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Become a block in the Human Tetris Project
The Tetris Company and EA Mobile have launched an application to allow you to achieve a goal you didn't even know you had: transformation into a component of a Tetrimino, the basic building block of the Tetris landscape. It's also a new kind of social networking in which gathering enough of your friends together causes them all to disappear. The new Facebook app, the Human Tetris Project, allows you to submit an image, which is then cropped into a square and used to make a Tetris piece that will appear randomly in games played by other Human Tetris Project players worldwide. You needed a new excuse to put pictures up on Facebook, right? Photo submission is open today, with the game itself available Friday.
SimCity Deluxe erecting pyramids on iPhone this Summer
If you're anything like us, you've been looking at your iPhone's old, boring, regular version of SimCity, anxiously anticipating a deluxe update with "improved UI" and "4 distinct season" (ooh, and they're "linked to seasonal disasters!"). Thankfully EA has announced just such an update in SimCity Deluxe, heading to the App Store this summer. As you can see above (and more thoroughly below in the gallery), the game will come with a variety of cultures throughout history and their respective accoutrements (pyramids, for instance). No price has been set, but we'd wager it won't be too far off from the $2.99 asking price for the original game -- and hey, under $10 for pyramids? We're okay with that. %Gallery-88522%
GDC 2010: How to develop an app with EA Mobile
For the first panel of day two here at the 2010 Game Developers Conference's iPhone gaming track, Oliver Miao of Centerscore Studios took the stage to talk about working on Surviving High School for the iPhone as a part of Electronic Arts' Mobile division. As Miao made clear early on, he's an "insider outsider" at EA: his company was started with a few friends, purchased by Vivendi in 2006, created a hit mobile game called Surviving High School in 2007, and was bought by EA in 2008. Last year, they were commissioned to recreate their game for the iPhone. In one of the most interesting iPhone panels at the conference yet, he talked about the ins and outs of working with EA on an iPhone title, and explained both, what it was like to work with the company, and his own philosophies on game design, especially concerning in-app purchases and microtransactions. Most users seem to believe that microtransactions and episodic content are, at the very least, a pain to deal with (and are, at worst, a scam), but Miao is convinced that they're actually necessary to having a successful game -- he said that every developer, going forward, "will need to have them." Read on to find out why.
GDC: Surviving High School creator talks clever, profitable microtransactions
In early 2009, Centerscore co-founder Oliver Miao was assigned an extremely daunting task. His studio had recently been acquired by EA Mobile, and his higher-ups had requested an iPhone version of the studio's successful teen-dating sim series, Surviving High School. The difficulty didn't come in developing the title, but rather, in monetizing it. During his GDC panel titled "Surviving the iPhone: EA's Original Game Bet," Miao recounted the different business models Centerscore proposed to EA Mobile for SHS. The initial idea was to sell the game for 99 cents, and then hand out additional weekly "episodes" for free. While this would help build the brand, EA Mobile didn't anticipate enough return on the investment. It was denied, and Centerscore was sent back to the drawing board. The second idea was to offer the current episode of the game for free, but charge 99 cents for bundled episodes from previous weeks. This idea was also shot down, and Centerscore's project was threatened with cancellation. Finally, the two parties came up with a solution that's proven to be fairly lucrative: give the current episode for free, charge for previous episodes, and offer the next episode in advance for an additional 99 cents -- quite an innovative business model. Of course, Centerscore could have easily raked in the cash by simply charging $500 for one of its first mobile titles, Garfield Bowling. We can't think of a price we wouldn't pay for that gem.
EA Hasbro games sold eight million units at retail in 2009
Not since The Bushwhackers have we seen such an excellent pairing of two entities. EA and Hasbro's partnership has paid off in dividends, as a recent press release boasts that eight million copies of Hasbro titles have been sold in the US alone at retail last year. The eight million figure applies only to retail releases, not digitally distributed titles across consoles and mobile -- which admittedly have also been successful. The release has some other interesting tidbits, like how the combined efforts of the two have seen 20 different Hasbro brands released on 18 major digital platforms. EA attributes the success of these games to three things: the rise in popularity of family-friendly video games; a demand for games targeting girls; and the popularity of Hasbro's well-known toys and games. Any way you slice it, we're glad it's been such a fruitful venture for both companies, because we'll soon get to play Risk on our Xbox 360. It's only about a billion years too late, but hey, we'll take it! And we'll also take Asia – you'll never stop us now!
