There were 2.2 billion people playing video games actively in 2017. 27% were PC users, 31% on console. That's 58% of the market.
PC revenue = $29,000,000,000 USD PC + console revenue = ~$63,000,000,000 USD
Exponential growth. The PC games nor console games had never been bigger in terms of number of users and revenue. Some of you guys are making it out as somehow this market is on the decline hence the developers have no choice but to move to mobile games. Yes PC/Console games cover a smaller percentage of the market - that's inevitable every time a new platform joins the game. And that new platform brings in whole new demographics and customers alongside with it, it's not like mobile gaming is in direct head-to-head competition with PC gaming or console gaming.
Now I can't say for sure what is happening inside Blizzard, no one here can. If it is a case of expansionism then more power to them. If it's a focus shift then fine, best of luck. But failing in a market is very different from a market failing you. To insist on the latter to justify the shift is just stupid.
Constantine, The Console Poster
"One of the most difficult tasks men can perform, however much others may despise it, is the invention of good games and it cannot be done by men out of touch with their instinctive selves." - Carl Jung
No figures are given no details are known so take it all with a large pinch of salt. But "Many of our best developers" going to mobile does not sound good and do we actually need this as evidence of the effect mobile is having on gaming? We have seen this shift for years now, I keep ringing the bell about it and get told things like "Mobile and PC gaming are two totally different worlds", "Mobile will never effect PC and console", "Well its not the gaming companies its new start-ups".
So Blizzard is not about to becoming a mobile only gaming company, but some posters seem to think that means there is nothing to this story. This indicates the direction of travel gaming has been on for a decade, one where PC's and console are competing with mobile...and losing.
The values, expectations and demands of mobile players have already started to influence gaming, they are spending more than PC and console players together each year, mobile gaming accounts for over 75% of mobile revenue. The people who play these games are mostly not what we would think of as gamers, they only play mobile games and playing Candy Crush does not make you a gamer in my eyes. But gamers who do play smartphone games think that mobile players are like them. They are not.
Mobile gamers bring a beyond casual and beyond butterfly gamer approach to games. If you think that behaviour is fine, you have not seen anything yet. The ethos and design principles of mobile from gambling to log on for five minutes is going to influence all gaming.
We see players asking "why can't I log onto my MMO for half an hour and do something meaningful". Mobile players will be asking "why can't I log on for 5 minutes in my MMO and do something meaningful?" This is exacerbating some of the worse trends gaming has.
Also most (if not all) of Blizzards current IP´s are on auto-pilot as far as cutting edge development goes. So moving some of the prime talent to other projects makes sense.
After all Blizzard is still a company and thus the end goal is making more money, mobile is getting big... Heck some of the new ipads rivals a basic mid-range laptop and the new pro will rival a high end one (of the specs turns out true) in pretty much everything but graphics.
Sure we are a bit out from running the latest CoD on a phone but as a platform mobile stand to kill the console market and push the low to mid range computers to the side.
As such, it is stupid to not invest in mobile as a market, and i´d hate to try and defend staying out to shareholders... "well you see good sir/madam... Nostalgia is keeping med from making this very important move because it impacts my engorged ego." =P
I do not like it but.. I did not care much for the console market either, i still saw the worth in investing in to that.
Not until mobile finds a way to ditch the touchscreen controls.
Tactile response is completely missing, and there's likited screen space because of how both UI and controls have to take up part of it, not to mention the rest of the player's finger/thumb that isn't actually touching the screen.. I don't see that scheme destroying the PC and console markets.
There are controllers that you can hook up to your mobile device. For at least 10 years at that.
That's 2 console generations.
You are way out of the loop.
I actually played Asphalt with such a controller and it was tons of fun. They've nailed the multiplayer aspect better than some PC games to be honest. I can't even recall a multiplayer over the internet racing game these days. And here I am, racing on a 4G wireless connection.
Also most (if not all) of Blizzards current IP´s are on auto-pilot as far as cutting edge development goes. So moving some of the prime talent to other projects makes sense.
After all Blizzard is still a company and thus the end goal is making more money, mobile is getting big... Heck some of the new ipads rivals a basic mid-range laptop and the new pro will rival a high end one (of the specs turns out true) in pretty much everything but graphics.
