There are pros and cons to getting games that are either universal or split between the iPhone and iPad. Universal Pro - Buy once and have on both devices Con - Download size is larger (esp. if iPad 3 is supported) Split - opposite of above. Which do you prefer and what other considerations do you take into account.
Universal is way better for an enormous number of reason. The apps can share leaderboards. People can sync between devices using iCloud. Developers only have to test and troubleshoot one app. There is just no reason to make separate apps unless your goal is to anger customers.
I mostly do my gaming on my ipod touch than my ipad but its sensible as anything to go universal, that seems to be the standard and you'll upset quite a few people if you split it so you have to buy it twice. Standard things for a game on iOS... Choice of controls Auto-rotate (Still cant believe when games dont have this) Universal
Yeah. I would consider spending money on an app that wasn't universal unless I really only wanted it on one device.
I like universal, I don't care about the size, I can delete some apps to make more space for games which I like. The universal mode also made me easy to play it on iPhone or iPad. Moreover, if it has GameCenter, i don't need to unlock same achievements twice. That's why I prefer universal
You forgot the main pro of "split", which is price (see World of Goo). The only problem is that once you upgrade to an iPad, you'll have to be paying for both the standard and Universal versions. My dream would be a non universal app with the ability to upgrade to universal as iAP for a cheaper price.
That's also the main pro of universal, because prices shouldn't differ when we're talking about exactly the same game.
I prefer universal because I use both iPhones and iPads. That is mainly for productivity apps. For games especially, I would buy the iPad version over the iPhone version as the iPhone versions typically have problems auto rotating on my iPad.
Ok, this is great! Thanks for your input. The reason this question came up for me was the last couple of games I have worked on were all Universal and some of them had a lot of assets making the app really large. I worried that the size was a deterrent to downloading. Kingdom Rush (one of my FAVORITE games!) did a split of the game and I happily bought both versions because I would throw money at them any day to make more content or finish Kingdom Rush 2. For people who might really enjoy the next game we are working on right now I wondered if the benefit of having a smaller install and targeted platforms would allow people to help support us that liked what we were doing. Does that make sense, my line of thinking?
Get your point. Its funny really as if you released your app at $1.99 and universal i'm sure everyone would be happy and not say a word. If you released two versions, each 99c (and the ipod/iphone version with a smaller installed size) you would probably get people ranting at you if they had to pay twice for the same game ! Cant win !
Small download and install sizes are important if your game is good. Case in point, Frozen Synapse released today. Download size above 50MB. I literally cannot buy it as the App Store forbids downloads greater than 50MB while I am on the road using 3G. Another example, Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition. Weighing in at 1698.2GB download and who knows how large installed, just won't fit in my iPad, unless I junk a lot of other apps. Is your target buyer someone with one or two apps and so tons of space, or does he keep buying a lot of apps, so is always running out of space, like me, current free space 281MB on my iPad 2? Also, of the two types of gamers shown above, which one is more likely to download your game? The one with one or two games who hardly plays, or the one who downloads several games every week, and so is pressed for space? I found that the sweet spot for me are games that are below 200MB once installed, as I can just delete a few apps to make that kind of space easily. Anything bigger is a hassle to clear space for. Also remember that silly 50MB download rule. Frozen Synapse was a no buy for me tonight. Tomorrow, when I have access to Wi-Fi, another game might have caught my eye and my money instead...
I think I might be able to keep the app under 50 megs so I think Universal is the right choice. If that is not the case (under 50) then I might reconsider going split. These are great! Thanks!
what i find annoying is when a developer releases an "iphone" version and an "ipad" version. why not an iphone version and a universal version? i dont mind paying more for the universal, but i do mind paying more for an ipad version. at that point ill just get the iphone version and 2x it.