Windows Phone 7 Series gaming, all up in the club (video!)
By Nilay Patel 
posted March 17th 2010 4:07PM
posted March 17th 2010 4:07PM
Update: Also, sometimes you find yourself in a Vegas hotel the day after the Vegas club, nursing your brutal headache and desperately seeking a second opportunity to film that hot unreleased game with a better camera. Video of that is after the break, too.
So on a more serious note, while this build of the OS was far from stable, once we got Harvest up and running it was pretty amazing. The graphics were about the same as the Zune HD and framerates felt pretty consistent -- overall, we'd place what we saw next to the PSP, but obviously we didn't do any real testing or comparisons here. Controls were responsive and worked fine, although there weren't any accelerometer-driven actions -- you tapped on an enemy to fire at it, and double-tapped to super-jump. We also managed to trigger two Xbox achievements, which were totally fluid and integrated. Of course, none of this is final, and it's all subject to change, but its was certainly nice to actually use the OS to launch and play a game -- now all we need is a real device with a final OS and we'll be able to form some real impressions.
In talking to Microsoft's Andre Vrignaud (who did us the solid of showing us the game in the second video), he made an important point: though The Harvest is an extraordinarily sexy way of demonstrating the kind of raw power Windows Phone 7 Series' standard spec is going to have, these kinds of games won't be Xbox Live's major focus out of the gate -- they're looking more toward so-called "mobile minute" games, casual experiences that you can call up quickly, take a turn, and move on with your life. Ultimately, of course, we'd like to see a proliferation of both styles -- and there were enough third-party developers listening in on the 3D game development sessions here at MIX10 this week that we're pretty confident we'll see that happen.
This looks promising , Way to go Microsoft !!!
@ftetteh
Can't wait to get a better picture, a bit difficult to tell the quality of the polygons/pixels/etc. Still, looks good from what I can tell, though.
@ftetteh i wonder if it will work for 6.5?
@ftetteh
I was pretty excited when I got my first look at the coming W7 series mobile OS ; then came the news that multitasking had been eliminated and today the news that copy & paste has been dropped too.
I start to think that my beloved HD2 with its gorgeous Sense UI will be even more in demand after the first 7series handsets will hit the streets.
I already preordered my HTC Desire to substitute my Hero (I need 2 phones) but I'm gonna hold tight to my HD2 , I have yet to see anything nearly as good and pleasurable to use.
@ftetteh
I don't understand why so many people want to have their phone be a gaming device. I personally don't want my phone battery to be run down just because I wanted to play a 3-D game.
@Mike10010100
Not to say that Microsoft didn't do an awesome job. Just sayibg that I don't really get it.
@Mike10010100 WPS 7 is staring to look like the ultimate series series of all-in-one phones. Sure , gaming isn't necessary but its fun to have. iphone is the best all-in-one phone , replaces ur phone , ipod , pda , camera (not so much ) , gps . WPS 7 will be all the iphone is with keyboard options and the zune client. I had a zune and INMHO it handles music way better than iTunes
I agree I’m excited about gaming on MP7 and the development opportunities, but enough with the touch screen controls already! Touch screen games like the one above are fun for a few minutes but then get boring really fast. What’s the point of having an 800x480 screen when your hand has to be covering most of it just to play a game? Some hardware buttons are about the only thing separating some of these newer phones and a something like a PSP.
@dennyengster probably won't work with windows mobile 6.5 , its a dead platform even though Microsoft won't admit it .
the controls look absolutely horrible.
@ftetteh I'd hardly call the iPhone the best current all in one phone. Any smartphone can do any of those. And realisticlly, they all have their niches. Like you said, the can do all of those things but it fails (IMO) at GPS (b/c of no multitasking) and photos (b/c of its lack of a decemt camera/video/flash. Just to take an example, the Pre can do all of said things better except for music b/c of its unsteady iTunes implementation. Windows Mobile and BB make better PDAs b/c of their availibility of a file system, open file format options, and ability to connect with BT printers, mice, keyboards, ect. And the list goes on...