Spore Creatures creeps onto iPhone and iPod Touch
Remember Spore? EA would like you to, this time by means of a seriously retooled version of the Nintendo DS release, Spore Creatures, for iPhone / iPod touch. Announced during GDC 2009, the game hit Apple's iTunes App Store today as a top-down affair costing $6.99. Like almost every game released under the Spore banner, we suspect that the creature creator is its strongest element. We can't imagine the actual game -- which has players adding new parts to their creatures in order to tilt-control them past obstacles -- will really have legs, so to speak. But hey, we could be wrong ... or you could just wait for the lite version to find out for free. Spore Creatures ($6.99): %Gallery-83854%
App store, and games, coming to ... Kindle
Now you'll be able to buy games for your book! Amazon just announced its Kindle Development Kit, which will allow companies (and individuals!) to create "active content" for Amazon's e-reader device. The examples given in the press release include an interactive Zagat guide, and ... games! According to the announcement, mobile publisher Sonic Boom will release "word games and puzzles" for the device -- which seems like a natural fit. But EA Mobile is also on board with the Kindle, which opens the door to its eventual metamorphosis into a game platform. A game platform with a black-and-white screen, sure, but also a very popular platform whose entire audience is comfortable downloading digital content. A beta for the development kit will begin next month, with applications launching in the Kindle Store "later this year." [Via Engadget]
Simpsons Arcade (sort of) released on iPhone
If you happened to be wandering around a St. Louis, Missouri arcade in the early nineties, you'd probably find a young me, playing the Simpsons Arcade game (either that or the Avengers game, I loved that one too). It was great: beat-em-up action, The Simpsons, and impressive animations and graphics for the era. Now, EA Mobile wants you to try and revisit those days on your iPhone -- kind of. They've released something that they're calling The Simpsons Arcade [iTunes Link] on the App Store, and while it is a nice sort of tribute to the old game, it's not exactly a direct port. Trust me -- I played the old game, which had the family chasing after Maggie, and this game, which has Homer chasing after a doughnut, isn't the same thing. It's not a bad game -- it is a beat-em-up, with the standard movement stick, and an attack and jump button, which can be used in the ways you'd expect. And it does have real voices and sounds from the show, nice new, crisp graphics, and (c'mon, it's The Simpsons) guest stars aplenty. You can bring the family members in for special attacks later on in the game's 25 levels, and there are even some mini-games just like the old arcade version. But it's not the same, and for $4.99 in the App Store with no free trial currently available, it's slightly disingenuous to call this "The Simpsons Arcade" when you're not really getting to play the old game. If I bought this expecting a port and opened it up to find the respectable 2D beat-em-up that it is, I'd probably be a little disappointed. It's a good, solid game, and probably worth the price if you like this type of thing, but don't come expecting to revisit those glory days of '91 in any way but the overall feel.
EA bringing Battleship, Connect 4, Monopoly to iPhone
EA is getting good mileage out of this Hasbro deal. The latest platform to be assaulted with family-friendly adaptations of classic board games is the iPhone and iPod Touch, with Battleship, Connect 4 and Monopoly Classic en route from EA Mobile. There's no word on prices or release date as of right now, but we'll be sure to pass that news along once it's available. In the meanwhile, feel free to head into the gallery below to check out screens from each title. If you're reading Joystiq on an iPhone, you can totally pretend you're playing the games! %Gallery-76840% %Gallery-76841% %Gallery-76842%
Rock Band out for $9.99 on the iPhone... but fails to thrill
The good news is that EA has released Rock Band for the iPhone and iPod touch, and you can pick it up from the App Store right now. The bad news is that it seems like a pretty tough sell -- despite the relatively high price tag (Tap Tap Revenge 3, a similar music game, is currently 99 cents and headed for free), there's not much new here. Sure, there is four-device Bluetooth multiplayer, and that's something that Tapulous' game has never had. But other than that, it seems like this is basically EA's cash in on the tapping concept -- the draw of Rock Band has been getting together with your friends and jamming out the hits on those fake instruments, and touching a button-less screen by yourself doesn't have the same effect. Singing is included, but you're still just tapping out notes for that -- it seems like they missed a lot of potential fun there. And even some of the fun things from the console version like the drum fills for overdrive and the character avatars are missing here. If you don't like the 20 songs included with the game, you can download others at 50 cents (in two-song packs for a buck each), but most people probably shouldn't even bother at that price -- just stick with Tapulous' game unless you really love Rock Band and its aesthetics (even then, I haven't seen my much-beloved Harmonix mentioned anywhere with this port, so I doubt they're even involved. Update: They are listed on the game's splash screen, however, according to our readers). Even if you want to try this one, wait for the inevitable price drop -- if the game really lived up to its name as the premiere music experience you'll find on the consoles, it might be worth it, but all indications are, unfortunately, that it doesn't. Gallery: Rock Band iPhone / iPod Touch
IGN: 'Rock Band is coming to the iPhone'
While @EAmobile is twittering that "some big news from the EA Mobile camp being announced tomorrow morning" – leaving us in a would-be lurch for the next twelve hours or so – the insiders at IGN have spoiled the surprise. "Rock Band is coming to the iPhone," IGN Wireless declares. No equivocation there! Their promise to share "details, screens, gameplay impressions and more" tomorrow morning leads us to believe that they've already seen the game; unfortunately, they "can't say too much beyond the conformation [sic] of the game." No date, no price, no screens, nuthin'. But: Rock Band is coming to the iPhone. For everything else, you'll have to wait until tomorrow morning.
