Just a couple more tidbits of ios7 from MacRumors that concerns us: Sprite Kit - The Sprite Kit framework is designed to allow developers to create high-performing 2D games, controlling sprite attributes like position, size, rotation, gravity, and mass. It includes built-in support for physics to make animations look realistic and it also includes particle systems for additional game effects. Game Center - iOS 7 adds new turn-based gaming modes (including simultaneous turns, chats, and trades) along with new methods for player authentication and secure game score transmission. This feature is likely designed to cut down on hacked Game Center scores from jailbroken devices. MFi Game Controllers - iOS 7 includes support for MFi "Made for iPhone" Apple Certified hardware game controllers, which will allow manufacturers to create dedicated iOS gaming controllers, turning the iPhone and the iPad into gaming machines on par with handheld gaming systems. Apps will be able to be designed around the Game Controller framework, allowing for seamless connectivity. http://www.macrumors.com/2013/06/12/upcoming-ios-7-apis-gaming-improvements-multitasking-support-airdrop-and-more/?utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pulsenews
The day you use a physical controller with an iPad is the day you realise how weak it actually is in comparison to a Vita. Not looking forward to that.
Didn't know it was a comparrison issue. It just opens up potential gameplay avenues. A controller that you can easily connect to your device and dramitically improve the quality of the controls also adds a convienient way to access more complex titles.
built in controller or no dice Apple. I don't really care if it does or doesn't compare to a dedicated gaming handheld(it doesn't), but it still would be better than touch screen controls for a lot of games.
I use the iPega at the moment. It's awesome but only does iCade compatable at this stage. The difference it makes for platformers, fighting games, rpgs is immense
Oh my God. THANK YOU. I will restrain my thoughts on the overall community of this site and how much they seem to love riding Apple's stem in terms of iDevices for gaming... but thank you so much. I honestly thought I was the odd one out regarding my thoughts on iDevice gaming versus what I consider true gaming
That looks nice and compact. If only Apple came out with their own official one, I bet a lot of devs would work on making their game compatible with it instead of a third party one. @MasterChief, I think a lot of people feel the same as you, but I've learned it's best to keep to try to keep that type of opinion to myself since some people can't handle it. To be fair though, saying you like iOS games gets you the same kind of treatment on "hardcore" gaming websites, which is just as annoying.
If that's directed towards me, I like the community and I do like iOS gaming. I just think that touch screen gaming will always be inferior to tactile controls gaming, and the vast majority of iOS games are not all that fun and interesting when they're not utilizing the touch screen. It's a really confusing paradox. I have yet to find any games on iOS that rival other dedicated gaming console (home and handheld) games in terms of substance, fun, longevity, and production value. You don't see stuff as precise, fun, and long-lasting as Monster Hunter, Super Mario, Okami, Metal Gear Solid, or anything of the sort on iOS. You get fun games that are fun enough to hold your attention for a couple minutes, or experiences that can last a couple hours, but in the end I still have not found anything that comes close to the kind of production value that is on other handhelds and home consoles. And if anyone brings up Infinity Blade, I will have such a big bone to pick with you iOS gaming is getting closer... but I will never take it seriously as a true gaming platform in the vein of 3DS, Vita, GameCube, or any other successful gaming console. Again, though, I want to reiterate that I am fine with iOS games. I just hate it when people say the New iPad rivals the Vita in gaming potential, and other such malarky. It's misguided and ill-informed. I don't care about processors or graphics cards. I care about precision, dependable control methods, and gameplay. Here's a list of games that have captivated me on iOS far longer than the norm: Quell Quell Reflect Quell Memento Wake the Cat Orbital Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Labyrinth 2 Mini Squadron Trainyard Out of the thousands of apps and games I've played, those are the only memorable games I can think of time and time again. In the case of the Quell series, that very well could be a series only fully tangible on iOS. Wake the Cat, same thing. Orbital, same thing. Phoenix Wright was a fantastic port, too. Just as awesome here as on the DS. I really need to download the trilogy! Okay, new thought, because I'm too lazy to redo this whole post: The majority of experiences I consider "true gaming" experiences can only be accomplished on a console with tactile controls and dependable architecture. There is a very small sliver of a fragment of a molecule of games on the App Store that are enhanced by iOS. Infinity Blade is not one of them. Don't get me started on that game. Aaaaaanyways, I'll probably be picking up the next iPhone iteration. I have a feeling it will be more in line with iOS 7. What I mean by that is I am sure it will be end-to-end glass, no bezel, and maybe even some nifty technology to make the WHOLE FRONT of the iPhone be touchable and stuff. Could be really cool Edit: Oh yeah, I completely forgot about my disappointment in the current gaming climate, and I owe that displeasurably to Apple and their App Store economy. That's a whole different topic for a different day, but basically I feel that the popularity of the App Store is going to kill gaming as a whole eventually.
