Article: Should Sony, Nintendo be scared?

Article: Games are serious business for Apple

Summary: Apple has already produced more titles on the iPhone/iPod Touch (which I’ll refer to from here on out as the iTouch) than the Nintendo DS. Apple is climbing the ranks of mobile gaming and maybe Nintendo and Sony should be prepared for a new competitor in the ranks.

Enough.

This is a very stupid and inaccurate article. And I’m going to prove it by two points and point out some hypocrisy with my third point. If you stop reading right here, then go away with this: Apple’s iPhone/iTouch games are nowhere near the equivalent of the gaming on the Nintendo DS or the PlayStation Portable.

Point 1: It is ironic that a company who has made no mainstream games say that they are not going to be – but already better than the two main handheld’s in the market. The iPhones games are already better than Super Mario 64, Syphon Filter, Monster Hunter or any of the CastleVania games? Nope. Apple’s iPhone/iTouch game applications are aimed at one thing – passing by the time if you’re bored. I don’t think anyone is going to sit down for a few hours strictly with the intent of playing a game on your iPhone/iTouch. The only time these games will be played is when you’re in the waiting room or on your lunch break. To say that these games are better than games that will take you days to clear is just stupid and shows how ignorant Apple really is to the gaming market.

Point 2: Show me a game on the iPhone, besides Spore, that takes a large developing team. Games on the Nintendo DS and PSP take awhile to come out because there is much development taken into account with a lot of people working on it. I’m guessing games on the iPhone/iTouch could be made within the span of a week. Taking that into consideration … no wonder the iPhone/iTouch has more games than the Nintendo DS!

I figured, I may want to do research on this a bit more and started looking at some games for our beloved little Sony and Nintendo destroyer. What I found were a few mainstream games … like Star Wars: The Force Unleashed and other new games that recently came out on consoles. Ones such as … Spore? Is that new? And … Real Soccer 2009 published by … Gameloft? Well, at least Star Wars was made by the people who made the actual console and handheld versions released by THQ Wireless – not Lucas Arts. So what I’ve learned from my research is enough to prove my point. All these “major” games are not made by the same company who released them on consoles. Probably because those companies knew it wasn’t worth it.

Apple’s iPhone was not meant for gaming – it was originally meant to be a phone (although it’s really a mp3 player) and I like how Apple shoots down the PSP because it’s not the greatest media player. Well, the PSP isn’t showcasing itself off to be a media player! It’s showcasing it off to be a portable gaming device. And when I’m ready to wind down from the day – I’d rather play an actual video game rather than playing a game that’s similar to Bejeweled, but just called a different name to protect from a lawsuit.

Apple’s comments towards portable gaming is like an underqualified boss starting a new job and on his first day he walks in and and says, “Hey, I’m the best around here and you guys need to know your role and acknowledge me as the best!”

The iPhone/iTouch will not even make a dent into the portable gaming market because it’s not ever going to have the power to do it. To have games like Bejeweled run on your iPhone is nothing compared to Final Fantasy: Crisis Core. And Apple needs to really know their place before they spew their arrogant claims. And before it’s pointed out that this is a MSNBC column, I’m going to say that anything Apple says will be taken to heart by Apple lemmings.  Apple can go back to OS8 say it’s visually superior and the Apple lemmings will buy OS8 and say it’s visually superior. So when Apple says they’re the top on the gaming market – the lemmings will agree that they’re the top of the gaming market … which is exactly what happened with this article.

The iPhone/iTouch may have the best gaming options on the cell phone market – but that doesn’t say anything because cell phone games in general are terrible.

Hopefully, Jobs will find himself on the sharp end of a lot of criticism from people who will agree with my point and say that Jobs has no experience in the video gaming market to claim that the iPhone is going to be a good competitor for the Nintendo DS and the PSP. Sorry Steve, you’re wrong. Now go cheer yourself up by listening to some Beatles on your damn iPhone while playing your Soduku game that’s far superior to God of War: Chains of Olympus.

And finally, I will point out this irony … MSNBC is praising their parent company’s main competition, while not mentioning X-Box at all. While they aren’t in the handheld device yet … the Zune can play games like the iPhone can … yet Microsoft’s products aren’t even mentioned. ONLY Sony and Nintendo should be worried. No mention of any of Microsofts devices.