FIFA 10 coming to iPhone this Friday
What's it going to take for us to get developers to release games for Apple products earlier than two years after the fact? The iPhone, apparently -- EA has announced that their soccer flagship FIFA 10 will be available for the iPhone this Friday, which is the same day the console game shows up in stores as well. The game will have everything the full versions have, including real teams and leagues, a licensed soundtrack, and all of the usual soccer standbys. One thing missing: online multiplayer, though local wifi multiplayer will be available.Sounds good to us, especially if you're a fan of the sport all those crazy Europeans call football. The app should be $9.99, befitting of a premium EA sports app, though there will probably be a sale on it sooner or later. Now, about that actual Mac version...
Spell the day away with Boggle on iPhone
EA Mobile certainly hopes your fascination with crafting words from letter-filled grids on your iPhone hasn't waned -- the developer recently released a port of Hasbro's Boggle onto the App Store. Though it lacks Word Scramble's robust multiplayer system (and free-ness), it does possess one feature that justifies its $2.99 price tag: Achievements. Lots of achievements. Seriously, wordsmithing hasn't been this rewarding since you won those tickets to Dollywood in your fourth grade spelling bee. We take it back. This is way more rewarding than that. Boggle ($2.99, EA Mobile):
Analysis: Mobile games aren't worth $5.4 billion
Jeremy Laws at Cabana Mobile has an interesting little analysis up about mobile gaming that claims it may not be as big as it's cracked up to be. Laws says there's no way the mobile gaming market can hold up $5.4 billion, as was reported earlier this year by Juniper Research. Laws looks at the top 10 companies releasing mobile games (at retail -- that will become important in a minute), and claims that even if those companies make up 70% of total mobile games, the total amount of mobile game sales only comes up near $1.7 billion, far short of the Juniper number.So where's the discrepancy? It's almost certain to lie in the App Store, where Juniper says growth more than made up for the dropoff of sales in other areas, like Java-based games. Laws does list companies like EA Mobile and Gameloft, whose games are selling on the App Store, but almost all of Laws' companies are old-school mobile developers, who created games for mobile phones before the App Store was ever open for business. Plus, his "retail" mention might mean the App Store isn't included in his calculations at all -- can you call the App Store "retail"? In fact, if any mobile games marketplace is going to make up over $3 billion in the mobile games market, it's got to be the App Store, right?So this means a couple of different things: one, the App Store very well could be remaking the face of mobile gaming, to the point where old-school numbers are just plain insufficient to compare to modern App Store sales. Second, if there is a bubble, it'll likely be in the App Store: another recent report says that if you spend more than $40k on a 99 cent game, you're losing money. Laws may be underestimating the long tail of the App Store -- certainly no single developer has pulled in billions, but there are a lot of developers out there. Still, at the same time, $5.4 billion does seem high. And if games companies are convinced there's gold in the App Store hills, that's where the bubble will eventually burst.
EA drops Clue, Snood, and The Game of Life onto iPhone
Apparently EA Mobile didn't realize that Snood has long since lapsed as our drug of choice -- we've already found a more adept pusher in Popcap with Peggle, silly gooses! Alongside the aging methamphetamine, EA Mobile has dropped iPhone iterations of Clue and The Game of Life in the iPhone App Store for purchase as of today. The games range from $3 to $5 and have already arrived on the App Store, though we bet you're 100k points deep in Drop7 this very minute, laughing while your personal assistant reads you off the titles of the three aforementioned games. "What is this hogwash you're telling me, Winston? Surely you jest -- these games are from an era that has long since passed!" We don't jest, dearest reader. We never do.Clue: Snood: The Game of Life:
Pachter: Mobile games are a fad, EA's emphasis on sector 'misplaced'
Some people in the video game industry predict the mobile games business could eventually grow to topple the handheld gaming market, Wedbush Morgan disagrees. In its July industry report, analyst Michael Pachter estimates the mobile games industry is currently closer to $2 billion and, even with expected growth, the market may only expand to $4-6 billion in the next three to five years. In a section titled "Mobile Phone Games are a Fad," Pachter explains that, while 1 billion iPhone applications have been downloaded across 31 million Apple products sold, "it is not evident that more than 20% of these downloads are games." Suggesting the iTunes App Store has generated "under $400 million in game downloads" in its first year. Pachter does predict the mobile game industry will grow at 25% per year for a few years, but will eventually fall as competing devices enter the market. The report also calls Electronic Arts' emphasis on mobile games "misplaced." EA Mobile has grown steadily over the last few years, but the report estimates the mobile games division is -- along with that of competitors Gameloft and GLU Mobile -- "barely profitable." According to the report, finger pointing in Apple's camp should directed toward the "open forum" structure of the store and Apple's business model. Apple runs the game download service for an estimated 30% fee, leaving 70% to the game's publisher, the report claims. The section on mobile games goes on to conclude that handheld systems, like the new PSP Go, will "maintain its niche, without significant cannibalization" from the mobile games industry.
