They claimed it would happen, but gamers were apprehensive.
Slowly but surely however, it appears that Apple are beginning to corner the handheld gaming market.
This report on Kotaku shows that research from game industry analysts NewZoo reveal Apple are slowly closing the gap in sales compared to long time handheld kings Nintendo.
According to the research, around 40 million gamers in the US use devices on the iOS platform (ie. iPads, iPhones and iPod touches) for their portable gaming fix. That’s only one million behind Nintendo and their DS console.
These stats show that Apple is catching up in numbers compared to dedicated gaming developers. However, does this necessarily mean a shift in trends?
I don’t think this will make major gaming developers like Konami, Capcom or Blizzard consider moving to the iOS platform to make their games.
I do however think that this is showing that more and more people have less time for portable gaming, preferring quick fixes as compared to getting stuck into a game for lengths at a time.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Apple overtake Nintendo in terms of market share in a few years. However I think one thing that won’t change is that standout games from the big companies will continue to be predominatly for consoles like the PSP and DS despite the figures.
I’m cutting back terribly on what can possibly be discussed on this issue, but to summarise how I think, having the numbers is only one half of the battle. The quality of games has to continue to impress and I don’t think Apple can win in that regard.
Having said that though, I’d love to see them and gaming developers try to wow gamers out there.