Why wouldn't you compare? The entire gaming community is comparing PS4 to Xbox One right now, to make sure they get the best experience. The main advantage of iOS has always been the fact it uses a touchscreen and that it's easy for developers to build and submit games to the App Store. This allows for games you simply won't experience anywhere else (although lately there's a lot more competition emerging), but if you start making games you CAN find somewhere else, namely because they're all just standard platformers/action games/FPS games with physical controls, then it's only natural for people to start comparing them to others. As much as I love iOS, most of its developers don't have the budget of Vita developers and likely won't ever match them on scope and depth. You'd end up relying on already established companies like EA to bring the competition to iOS, and they'd probably just make it multiplatform and take it to Vita anyway. Plus, nobody even likes those guys. Indie is the ace up iOS's sleeve, and indie should be able to innovate enough to move past physical controls. A controller will make developers more lazy because it's the simple, tried and tested solution that they can fall back on without having to use their brains at all. Instead of innovative games, we'll get more and more rehashes of games that have existed for decades.
I don't even know where to start with this. Having a gamepad could be the start of a great new age for gaming here. iOS gaming and vita gaming aren't comparable, in any way. It's not like Microsoft and Sony. You can't do a fraction of the thing on the Vita than you can on even an iPhone. Now that also means that because of the flexibility of smartphones and tablets, they won't reach the same level. We aren't going to see Infamous or any kind of naughty dog game. But I don't care, most other people don't care. It opens us up to having some sort of tactile way of controlling games. I've had so many times that I would have liked to control a game using a controller. SO MANY. Now, here, going forward we have that. I love this option. I love that I will be able to play old school ports using a controller. I love that games I struggle with playing now might get a bit easier and less painful to play. The icade is awesome, but it is terribly limited and doesn't offer a ton of freedom with playing. I can't wait. Yep. +2001 I will try and be nice, I suppose. But it is that mentality which is what keeps iOS gaming down. Just like the Wii, iOS gaming is a big change to gaming. The primary focus for gaming on iOS is quick, casual 5 minute games. That was what the platform started with and what made it incredibly successful. While there are some strange angles the platform has taken, and this focuses on free to play and BAD freemium games, there are some games that kick serious butt for people that actually love gaming. You've got your list, I've got mine. Spoiler Space Miner HD sword and Sworcery Aquaria Machinarium World of Goo King of Dragon Pass Walking Dead Mage Gauntlet Little Inferno Gemini Rue Secret of Monkey Island Tiny Bang Story Organ Trail Lunar Junk Jack Survivalcraft Block fortress Heroes and Castles The huge majority of the Big Fish games, G5 games SO MANY BOARD GAMES Eclipse Ticket to ride Carcassonne Agricola Ascension Penny arcade Magic the Gathering Elder Signs All the Knizia games More than I can list here So maybe you don't have a load of games you find encompassing, but I really do believe that there is way more here than you realize. I am someone who used to hate apple, believed that consoles and console quality handhelds were the only true gaming platforms. But then I opened my mind, and I've never looked back. I play more games on my iPad and iPhone than I do on my 360, ps3. If I want to play Dishonored, Gears, Ni No Kuni - I'll fire up a console. But I find I'm enjoying my time playing Agricola, Ascension, KotOR, FFT, Warhammer, 9th Dawn and so on. Do iOS exclusive games have AAA storylines? Do they have 40 hours of gameplay? Nope. But they also don't come with a $60 price tag and 8 gigs + of space. I miss buttons and the tactile feel for some games, but the issues I have aren't enough to convince me that iOS gaming is not MASSIVELY substantial and a worthy option for playing games.
