Apple is on the precipice of making real inroads into the gaming market. Certainly, there’s no question that there is a thriving iOS gaming market, but the vast majority of those are casual games at low price points. There are a number of compelling factors that might signal a real change in the balance of power between iOS and the consoles. Between SpriteKit and native iOS support for real gaming controllers, the only real barrier I see is a lack of storage space. Certainly not an issue on the Mac side, but how can a programmer access 50 Gb of cut scenes from an iPad or iPhone, even one connected to a TV. Wonder if some kind of network storage peripheral could solve this problem.
A bit heavy on conjecture, this is a good read nonetheless.
simple — dont do 50 GB of pre-rendered cutscenes.
Then you preclude big blockbuster style games like GTA V
Forgive my ignorance on this matter, but that leads to a few questions:
1. Are the cut scenes necessary to game play?
2. If they are, can you do them with the game engine instead?
3. Or do them with stills?
Actually GTA V isn’t even pre-rendered cutscenes, but the game is still a 20GB download if you bought it on the Playstation Store instead of getting the physical disc. Are they “necessary” for game play? Well, strictly, no. But they are necessary for telling the story. Console games at the level of a Halo, GTA V, or Battlefield 3 are a different beast than casual platformers. Apple can do well with the types of games that get released to Xbox Live Arcade, but there is still a huge mountain to climb (and they’ll have to actively seek it) before they dethrone Xbox and Playstation for what I consider “real” console games.
Storage is only a problem if Apple wants to compete against dedicated consoles, in which case Apple should release a dedicated console and then storage will not be a problem. This could be a new device, or it could be as simple as upgrading Apple TV with a Fusion Drive. I imagine even a 16 GB SSD paired with a 1.8″ 250 GB HDD would offer adequate storage for most gamers with minimal impact on size and price. XBox One and PS4 start with 500 GB without the speed benefits of SSD.
MFi controllers are not going to do much if Apple’s not going to make an official version.
If they ship Apple TV with an official MFi controller then Nintendo Sony Microsoft should start paying attention. Even then the current Apple TV just doesn’t have the memory/storage to run most of those AAA titles.
Heck, to control cost and leverage economies of scale, Apple could simply use the Mini chassis. It would hold a drive or two, the AppleTV internals, has a small footprint, and a simple and elegant design.
FWIW, to store games, related data and stream some video for in-game movies/cutscenes, an SSD seems like overkill (even though I realize you’re talking about a very small SSD, mostly for caching).
The other thing Apple is missing is a an iTunes server. I’ve suggested building one starting from a Timecapsule, but this AppleTV+Storage device would be outstanding in that capacity.
The only MFi controller so far is one by Logitech and it looks like an Atari Lynx: http://www.macrumors.com/2013/10/01/image-of-potential-logitech-mfi-controller-leaked/
If that’s what they’re all going to be like then Sony/Microsoft/Nintendo have nothing to worry about.
An Apple TV controller would be more interesting…
Yes, the SSD would be unnecessary for storing assets, but it would be needed for the OS, app launching, and maintaining performance parity with the current Apple TV. (Sidenote: I know the current Apple TV only has 8 GB storage, but I imagine additional buffer space would be needed to maintain performance while dealing with console-level game assets.)
And I too would really appreciate a simple iTunes server. I wish they would build that into Time Capsule, manageable from your Mac/PC or through AirPort Utility and Remote on iOS.
Please be wary of tech reporters speculating on gaming related issues – they are not the same (John Siracusa has proven to be an exception to the rule). There are many things wrong with this article that this comment section isn’t large enough to cover, but the highlights are:
Total number of multipurpose units sold does not equate to dedicated gaming units (iPhone sales should never be compared to the 3DS, for example).
Input devices are just as important as input APIs. It’s good that Apple is introducing MFi – it was desperately needed years ago – but you can’t throw out a general control scheme and expect third party manufacturers to provide quality options. Microsoft, Sony, Nintendo and now Valve place significant emphasis on the design of their controllers for good reason.
SpriteKit looks snazzy and iOS developers may like it, but Unity’s upcoming 2D tools are far more comprehensive and have the added benefit of existing in an engine that allows porting to multiple platforms. You don’t get the luxury of being platform exclusive without lots of money from a first-party publisher.
For now, the iMac 27″ with the top-level GPU (previously the 675MX, now the 775MX) is the only Apple product capable of matching the performance level inhabited by the Xbox One, Playstation 4 and a modern gaming PC equivalent. I anticipate this to change (along with OpenGL updates being more frequent), but for now it’s still a work in progress.
If always on high speed internet ever becomes completely reliable & ubiquitous, then we may start seeing some kind of Netflix type tech for streaming cutscenes in games.
Just a thought.
Also, they shipped an Xbox 360 with a 4 Gb SSD + DVD (~9 Gb) as it’s primary storage devices. You can get an iPad with 128 Gb of storage.
with 1/3 of the processing capabilities and at the same cost or greater than that 360.
Those things are unrelated to storage.
The total number of units shipped is exactly equal to the number of players who can buy your game and play it. That means millions of potential customers who won’t buy dedicated consoles but might be interested in a single title. For me, I’d love to buy Dragon Age or Skyrim but I’m not buying a console to enjoy them.
