I’ve just got myself an iPhone 4S, following weeks of waiting. The whole debate of Apple vs its rivals aside, it’s an excellent phone that truly demonstrates the inclusion of the chip – also used on the iPad – that powers it all. Despite running dozens of apps at once if you want it to, it still manages to run games faster than anything I’ve ever seen on the mobile platform. Whether free or paid for, it’s a big business.
The graphics are now pretty astonishing, even for the free games, and are catching up with high gameplay standards. Much like Sony’s oft-promoted and overlooked Xperia – which made a name for itself with a game-specific handset that ran PlayStation games – the iPhone, as well as its rivals, are now publishing games that were £40 on a console just a few years ago. One of these that’s now hitting the top downloads list is Grand Theft Auto III, which actually looks sharper and smoother, even if there are fewer cars (and associated processing demands). Naturally, the gameplay is just as good, even if you’re using limited touch-screen controls.
Obviously, the game that really made mobile gaming popular once more (RIP Snake) was Angry Birds. The simple yet entertainingly addictive game was introduced to me through popular reviews in April 2010 and it’s not been out of the top ten downloaded apps chart since then. Spawning countless merchandise lines and even a film deal with Rio to release a tie-in game (which was average – at least by Rovio standards), it made it big. Take a look at the huge £50 stuffed toys in HMV if you don’t believe me.
Still, a grand share of the cash made from that creation was through the 69p price tag. When you’ve got hundreds of millions of people downloading Angry Birds, Angry Birds Seasons and Angry Birds Rio, you’ve got a real income right there. Merchandise was easy to create, given the unique and instantly-recognisable range of birds and pigs, even if they look like a Poundstretcher Pokémon brand.
Now, game publishers have to go a different route to grab your money. Take two more recent popular releases: Temple Run and Tiny Tower. Both are excellent games in their own right: the first is a simple linear mad dash using simple commands, while the other is an 8-bit style simulator akin to Theme Park or The Sims. However, if you want to make real headway and unlock the bonuses, you need to earn your keep and collect in-game credits. Particularly with Tiny Tower, there’s a push to get you buying this currency with real money, ranging from a few quid to £20+.
If you’re a serious gamer, this is sneered at. If you’re to get the credit for what you do – much in the same fashion as Xbox Live’s Achievements system or the slightly less-appealing PlayStation 3 Trophies spin-off – you put in the work yourself. Simply buying your way to the top doesn’t make it an enjoyable experience.
But publishers aren’t going for this approach of potential players. All you need is a little frustration, impatience or even just a couple of drinks to make the investment. The one thing that should never be forgotten is that Apple users utilising the App Store on their iPhones already have financial details associated with their account, meaning that it’s a case of one-touch buying as soon as you’ve confirmed your password. A smart financial move, if ever there was one.
It’s a slippery slope, particularly when most games are 69p and bonus in-game additions are often a similar cost. Even Angry Birds can’t be excused – it brought in the Mighty Eagle download, where you can basically do every level again to achieve 100 per cent destruction on every stage. I should know, because I was suckered in to buying it for the original. It’s actually pretty good, truth be told.
Others, however, aren’t. Not that people know, of course – you often only have a rough idea of what you’re letting yourself in for when you spend even £3. For instance, I once bought Covent Garden Wild Mushroom soup for £2 and I’ve regretted it ever since. It’s awful. Damn my hindsight.
Nonetheless, publishers can thrust their wares hard, fast and relentlessly in your face. Often, it’s only a slightly misplaced touch that has you on the “Get More Coins!” screen instead of “Retry”. From there, it’s just one moment of ultimately human weakness that will have you succumb to the delights of 1,000 Tiny Tower Bux or 200,000 coins on Temple Run. Theme Park’s re-release tried to sell add-ons to such a terrible degree that it’s got across-the-board one-star reviews – maybe the peer-reviewed App Store system works well, to some degree.
Still, if you take these options, the game sadly stops becoming enjoyable – it’s simply a process. With 1,000 Bux on Tiny Tower, you can have every shop stocked and making you money to build dozens of floors; you’re not earning them. I want that high score on Temple Run that earns me a comparatively meagre 1,500 coins – at least I did it myself.
Maybe games want to keep you bad at gaming. At least this way, publishers can keep getting you with shortcut deals every time. Who am I to judge? I’m just another mobile gamer that still buys into these offers, however small-yet-tempting they are.
What’s the worst in-game deal you’ve bought into? Do any mobile games you’ve played stand out as swindlers?