Rumor: Wolfenstein RPG goes up on App store, then pulled
Japanese site AppBank managed to grab some video of what is allegedly Wolfenstein RPG, which apparently leaked early on the App store. From the video, which we've placed after the break, it looks like the iPhone version is graphically improved from its original mobile incarnation.We've reached out to EA Mobile for an estimated launch date. If Wolfenstein RPG did actually launch on the AppStore in error, it would appear the game is "finished." We'll update if we hear anything back.Update: A representative for EA Mobile let us know that the company hasn't announced an official release date for Wolfenstein RPG on iPhone.[Via PocketGamer]
EA launches Need for Speed Undercover for iPhone ... right now!
Hey! Remember when EA's Travis Boatman very quietly reconfirmed a boatload of EA franchises coming to the iPhone in 2009? Oh, you don't? That's okay, we nearly forgot too. In fact, we're pretty sure the company would like to keep these anouncements secret, as Need for Speed: Undercover hit the iTunes App Store today without so much as a peep from its publisher!The game comes e-brake sliding into the store for the not-so-nice price of $9.99, and though we've yet to get our hands on it, we'll be sure to tell you how we feel just as soon as we do. For 10 bucks though, that might not be too soon.Need for Speed: Undercover ($9.99, EA)
GDC09: Upcoming EA iPhone game list fully revealed, screens and info on Tiger
Just before the deluge of GDC 2009 news started this week, Travis Boatman, VP of worldwide studios at EA Mobile, confirmed the upcoming release of a veritable smörgåsbord of EA franchises coming to the iPhone. Today, we have confirmation from Meghan Rathman (representing EA) of the exact titles on the way to the iPhone/iTouch as well as a handful of screens from Tiger Woods PGA Tour. Unfortunately, according to Ms. Rathman, the rest of the games in development are "still too early" and don't have screens. Considering the turnaround time on iPhone/iTouch games though, we're willing to bet you'll see those shots by the end of the week pretty soon!The full list of games we received from EA is as follows: Tiger Woods PGA Tour, The Sims 3, FIFA, Madden NFL Football, Spore Creatures, Mystery Mania, Wolfenstein RPG, American Idol, Connect Four, Battleship, Need for Speed, RISK, Monopoly and Clue. Differing from reports at the GDC Mobile event earlier this week, we're seeing the addition of The Sims 3 and Need for Speed. In turn, we're losing the first SSX in two years, Red Alert, NBA Live 10, American Idol, Star Trek. But hey, Tiger Woods!The press release from EA on Tiger Woods PGA Tour tells us that the game is of the "touch" rather than of the "shake" variety, comes with achievements and offers a way to compare achievements with your friends. Of the key features listed, notably missing is "playing against friends wirelessly," though it does promise the ability to "affect your ball spin direction" using your finger. Those are comparable features, right? We'll keep on EA and let you know as soon as we find out more on their upcoming iPhone/iTouch assault.%Gallery-48706%
GDC09: EA quietly announces iPhone versions of major franchises
Of the many GDC 2009 announcements taking place this week, we were most shocked to see EA sneakily introducing some of the company's most popular franchises to the Apple device some are calling the newest gaming platform -- the iPhone. Travis Boatman, VP of worldwide studios at EA Mobile, made the announcement at GDC Mobile, naming SSX, Wolfenstein RPG, Red Alert, FIFA 10, Madden 10, NBA Live 10, American Idol, Spore Creatures, Clue, Risk, Mystery Mania, Connect Four, Battleship, Tiger Woods and Star Trek, according to reports from Patrick Klepek (former MTV Multiplayer writer) and Shacknews. While most of the titles are the to-be-expected EA mutliplatform titles like Madden 10 and NBA Live 10, the SSX series will be getting its first update in two years according to this announcement. Also of note, Wolfenstein RPG is of no relation to the just released Wolfenstein 3D for the iPhone; rather, it makes up half of the two iPhone games id Software is purportedly working on. Details are unfortunately scant at the moment but we've reached out to EA for comment.On a personal note, we'd like to extend our personal "WHAT THE HELL?!" regarding Risk being announced for the iPhone and still not hearing a peep on it coming to XBLA/PSN. Seriously, EA. What the hell?![Via Shacknews]