Yes, the iPhone is the easiet to use, and has a great implemenation (and in many cases best implementation) of many of its features, but it is far from the best all around at everything.
@Luxury Guy Wrong, I have a Pre and the video recording and camera are not even close to my iphone.
@Mike10010100
Don't game with yours then. Battery issues aren't a problem for a lot of people. They are in a position where their device can recharge throughout the day.
What I don't get about gaming is the controls. I still think all of these (iPod Touch, etc) will flop as gaming options unless some 3rd party hardware is created that allow for hard buttons. Having to cover up half your screen with your fingers just to move around is horribly annoying. Alternatively, using only an accelerometer is incredibly limiting. Touchscreens with limited hard keys = horrible gaming experience.
@Mike10010100
Sure. Sure... ;)
But theres like 100,000 games on the App Store, many hit titles from the likes of EA, Gameloft, SquareEnix, Sega, etc.. Apple's not in competition with Android, they're competing with the DS.
Games will ultimately be the number one selling titles on these devices. And you'll buy a ton of them.
@bjsguess & Wesscoast
That's why I have both an HTC Hero and an iPod Touch. I like my gaming/media battery separate from my phone.
@Mike10010100 That sounds like an awful overlap of functionality, the touch can do a lot of stuff the hero can do and its seem kinda inefficient and unnecessary. I'm sure WPS 7 series phone series is gonna change all that and make u want to carry around only one device. I'm not even 40 and I kinda buy their Life optimizer crap.
@Plexus
Multitasking was not eliminated. It's multitasking model is different. MS's own software uses real multitasking while other software use suspend-activate model of multitasking.
It is engadget which tries to undermine MS by ill intended news.
@Extinction You realize this is a demo game, right? It's essentially the same form as an iPhone, with the same potential controls as any other game on an iPhone....
@Mike10010100
The reason is pretty obvious. All the trouble of inventing and implementing a smartphone OS boils down to only one point: leave as many as possible options open to people, so they can tune this piece of stuff in accordance to their specific and maybe unique requirement. Capable of running sleek 3D games, monster consumption of battery or not, is an option instead of a must-do. I'm quite sure that although me and you in particular isn't so crazy about phone gaming, there actually *are* enough hardcore gamers do want to play Gears of War on their phones.
As amendment to this fundamental point, the pricinpal of making smartphone OS should also be about "We do something, we do it right, or don't bother with it at all."
Can't see what's fault of creating a nice OS with extra juice on gaming. They are not making a handheld console after all. Decent gaming is always a hueg plus to a phone.
Video not available?
@commenter7
dont worry Mr blurry cam is back
@commenter7 Don't worry so if your god awful picture of lady gaga I need to go wash my eyes out now cause I am sure I caught some form of an STD just now
@commenter7 i love your picture!! haha
@commenter7 me too!
video not available
I'm getting tired of playing one off simple games on my iPhone these days.
@Rajivsri
Ever heard of handheld consoles?
@commenter7 yes! I dont want to carry a handheld console and my phone all the time! That's one of the reason I love my iPhone. I never meant to diss the iPhone.
iPhone is still (IMHO) the best phone ever made. What I meant to say was that I would like to play a game on my phone that has higher lifespan as opposed to simple games that get bored within a week.
@Rajivsri
I understand your point but I wouldnt expect high quality gaming on a device without physical media and buttons.
thats why people still buy DSs and PSPs
@Rajivsri What I'm getting tired of is touchscreen gaming, it's unfortunately quite bad.
@commenter7
yeah but assuming your over 10, if you have a ds or psp in public you'd look like a 7th grader. with a iPhone or iPod touch your normal....
@bizkd Yeah sure, because stranger stupid opinions are so important ;-)
@bizkd
then that means you are implying that PSP/DS are for Kids and iPhones are for adults... and you want a full gaming experience, but you don't want to look like a kid?
