报道。

问：与WP7的合作情况如何？

最初大家都认为，在这么短的时间内开发WP7平台游戏的确有点仓促，但项目仍然在有条不紊地进行中。微软提供的XNA游戏开发套件功能很齐全，除了游戏本身的代码，我们基本上不需要编写其他程序，确实节省了不少功夫。

比较让人头痛的是，我们耗费了数个小时才升级了新版本的SDK。另外，因为我们游戏的特性有所不同，这些游戏在WP7平台上的运行性能测试也出现了不少问题。我们原来对WP7抱有极大的期望，但很快就烟消云散了。

保证游戏在该平台的运行效果是我们遇到的最大难题，在WP7平台环境中，我们想方设法使用低级别的优化处理，以免游戏运行效果受损，但最终也是无济于事。

问：WP7能为你们提供什么机会？

首先，当然是跟微软合作的机会。微软的工作人员很专业很出色，虽然目前WP7平台的功能并不如我们预期的理想，但WP7团队的工作态度非常好，似乎随时准备解决将来出现的任何问题。

另外，我们的游戏有幸得到微软的发行支持，也是一个极大的优势，对于一家罗马尼亚公司来说，这一点确实不简单。

问：是否认为微软所强调的WP7游戏功能，是其他智能手机无法超越的优势？

目前为止，WP7还不能支持实时多人游戏玩法，这是我们最想解决的问题。

虽然WP7已经和Xbox Live绑定，但这种操作比较像是将所有玩家资料图集中收入一个口袋，而不是形成一款多数人所设想的游戏机。

我们原先准备把支持跨平台多人游戏模式的《天空的荣耀》同时投放到XBLA和WP7平台中，但得知WP7不支持这一游戏模式后，我们就得重新修改整个游戏，导致这款游戏流失了最核心的元素。

问：在微软关于WP7的计划中，可有你们最希望使用的功能？

WP7唯一也是最主要的优势就是绑定Xbox Live功能，方便游戏植入其他微软平台。

问：比起iPhone和Android，你对微软WP7平台有何评价？

从商业角度来讲，这个平台还是存在风险。当前已经有不少手机平台后浪推前浪，我们不认为WP7能够动摇智能手机市场的基础。

但从应用商店的角度来看，我们认为微软会大有作为。Android应用商店的表现最差，微软为开发商提供的服务应该会比苹果做得更好。微软同行与我们的沟通很紧密，这一点也是谷歌的擅长之处。与苹果拒人于千里的姿态相比，谷歌的应用认证要求非常简明扼要，而且可以提供更多自由。

如果从硬件角度来说，微软正试图彻底改变智能手机界面，我很好奇消费者对此将作何反应。另外我们还要知道，微软一直是游戏猛将，相信它还会推出更多影响这一行业的有力举措。

问：是否认为智能手机市场的产品已经过于泛滥？

泛滥？不知道。但毫无疑问，这个市场就像一盘散沙。希望这个局面不要演变成之前的移动市场噩梦。

问：可有计划推出其他WP7平台游戏？

我们正密切关注与多人游戏模式有关的消息，也在琢磨推出异步多人模式游戏的可能性，另外，我们还特别想知道微软WP7问世后究竟有多受欢迎。（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译）

Revo Solution’s Andrei Hanganu on the performance and multiplayer issues Windows Phone 7 needs to overcome

Given Romanian studio Revo Solutions’ Rise of Glory is set to launch on Windows Phone 7 on day one, you might assume the developer was bowled over by Microsoft’s platform.

However, in lead developer Andrei Hanganu’s view, Windows Phone 7 has some hurdles to overcome in the coming months.

In particular, he thinks Microsoft’s current implementation of multiplayer through Xbox Live will need to be overhauled to enable the sort of realtime multiplayer gameplay Revo has already enabled in its Skies of Glory iPhone and Android game, published by SGN.

Pocket Gamer: How did you get involved with developing for Windows Phone 7?

Andrei Hanganu: We received an email from Microsoft. I’m not exactly sure how they found out about us – we didn’t have much press coverage in general at the time, so we probably owe Pocket Gamer for the connection. Thanks for that!

What is the platform like to work with?

At first everyone had the feeling that, even if the time span for the project was very short, it would be a walk in the park. XNA comes with most things that one needs – it’s entertainment ready.

Overall, we didn’t have to write anything but the game itself, and that saved a lot of time.

Things got a bit fuzzier, though, when we lost a couple of hours upgrading to a new release of the SDK. Also, due to the nature of our games, we suffered some performance issues with the platform. Our previous high hopes started dissolving fast after we received an actual device.

Obtaining a good level of in game performance proved to be the biggest issue, and our trick of using very low level optimisations proved useless in this environment.

What opportunities does Windows Phone 7 have to offer?

Well, the first was, of course, the opportunity to work with Microsoft.

They are nice people and do their jobs in a professional manner. Even if, right now, the platform falls short of what we were dreaming of, Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 team looks more than prepared to tackle any difficulties in the future.

Having a game published directly by Microsoft is a big opportunity – when you are based in Romania, such things are not so simple.

Do you think the emphasis Microsoft has put on games with Windows Phone 7 will give it an advantage over other smartphones?

At the moment, Windows Phone 7 does not support realtime multiplayer gaming, which is one major issue we can’t really figure out.

It’s true that it’s integrated with Xbox Live, but it feels more like having your gamer profile picture in your pocket than the gaming machine most people are anticipating.

Initially, we wanted Rise of Glory to launch on both XBLA and Windows Phone 7 with cross platform multiplayer. When the current limits of multiplayer were described to us, the whole approach of the game had to be revised and we lost one of the key elements.

Windows Phone 7 needs more in order to stand out from the competition.

What specific aspects of Windows Phone 7 are you looking to take advantage of?

The only major advantages of Windows Phone 7 are, as described, its integration with Xbox 360 and the ease of porting games to other Microsoft platforms.

How would you say it compares to the likes of iPhone and Android?

From a business point of view, it’s assumed to be a risk at the moment. There are lots of strong devices coming out and we don’t see Windows Phone 7 as the platform that will shake the foundations of the smartphone market.

From a marketplace point of view, however, we think Microsoft will do a great job. The worst of all of them is Android Market. Support for developers from Microsoft is a lot better than what Apple offers. We have very close communication with Microsoft peers, which Google is also good at.

Certification requirements are very clear when compared to Apple’s rejection program, which is not always transparent. On the other hand, Google provides a lot more freedom.

When it comes to the devices, Microsoft is trying to revolutionise the concept of smartphone interfaces, and I’m curious to see how buyers will react to it. We must not forget that Microsoft is a very strong player in the gaming industry and we will probably see more impressive moves from its side.

Do you think the smartphone market is becoming overcrowded?

Overcrowded? We don’t know. Fragmented for sure. We just hope it doesn’t transform into the former mobile nightmare.

Do you have any further plans for Windows Phone 7 games?

We have our ears tuned in for any multiplayer support news.

We are also studying the possibility of asynchronous multiplayer games, but more than this, we are very curious to see how popular can Microsoft make its new toy.（source:pocketgamer）