What does it take to make Iphone games?

Of course your gonna need to know a thing or two about coding. Then you need a Mac, and a Developer License from apple if you plan to put it up on the appstore. I believe the license costs you $99USD

 

A lot of time and dedication.

If you already know the basics of programming in general (variables, pointers, functions, classes) you can probably start reading through Apple's documentation. If you didn't already, register as an iPhone developer for free to access them. Start here: Getting Started with iOS.
If you are completely new to programming, get a book about C and learn the basics.
Either way, it will be overwhelming at first, but once start seeing your code to come alive on your iPhone, it will make a lot of fun.

 

Summed up very nicely. As DrummerB says the personal reward from seeing your ideas come to life makes it all a lot of fun, so the dedication is the easy part - the hard part is finding the time.

To prototype a basic game idea can be pretty quick but to actually get a game finished and in the store and be worth people's hard-earned takes a lot longer.

If you have a Mac already just have a go and get stuck in, you'll soon find out if you like it or not. Check out all the sample code and play around. Using one of the many beginner's iPhone programming books will help you learn what you need in a more structured way - remember you have to walk before you can run.

Alternatively, if you only want to Design games, then all you need is imagination and an ability to articulate and illustrate the design on paper. Then you could see if any programmers / artists out there are willing to help you make it come to life. In my experience though the ideas are the easy bit - it's the coding it that takes all the time. So if you're worried about people stealing a totally new original idea I wouldn't worry too much - people that copy game ideas only seem to do so for existing successful games. Unless you have a Tetris-beater that is, then to be safe best to make it yourself.

 

As a game designer by trade I have to add a caveat to this.

The idea is the easy bit. Anybody can come up with one. I have received several 'I have an idea about a octopus shooter game... how much will you pay me for it' emails in my inbox.

The articulating, illustrating, balancing and making the idea a fun game for others is a very different beast. This takes time, foresight and a lot of creative energy.

If you are truely looking at becoming a Game Designer, not a developer, this 8 minute video sums up what you need pretty well.
So you want to be a game designer

 

know yourself

You have to know yourself. If your a good coder or learn coding fast than xcode is all you need. If your more like an artist , than game salad will help you build your game quicker and easier. Know what time you have and what your strengths are.

 

This sounds basic, but planning is a big part. Not that life is a bunch of schedules and Excel documents (although it may seem that way), but develop a plan for what you want to do and set deadlines that you can stick to. If you're intent on your goals, planning will help you organize and implement the activities needed to make them happen.

 

Invisible

Actually the hard part, if your not a pogrammer, is even finding a GOOD and I mean GOOD outsource programmer to even reply to you.

You have your game and you have worked out the monetization and mechanics and all thats left is to find a GOOD programmer or studio.

Because in the outsoursing world there are a lot of wolves in sheeps clothing who could not even program a microwave oven.

 

At first it will seem that it is hard, but stick to it and don't give up. If you have no knowledge of programming, you might want to try on a higher-level language like actionscript 2 which creates flash games.

 

get a good idea.

 

IMO, you should brainstorm and come up with an idea that you like and that you believe in. You should definitely learn how to code, unless you have friends who can do it and who are willing to invest time in your project. The same goes for drawing/animating. Either you learn how to do it, or you find someone (a friend, preferably) who can.
I wanted to become an iPhone game designer/developer and am currently working on my first project. I started learning how to code and found a friend that was willing to do the art for the game.

My main "tips", when it comes to learning how to code your first game, are:
-If you don't already, get a cheap Mac;
-Think of a simple game idea;
-Register for a free account at developer.apple.com;
-Download the Developer Tools (latest XCode and iPhone SDK);
-Download and read Apple's documentation;
-Read Stephen Kochan's "Programming in Objective-C 2.0";
-Read Michael Daley's "Learning iOS Game Programming" and/or watch the 71squared video tutorials;
-I also really recommend using Cocos2D-iPhone for your first project, as it is one of the easiest ways to get a game up and running (read the documentation on their site and watch some tutorials);
-Have fun