iPad implementation approach - a plee to developers

Discussion in 'Public Game Developers Forum' started by darwiniandude, Feb 6, 2010.

  1. darwiniandude

    darwiniandude Well-Known Member

    Nov 1, 2008
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    Hi folks, sorry if this has been covered before, it's 2AM and I woke up thinking about iPad, and the best way for devs to monetize existing content for it.

    My thoughts:
    1) I've spent much money on apps, I will buy an iPad and I want to use existing and new apps / games on it.
    2) I would eventually want all my favorite titles to be iPad optimized.
    3) I'm happy to pay for the privelege of iPad optimised titles, knowing the extra development effort required for an initially niche AppStore market segment (iPad owners vs existing iPhone/iPod Touch owners)

    That said, having two versions of an App is clumsy and annoying. I hate having the normal app now plus the 3GS version of some games, remembering which one to sync with my old iPod touch.

    I strongly suggest In App Purchase / DLC to enable iPad features!

    Benefits:
    1) Existing customers can see you have iPad optimisation availible, making them more likely to consider an iPad purchase, expanding the user base.
    2) A single app to update, promote and get rave reviews and rankings, why split your reviews in half on two different apps?
    3) Choose what ever iPad DLC premium fee you feel is required, an early adopter fee if you will. If you're game needs minor changes, charge accordingly. If you've hired an external design studio for brand new HD artwork from the ground up, charge accordingly.
    4) Only iPad owners need be out of pocket for the extra features required or their device.
    5) You avoid piracy on the iPad 100%, you can't pirate DLC.
    6) You get accurate sales breakdown of iPad users by how many iPad DLC packs have been sold, helping you decide upon future development directions for each device.
    7) The iPhone app can squeak in under the 10mb barrier, but the heftier iPad DLC pack with large graphic tiles weighing in at 29mb is downloaded only by those who need it.
    8) People contemplating an iPad can pay less for your app now, knowing they can get the add on if they need it.
     
  2. darwiniandude

    darwiniandude Well-Known Member

    Nov 1, 2008
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    Sorry for second post, couldn't scroll down on iPhone for some reason.

    So, thoughts?

    Hopefully Apple allows this type of DLC, they damn well should, for the above reasons.
     
  3. Vingdoloras

    Vingdoloras Well-Known Member

    Aug 29, 2009
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    My opinion on what the thread opener said:

    (this is not meant to be offending! I just Want to say what i think about this.)

    You can also add a simple info "buy the iPad Version of this" in your app instead of making it a universal iDevice app.

    If having both versions in one app makes the app bigger than 10 MB, but both single versions are under 10 MB each, then I would have 2 apps instead of one. It might happen that some people feel the need for your app only for a short time, for example when they need to kill some time in a train etc... When the app is small enough for 3G download, the chance will be higher that you will earn another impulsive buy.

    Agreed. But if you hire an external design studio for brand new HD artwork, make a new app. Don't hide a huge HD app in a small iPhone app.

    But iPad-only owners will need to buy the iPhone version in order to get the iPad version. Not good (even if you would make the standalone iPad app cost as much as the iPhone app + DLC, people will still feel like having bought an iPhone app although not having an iPhone)

    Only true if you really let the App download the DLC from a server or something else. If you "hide" the DLC code stuff inside the app and just turn it on via DLC, it can be pirated. At least thats what I have heard, so correct me if I'm wrong.

    But your iPhone sales breakdown is not accurate anymore, or at least isn't useful for deciding upon future development directions, because there's the iPad only users who would also have to buy the iPhone app in order to get the DLC. Having two separate apps allows you to see how much sales you have for both things.

    Again, this only works if the DLC code stuff is really downloaded and not just "activated" via in app purchase.

    So they shall first play the iPhone version as a paid lite? I don't agree with that.
     
  4. Anders

    Anders Well-Known Member

    Feb 3, 2009
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    Co-owner and CTO at Color Monkey
    Sweden
    I'm not saying one way is better than the other, but here are some comments to your comments. I'm enjoying these discussions. I don't want to come off as negative, I'm just highlighting facts from a different perspective than yours to get a discussion going.

    You can already play all those games on an iPad, which I guess you should be grateful for.

    What about new customers? If I had an iPad and bought a game labeled "iPad optimized", I would be pissed off if the price in the App Store was not the full price and that I had to pay extra. It will be confusing for a lot of people. Most iPhone/iPad users are not tech savvy or hardcore gamers.

    Because the iPad version may differ greatly.

    No problem if you have two versions, you can still play the games you have bought earlier, just not enjoy the new features.

    Comparison:
    I recently bought God of War collection for my PS3. They are updated versions of the original GoW games for the PS2. I know I can still play the old PS2 versions I have bought before on my PS3. I would be very surprised if these new improved versions would be free.

    Any developer would much rather avoid piracy on the iPhone/iPod.

    Well, if you have two apps you get the same stats.

    Staying below 10 Mb is actually very important. One way to achieve that is o use IAP/DLC. Another is doing separate apps. Hosting the DLC could end up costing a lot too, especially if you want it to be reliable.

    Counting low, say 250 000 people download 50 Mb. That's about 12 Tb of traffic. I don't know how this much traffic would cost, or how much the servers would need to be upgraded to handle it, but it's not free.

    ---

    Having said that, we are working on Labyrinth 2 and Touchgrind for the iPad and we haven't decided on how we want to distribute these souped up versions yet as there is always a downside with all options.

    I think the simplest solution is the best: allow us devs to submit two binaries for one app.

    + You will not have your sales split over two apps
    + Consumers can buy once and consume twice
    + The iPhone version is much much easier to keep below 10 Mb
    + iPhone users don't have to download and install a lot of extra Mb that will never be used
     
  5. I'm honestly leaning toward two binaries (one iPad only) and / or simply different games on the iPad that I don't offer on the iPhone.

    One opportunity the iPad presents, that only works with a new binary, is the ability to put an old game back on top of the new releases list. For example, I've been musing about doing a "Xeno Sola HD" type sequel for the PC / Mac. But if I can do it on the iPad first, not only am I revitalizing an older game of mine and getting it new attention, but now I have some sales stats to help market the games to portals.

    Though with that said, I'm likely going the iPad-exclusive route next. I've got an idea that simply won't work (at least as well) on any other platform.
     
  6. NickFalk

    NickFalk Well-Known Member

    Sounds great. I believe the biggest stumbling block for the iPad could be that the majority of developers won't bother to develop stuff that really takes the bigger screen size into consideration. It's a completely different beast and should be treated as one...
     
  7. EssentialParadox

    EssentialParadox Well-Known Member

    Sep 21, 2009
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    UK / Toronto
    I'd just like to state that our studios won't be charging anything extra for the iPad versions of our upcoming App store games.

    While it's true there is a little extra development that needs to go into the iPad version (or into the iPhone/iPod touch version, depending which way around you start development,) I firmly believe that, when a consumer has purchased one of our products, they are entitled to use it on any device they own (assuming we've also ported the application to it.)

    We won't make them pay for the same product twice.
     

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