Yeah, andsoitgoes, I'm not doing this song and dance with you again. It's apparent people have misinterpreted my words are immensely condescending, so I refuse to comment on it any further in this thread. So does anyone else think the new iPhones that will ship with iOS 7 (whether iPhone 5S or iPhone 6) will have an edge-to-edge glass screen with no bezel? I think that would be a great new way to differentiate the iPhone from the other smartphones out there. I had this fun idea of the -entire- front of the phone being capacitive touch and a screen, including the Home button. How cool would that be to press the Home button and then it send like little shockwaves of color around it that spread to the rest of the screen?
I'm just gonna repeat a previous comment of mine: I still worry this type of device becoming popular will help to spearhead a movement of games in which touchscreen controls are treated as a secondary option and the overall quality degrades because of it. If the iPhone is going up against the likes of Vita all of a sudden, it may well win in sales, but the games simply won't hold a candle in terms of depth or quality any time soon. People seem to constantly argue against me for saying that, but they'll just have to forgive me for wanting to preserve the very things that make iOS such a unique and innovative platform. If this was merely a 3DS/Vita competitor, I wouldn't give it a second look. It's the very fact it isn't that draws me towards it and holds my interest. Bottom line: An iOS game with a physical controller is no longer unique. If it's not unique, I've probably done it before and I've probably done it better. It'll bore me.
Gotcha. As games still need to have touchscreen controls there won't be a paradigm shift towards external controls. We are still talking about the same platform. A gadget that also plays games. The big hits on ios have stemmed from casual gaming mechanics that utilized the touchscreen. There will be still be a crapload of devs trying to home in on this revenue source. That said the amount of ios games that struggle with on screen controls (often coming from the big companies) can now be sidestepped. Also indie devs that want to push for a more standard control method aimed at more hardcore players aren't limited to one avenue of inputs anymore. You say this makes ios comparable to Vita and subsequently is left lacking. For sure. If people want to compare ios gaming with a control to a Vita then prepare to be disappointed. Big devs with a long history of making big games for little devices will make ios look like a toy. However I say ios is still the same but now has a option for "traditional" control methods. The only comparison that is worth making IMO is between the current state on control options on ios to what the potential options are in the future.
You said there aren't deep, immersive games. I pointed out games that very well can be. I can understand people not enjoying iOS in the same depth, but unless you've tried and considered some of the games I've mentioned, you, and others, are really missing out. The reason people are responding this way to you is because of your absolute "I'm right, I'm hardcore, everyone else isn't and is wrong." I don't understand how games, and I'm thinking especially of open world explorative games, fighting games, games like 9th Dawn, allowing control via a gamepad would take away from anything? Would Street Fighter and any of the current group of fighting games be worse for them? Would Gangstar Vegas not be more enjoyable for a lot of people to control with a gamepad? How could Mikey's Shorts be worse because of it? Now, no matter what happens, no matter how awesome the peripheral is, it will not somehow remove touch screen controls from being the primary choice for developers. You are making an insane jump from this being an alternate way of controlling games into the start of ruining the uniqueness of gaming on the iPad and iPhone. And as mentioned, the icade and its ilk have been around for how many years now? They've done well, and developers have continued to make the same awesome games, but are providing US the choice of how we interact with the games. Personally, I am thrilled to think I can play games like: FIFA NBA whatever (Jam, 2k, etc) Platformers Fighting games Ports And so much more. Board, puzzle, point and click and slow paced games will continue to be primarily touch screen controlled. As will other games. But to think that not being able to control games that ARE better with a controller is crazysauce. Seriously, how can street fighter be better on a touch screen? Blergh
I am aware of the existence of the titles you mentioned and have in fact played almost all of them. Happy? And that last comment... I'm right, I'm hardcore, everyone else isn't and is wrong... When have I ever made it sound like that? For the last god damn time, I do not think of myself as a higher being as any of you in the gaming department. In stark contrast, I'm actually very self-deprecating and hate myself enough that I wish I could die. I don't see how it's possible for me to actually be condescending when I, myself, hate myself.
You might want to think about therapy. Maybe a lot =\ And if you have played most and don't find them engrossing, then I honestly don't get it. I come from the world of consoles and.. We don't agree. That's clear as can be, and it's fine. But please keep in mind that one thing a lot of us can agree on is that you are in the minority in your opinion about the quality of iOS gaming, as well as in relation to the games I mentioned. On an on topic notice, I am really excited about this new update. I will be able to go without a jailbreak (well, happily go without a jailbreak) for the first time in over 2 years. Come onnnnnnn FALL!
