MFi controller info in all reviews?

Discussion in 'Site Feedback and News' started by miked, Jan 9, 2015.

  1. miked

    miked New Member

    Apr 2, 2009
    4
    0
    0
    intrinsic ombudsman
    Pacific NW
    Hey guys - I would really love to see a quick yes or no on MFi controller support in every (new) game review on Touch Arcade. Sometimes you'll point out that a game ought to support MFi controllers but doesn't, or that it does have support--but this isn't consistent in each review. Maybe even stick that info into the tags at the top so you can see it at a glance. I bought a controller recently and it's great, so controller support is something that I like to at least consider before buying a game.

    I'm guessing that the install base for controllers is still minuscule, but that may change if prices come down?
     
  2. vanalau

    vanalau Member

    May 5, 2012
    7
    0
    1
    +1

    Just got Horipad for xmas and cannot be happier with it. Sometimes you do not see MFi info even on appstore
     
  3. kmacleod

    kmacleod Well-Known Member
    Patreon Silver

    Jul 1, 2009
    1,865
    1
    36
    Artist / Writer / Designer
    California
    It's a pain in the ass discovering which games do and do not support MFi controllers.

    Frankly, I'm shocked that Apple hasn't stepped in here in some capacity. Apple doesn't even provide developers with a way to indicate whether controller support is included in a game, even if the they wanted to. Nothing prevents them from listing this information on the App Store the same way Game Center compatibility is listed; maybe someday...
     
  4. miked

    miked New Member

    Apr 2, 2009
    4
    0
    0
    intrinsic ombudsman
    Pacific NW
    Yes, this is something that Apple should really do. Developing a MFi standard for controllers was a great move, but beyond that, their interest seems tepid at best. BTW, kmacleod - I've visited your Afterpad site several times - it's a good resource - thanks for putting it together!
     
  5. Eli

    Eli ᕕ┌◕ᗜ◕┐ᕗ
    Staff Member Patreon Silver Patreon Gold

    A MFi controller support checkbox as part of the iTunes API seems like a no-brainer. It wouldn't surprise me if there's still a big part of Apple that really isn't interested in pushing controllers at all, which is why you don't see the overall support you'd think they would have.
     
  6. kmacleod

    kmacleod Well-Known Member
    Patreon Silver

    Jul 1, 2009
    1,865
    1
    36
    Artist / Writer / Designer
    California
    #6 kmacleod, Jan 14, 2015
    Last edited: Jan 14, 2015
    Thanks, glad to help :)

    It's weird, there is a whole field in the iTunes lookup API for "features". You'd think it would be a great place to allow developers to identify an app as controller compatible, then return it to people who are using the API:

    https://itunes.apple.com/lookup?id=708196645 (select text and paste into the URL field to get accurate link)

    Seems like the API hasn't been touched in years, though. The last thing they added was Game Center. It would be nice if they'd include a similar option for iCloud Drive support, game controller support, multiplayer - all the things that have been added since iOS 5, or whenever the API was last updated.
     
  7. Eli

    Eli ᕕ┌◕ᗜ◕┐ᕗ
    Staff Member Patreon Silver Patreon Gold

    It's very, very obvious all that stuff is just hacked together based on what was originally built for the iTunes music store which seems weird considering the app side is a multi-billion dollar industry... But, hey, Apple.
     
  8. Adams Immersive

    Adams Immersive Well-Known Member
    Patreon Bronze

    Dec 5, 2008
    1,718
    5
    38
    Freelance interactive design and programming
    Ohio
    I'd love all articles here to contain boolean flags for:

    - MFi control
    - iCade control
    - AirPlay/video out
    - iCloud sync

    (And also an easy button that goes to AppShopper.)
     
  9. kmacleod

    kmacleod Well-Known Member
    Patreon Silver

    Jul 1, 2009
    1,865
    1
    36
    Artist / Writer / Designer
    California
    Would be nice, but sadly, it's really hard to get this information. Apple doesn't actually tell anyone this information, there is no API for it. Or rather, there is a perfect API for displaying this stuff, but Apple hasn't updated it in years :rolleyes:
     
  10. Adams Immersive

    Adams Immersive Well-Known Member
    Patreon Bronze

    Dec 5, 2008
    1,718
    5
    38
    Freelance interactive design and programming
    Ohio
    Yes, it's a shame it can't be automated. So I wouldn't expect it in AppShopper (great though it might be!)

    But for reviews/articles written by humans, having Yes/No metadata would be great.

    And where unknown, the metadata could default to "unknown" or "question mark," so no time/effort is required when an article needs to go out fast. It would be a nice extra when the info is known.

    (Going further: that data COULD be exchanged with AppShopper, and AppShopper members could be allowed to answer those questions--like the way Yelp lets members change the toggles for "off street parking" and "carry-out."
     
  11. kmacleod

    kmacleod Well-Known Member
    Patreon Silver

    Jul 1, 2009
    1,865
    1
    36
    Artist / Writer / Designer
    California
    I'd love to see that, and I'd be more than happy to help fill out the metadata where I see it!
     
  12. cakewalker

    cakewalker Well-Known Member

    Jan 17, 2015
    78
    0
    0
    A small icon of a controller on the app details page would be rad! If its not in the API you could let people flag it
     
  13. dwx882

    dwx882 Well-Known Member

    Dec 27, 2010
    59
    0
    0
    Just a thought, as a fellow gamer who has a mfi controller: I use the afterpad website to discover which games have controller compatibility. They have a list of all-compatible games (that I'm aware of) and they try to keep it current. I don't want to make anybody mad by posting a link, but if you google "afterpad mfi" you'll find it.
     
  14. Adams Immersive

    Adams Immersive Well-Known Member
    Patreon Bronze

    Dec 5, 2008
    1,718
    5
    38
    Freelance interactive design and programming
    Ohio
    Sounds useful! Thanks.
     
  15. Shaun Musgrave

    Shaun Musgrave Well-Known Member

    Jul 8, 2013
    1,088
    3
    38
    Freelance writer, teacher, business owner
    Ibaraki, Japan
    Yes, Afterpad is an excellent site and a great resource. I highly recommend it for controller info.
     

Share This Page