Apple hasn’t made a ‘public’ announcement about gaming or specific devices. They announced some tools for developers. Apple veils everything in secrecy so it’s hard to say how serious they are about the market until the reveal.
It’s expensive in terms of time and money to develop cross platform games. Big companies like EA will use cross platform tools for their titles, but independent game designers are less likely to drop the money and effort into a cross platform kit. If you’ve never sold a game before or maybe only had limited success, supporting a second platform is a huge investment.
iOS doesn’t need to match XBox One or the PS4. People most likely already own an iOS device for other purposes. All iOS needs to do is provide a good enough gaming experience that people aren’t motivated to spend $400-500 on a ‘next generation’ console and they will take a big chunk out of their sales. There is some pretty solid evidence that this is happening already.
More to the point, it’s conjecture. Apple plays a tight game, until they show their hand, it’s difficult to know what the outcome is going to be.
They actually have this planned, and not just for cutscenes. Sony bought Gaikai and will be launching a full streaming service (a la OnLive) for their back catalog of games on PS1, PS2 and PS3. Microsoft is semi-likewise using cloud-based rendering enhancements, confirmed for use in Forza 5 on Xbox One.
Mentioning storage is irrelevant. The new generation of consoles are all launching with 500GB of storage. The average next-gen disc-based game is projected to land somewhere between 12 and 30 GB, depending on the size and scope. I wouldn’t expect any Apple solution to exceed that to a point worth mentioning as a benefit.
That’s the point though, you can’t measure this in terms of potential, because there’s really no way to assess concrete numbers of how many people are actually buying and playing games. Someone who buys a 3DS or a PS Vita is a complete confirmation of platform loyalty, because they bought it specifically to invest in the platform. Those are customers worth targeting with your games. I own probably two dozen iOS games, and have probably paid less for them collectively than a single game purchased on any other platform.
Fair enough, but it remains to be seen how serious they take their gaming hardware. Controller design (and indeed, peripheral design in general) is a very difficult thing to do. It also depends on whether they’re planning a 3DS-style snap-on system for iOS devices, or creating a genuine living room experience. The parameters for each are drastically different.
It’s actually not. In fact, it’s easier than ever, and that’s even if you build your own tools (Examples: Polytron, Team Meat, Supergiant, Capybara, Studio Pixel, etc.). My Unity Pro license ran $1500 for the full Win/Mac/Linux/browser platforms, with optional addons at comparable prices for iOS, Android, etc. Sony has been very good about supplying tools and assistance for porting to PS4/Vita, and Microsoft has announced a partnership with Unity to enable porting to Xbox One and Windows Phone. Comcept asked for a total of $3.7 million to develop Mighty No. 9 from scratch AND guarantee ports to Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, Xbox 360, PS3, Wii U, Xbox One, PS4, Vita and 3DS. It’s more accessible than it’s ever been.
I’m not comparing iOS to PS4 and Xbox One. I’m saying that a desktop Apple computer currently has a hard time contending in the living room/enthusiast space. Even if you provided a bluetooth controller or iPad via Airplay to an AppleTV, it’s still not targeting the same market and demographic. People are plenty motivated to spend money on dedicated gaming hardware, both in living rooms ($250 realistically for current generation Xbox and Playstation hardware) and the next generation ($400 and $500). As the libraries of the next gen systems start to fill out and a few “system sellers” come out (Titanfall, Halo 5, whatever Naughty Dog does next), you’ll see those numbers climb considerably.
That’s Apple’s real problem if they plan to get into gaming — nobody buys iPhones or iPod touches for Angry Birds, or anything else on iOS for that matter. The iOS library is basically just a repeat of the Wii: A few marquee hits, followed by an infinite void of shovelware. People may use their iOS devices for gaming, but people will never buy an iOS device for gaming. That’s the critical distinction.
Apple never built the best GPS or the best camera, but they demolished those industries. Apple made taking pictures good enough on the iPhone that there was no reason people would buy a camera. People still buy point and shoot cameras, but they are increasingly niche devices.
Similarly, they don’t need to build the best gaming system, they just need to make gaming so good on iOS that there is no reason to buy a console system. Apple has the potential to drive gaming consoles deeper into the niche it’s already in.
There are studies that show a huge increase in the uptake of mobile gaming for young people, and a corresponding decline in the number using dedicated consoles for game (link below) so it’s already happening. It’s just a matter of increasing the number of gamers iOS appeals to. http://ben-evans.com/benedictevans/2013/10/4/children-and-devices
Better controllers and better graphics go a long way to getting them there. Apple’s already shown they are capable of delivering much better graphics performance and they have controllers in the wings. It’s not clear if Apple is making controllers, but there are other third parties aside from Logitech making them.
All of those things combine to determine whether or not a device is successful or not, though
An iTunes Server would be better implemented as part of OS X Server.
You get all the benefits of a standalone server device, but with the expandability of a desktop machine.
A MacMini is twice the price of a TimeCapsule, so maybe add an Apple-Approved daapd server to them both.