Tack
01-27-2009, 12:19 PM
I am a member of the military stationed in Iraq and a very avid iPod Touch gamer. I've lost count, but I know I've spent a couple hundred dollars or more on games since I've been here (and have downloaded countless free games as well). I usually focus mainly on the lower priced games ($2.99 and below), but will occasionally spend more if I think the game is worth it.
The purpose of this post is to hopefully give some feedback to current and future developers as to what features an average customer thinks will help a game be more enjoyable and more playable.
1. Reduce initial load times. I shouldn't have to stare at a splash screen for more than five seconds before I'm able to enter the game. Break the load times in sections if necessary. Maybe load the menu first, then load the tutorial, then the first level, etc.
2. Always, ALWAYS, have an option to turn off in-game music and allow me to listen to my own. This seems like such a basic request, but I can't count the number of times I've had to mention it in a review on the App store before that feature is added in an update. In-game music gets real repetitive after a while, and even if I don't have the option to listening to my own music, I'll still turn the in-game music off.
3. Have an option to turn off in-game music and game sounds separately. I like listening to my own music, but also like to hear the occasional bells and whistles of a game. Sound is very important to the experience of the game, but in most cases, the music is not. Separate controls would allow me to select whether I want sound and/or music, or neither.
4. If I leave a game, by hitting the home button or otherwise, I expect to return to the exact same place I was at when I left. This doesn't mean at the start of the current level, or worse, back at the beginning of the game. Sometimes, life interrupts when playing a game. I shouldn't be punished by having to accomplish what I've already accomplished.
5. If the game is more than $2.99, offer a free version the same day the full version is released. The App store is getting crowded. It is definitely a buyer's market. Spending more than $3.00 on a game based on an often vague description and screenshots is risky when there are so many games to choose from. If a game looks interesting, I will always download the free version and give it a try before making the commitment to buy the full version.
6. Don't abandon the game once it is released. I have downloaded a few games that were just on the edge of being great, but for one reason or another, the developer never updated the game or fixed any bugs. I'm sure that most of you are aware, but when you update a game, it shows up as a recent addition when sorted by date added. It does this for each subsequent release, which means that your game gets moved to the top of the list every time. If I miss a potentially fun game, and it never gets updated, I'll more than likely never know the game exists since I rarely go past the first page (I had already seen the ones the day before so no reason to look at them again).
7. Finally, don't give your game away. Sell it for at least $0.99. I know that designing a game, doing the art work, programming it, and testing it is time consuming. You should be paid for your hard work and creativity. Ad supported games only show ads on the iPhone, not the iPod Touch, which means you are missing out on a big portion of revenue. I know this is a tough call to make, but when I see a free game that isn't a lite version, I automatically think it isn't going to be worth my time to download and install.
I hope this feedback has been helpful. I am glad that there are so many armchair developers out there making games for the iPhone and iPod Touch. It truly is a remarkable device and I believe the future of mobile gaming.
-Tack
The purpose of this post is to hopefully give some feedback to current and future developers as to what features an average customer thinks will help a game be more enjoyable and more playable.
1. Reduce initial load times. I shouldn't have to stare at a splash screen for more than five seconds before I'm able to enter the game. Break the load times in sections if necessary. Maybe load the menu first, then load the tutorial, then the first level, etc.
2. Always, ALWAYS, have an option to turn off in-game music and allow me to listen to my own. This seems like such a basic request, but I can't count the number of times I've had to mention it in a review on the App store before that feature is added in an update. In-game music gets real repetitive after a while, and even if I don't have the option to listening to my own music, I'll still turn the in-game music off.
3. Have an option to turn off in-game music and game sounds separately. I like listening to my own music, but also like to hear the occasional bells and whistles of a game. Sound is very important to the experience of the game, but in most cases, the music is not. Separate controls would allow me to select whether I want sound and/or music, or neither.
4. If I leave a game, by hitting the home button or otherwise, I expect to return to the exact same place I was at when I left. This doesn't mean at the start of the current level, or worse, back at the beginning of the game. Sometimes, life interrupts when playing a game. I shouldn't be punished by having to accomplish what I've already accomplished.
5. If the game is more than $2.99, offer a free version the same day the full version is released. The App store is getting crowded. It is definitely a buyer's market. Spending more than $3.00 on a game based on an often vague description and screenshots is risky when there are so many games to choose from. If a game looks interesting, I will always download the free version and give it a try before making the commitment to buy the full version.
6. Don't abandon the game once it is released. I have downloaded a few games that were just on the edge of being great, but for one reason or another, the developer never updated the game or fixed any bugs. I'm sure that most of you are aware, but when you update a game, it shows up as a recent addition when sorted by date added. It does this for each subsequent release, which means that your game gets moved to the top of the list every time. If I miss a potentially fun game, and it never gets updated, I'll more than likely never know the game exists since I rarely go past the first page (I had already seen the ones the day before so no reason to look at them again).
7. Finally, don't give your game away. Sell it for at least $0.99. I know that designing a game, doing the art work, programming it, and testing it is time consuming. You should be paid for your hard work and creativity. Ad supported games only show ads on the iPhone, not the iPod Touch, which means you are missing out on a big portion of revenue. I know this is a tough call to make, but when I see a free game that isn't a lite version, I automatically think it isn't going to be worth my time to download and install.
I hope this feedback has been helpful. I am glad that there are so many armchair developers out there making games for the iPhone and iPod Touch. It truly is a remarkable device and I believe the future of mobile gaming.
-Tack