Gameloft: Mobile game development could hit seven figures (Appolicious)

Last week, mobile game maker Gameloft has released StarFront: collision, later in his thin veneer take on the popular PC strategy game StarCraft franchise. StarFront to $ 6.99 for the full version and has great graphics, sound control, a lot of missions and online multiplayer support for up to four players.

Gameloft is known for the level of Polish puts in its mobile games (even if the concepts are not very original), and its games, it becomes very clear: make StarFront was not an undertaking economically.

Pay for Gameloft, though. Its games are constantly getting great reviews and a lot of good press and are often considered as some of the best in their genre available on the Apple platform for iOS. They usually "New and notable Apple" section on the iTunes App Store and get featured as the game of the week--StarFront currently holds both these honors now. And Yes, it's a pretty great game.

But Gameloft is already seeing the mobile space and the App Store, in particular, becoming a bit flaky. Is a study of big-time, making the games to multiple platforms, including Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Google Android, and works more on the traditional model of a study of play. The mobile platform, on the other hand, has been opened and not enough tested that extremely small developers have been able to make a big splash with tight games, small, simple. And many of these games have been at extremely low prices

According to VP of Gameloft publishing worldwide, Gonzague de Vallois, developers will struggle to maintain the level of premium games if prices continue to remain so low. Could mean larger developers moving out of space or abandoning their games bigger, or it could mean a change in the entire system that leads to an increase in prices that could eliminate many smaller developers.

Speaking to the Pocket Gamer at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, de Vallois these costs for developing titles of quality furniture--at least for Gameloft--are already increasing, while the consumer is always used for triple-a titles like those created by large companies like Gameloft game, Electronic Arts and Capcom for bargain-bin price--$ 0.99, actually.

Gameloft is by boat is a precarious. On the one hand, and other major games publishers are creating premium games for the iPhone. Most new games of great Gameloft are bigger than many other iPhone and launch games for the price of $ 6.99. That accepts implicitly its games out of competition with things like angry birds--users looking to buy StarFront at least know something about video games. Angry birds, meanwhile, draws people that aren't necessarily the players and its low price point is a part of this.

But de Vallois thinks that Apple and other developers must do more to highlight premium purchases and push away from the App Store present a picture of mobile gaming that should be super-cheap, small and mostly forgettable. He remembered the Christmas sale of EA in 2010, the company slashed an enormous number of its games up to $ 0.99 for the holidays, partly to boost sales and partly to grab waiting for a huge portion of the Top 10 charts of App Store while they were frozen for about a week. Apple has approved the sale, and Gameloft thinks it's the wrong move. Here's a quote from de Vallois in history of Pocket Gamer:

"This is what we have to go forward because the new generation of games, there will be booting is evidence of seven digits. It is not profitable to sell these games at 99 c. we have a bit of time before giving the power of PS3, but yes, will increase the cost. Will reach 30, 40 million as Black Ops? Not tomorrow, but maybe some day. "

It is an interesting point, to be sure. Something to keep in mind, however, is that Gameloft could be regarded as a member of the "old school" gaming developers. Makes games for iOS which are like video games--in fact, actually takes video games ' other concepts, such as StarFront and turns them into iPhone games--but you could argue that really doesn't do mobile games.

Games for mobile phones are more akin to the offerings of titles such as Ninja fruit and cut the rope, or The Halfbot blocks Cometh. Developer of blocks, Halfbot, is only two guys. The games that these developers are not really as the types of games that you get on other systems--they're a bit unique in their concepts and presentation at the mobile space. That's not really the kind of games Gameloft, EA and Capcom create (although this is not always the case). Larger developers are making games for players of video; smaller developers are creating them for iPhone owners. That is a great distinction.

Research firm IHS has recently announced that the mobile app is a market of $ 2.2 billion, with Apple dominates the 82 percent of it and games that make up just better than half of the total volume. That makes the mobile gaming a billion dollar market now, according to Pocket Gamer.

Boils down to a difference of markets for Gameloft. The company must recognize that people want to sell video games--standard players who happen to own and like to play on a smartphone--is not huge as a demographic as the casual crowd, or you must find a better way to market to those players are less well paid in video games. But it is doubtful that Apple is going to change things, because they're pulling the 30% market share of iOS 1.76 billion dollars, if they come from StarFront or angry birds.

Success of the App Store was built largely on accessibility applications--is unlikely going to change. If Gameloft wants to keep producing its triple-a titles, high cost, is going to have to live with that, or find a way to make the random phone player in type of player who can appreciate and spend lots of time, with a title more involved as StarFront.