@bizkd
i carry a ds everywhere... in subways the portable gaming is pretty common.
@bizkd
I don't know which public this is you are talking about, but there are plenty of adults who game with DS and PSP in public.
Video not available :(
btw, PocketNow was able to use "Copy and Paste" on the emulator, and multi-task an app which is not native... So it may not be that badm huh?
@Dking7 Maybe, but in the meantime, pass the tequila!
@Dking7
The leaked Development Docs that Engadget posted talk about what a process is, and specifies that the only thing that limits how many processes can run is the hardware itself.
I understand they could be faked, but considering Joe B. confirmed some native aspects of multi tasking, and I have yet to see a definitive post saying *no* multitasking, I believe them. Joe B. even refers to the OS as a multitasking OS.
And the Copy & Paste thing, they said it's not in the code right now. It definitely could be in there later on.
I'm pretty happy about the way the OS is turning out. And for the people who are freaking out about C&P... this OS has XBox live integration and Netflix streaming...
@N900 No Tequila, it's St. Patty's day. The correct phrase would be "pass the scotch"
@donatom3
And you DO realize that St. Patricks Day is Irish right, and that Scotch is ummmm, from Scotland?
Hopefully they bring some full games to these phones. Something that could take months on he john to complete.
Mr. Blurrycam strikes again!
they killed that poor little bug :(
can call all you want, but there's no one home,
and you're not gonna reach my Windows Phone.
cause I'm out in the club and I'm sipping that bubb,
and you're not gonna reach my Windows Phone.
had to be done
I'm not convinced that Microsoft will be able to pull off the whole combined ecosystem thing for gaming on PC / 360 / WP7S.
The reason I say that, is that I've been a Windows user for a long time, since 3.1. I've used Windows Media Center for four years. I've had a Windows Home Server for 2 1/2 years now. And I've had an Xbox 360 for 1 1/2 years.
Despite all of Microsoft's promises about a complete home ecosystem, in practice, nothing comes together properly. Windows Home Server backs up all the PCs and stores my media, but I need a separate computer on all the time as the main Windows Media Center, because nobody thought that people would only want one always on PC, even in a fully MS setup. The 360 as a Media Center Extender can only play a tiny portion of the files that the Windows Media Center can play. You need a separate add-on to automatically transfer recorded TV from the Media Center to the Home Server.
The situation has improved slightly with Windows 7, but not much. Now to play a file on the 360 / Extender that wouldn't be supported, the Windows 7 PC has to transcode the file on the fly in real time, which it does do natively, but at lesser quality than the old third-party addons for it. In addition, some of the files that it has to transcode are supported natively on the 360 anyway, but not when the 360 is in Extender mode, which doesn't give it access to the full set of codecs.
Oh, and despite having a Windows Mobile phone a year ago, and the server having access to the Internet and a free *.homeserver.com subdomain to redirect to it, you needed a separate addon such as Orb to be able to play the files over the Internet.
While that rant may seem entirely off topic, I mention it here just to say that there's a huge difference between Microsoft promising a seamless ecosystem and actually delivering on it.
@jhoff80 Well, in this case it all uses XNA 4.0 so it's up to the developers. There'll obviously be some differences(a phone obviously can't handle the same level of graphics and such as the full blown XBox 360), but the idea is that devs can have some core technologies common across all three and then just vary the control schemes/graphics according to the platform. It saves enough time that it might not be all that difficult to implement a game you already made for the 360 for WP7S.
@MarcusMaximus I just love how you can get achievements and gamer score from games you play on the phone. Best ever.
@werty1432k and for apps that cost $, you can try an app before you buy it.
@jhoff80
Even though I'm completely hopeful, I totally agree with your point. Another example....why in the world is there not a Zune server for WHS? Or at least be able to run with Zune software w/o hacks.