Sure we are a bit out from running the latest CoD on a phone but as a platform mobile stand to kill the console market and push the low to mid range computers to the side.
As such, it is stupid to not invest in mobile as a market, and i´d hate to try and defend staying out to shareholders... "well you see good sir/madam... Nostalgia is keeping med from making this very important move because it impacts my engorged ego." =P
I do not like it but.. I did not care much for the console market either, i still saw the worth in investing in to that.
Not until mobile finds a way to ditch the touchscreen controls.
Tactile response is completely missing, and there's likited screen space because of how both UI and controls have to take up part of it, not to mention the rest of the player's finger/thumb that isn't actually touching the screen.. I don't see that scheme destroying the PC and console markets.
There are controllers that you can hook up to your mobile device. For at least 10 years at that.
That's 2 console generations.
You are way out of the loop.
I actually played Asphalt with such a controller and it was tons of fun. They've nailed the multiplayer aspect better than some PC games to be honest. I can't even recall a multiplayer over the internet racing game these days. And here I am, racing on a 4G wireless connection.
if you have to hook up a controller to play a game on your phone then your no longer playing a mobile game but a watered down version of a console or pc game.
as other pointed out mobile game are a huge cash market because they focus on one thing, low cost with plenty of ways to give you incentives to make them money. things like watching adds, play their gatcha or low cost packages that give you loads of items.
i read this fact today an it broke my heart, as it further proof that if/when mobile games becomes the industry leader nothing good will come from it.
" Pachinko Machines (mechanical games used for gambling) make Sega more money in Japan than game sales worldwide. "
so when dlc is no longer good money since everyone hated it and can avoid it easily, how do you make money for lower cost? hmmm, maybe mobile games? you know with those ads, gatcha, cheap optional packs you can buy to help cut down wait times or boost you up. of course maybe am wrong and am just resisting change and mobile games will become higher quality games with no adds, gatcha or cheap packs to nickel and dime us....right?
Isn't it funny how gdc talks and other game dev conferences, gamastra articles and so on... Has so many devs sayin stuff like... "Developing mobile games ate my soul" "Why I stopped developing for mobile" "Mobile games was not why I wanted to become a developer" "How I regained my love for making games" (aka quitting mobile and going back to pc games) And many more like that.. Go fact check it for yourself.
And why is that? I will say it again, it is because mobile games are not for gamers, it is for people who need to kill time. You don't design mobile games for excellent gameplay, you design them for lowest common denominator and spending pattern analysis and manipulation.
Also most (if not all) of Blizzards current IP´s are on auto-pilot as far as cutting edge development goes. So moving some of the prime talent to other projects makes sense.
After all Blizzard is still a company and thus the end goal is making more money, mobile is getting big... Heck some of the new ipads rivals a basic mid-range laptop and the new pro will rival a high end one (of the specs turns out true) in pretty much everything but graphics.
Sure we are a bit out from running the latest CoD on a phone but as a platform mobile stand to kill the console market and push the low to mid range computers to the side.
As such, it is stupid to not invest in mobile as a market, and i´d hate to try and defend staying out to shareholders... "well you see good sir/madam... Nostalgia is keeping med from making this very important move because it impacts my engorged ego." =P
I do not like it but.. I did not care much for the console market either, i still saw the worth in investing in to that.
Not until mobile finds a way to ditch the touchscreen controls.
Tactile response is completely missing, and there's likited screen space because of how both UI and controls have to take up part of it, not to mention the rest of the player's finger/thumb that isn't actually touching the screen.. I don't see that scheme destroying the PC and console markets.
There are controllers that you can hook up to your mobile device. For at least 10 years at that.
That's 2 console generations.
You are way out of the loop.
I actually played Asphalt with such a controller and it was tons of fun. They've nailed the multiplayer aspect better than some PC games to be honest. I can't even recall a multiplayer over the internet racing game these days. And here I am, racing on a 4G wireless connection.
Too bad that controller doesn't fit in your pocket like the phone.
When you start adding peripheral devices to try and justify mobile gaming, it loses the single biggest boon the platform has. The vast majority of folks playing games like Jungle Run or Candy Crash have no interest in a game that requires them to buy another piece of equipment they aren't gonna be able to take with them like the phone itself.
Also most (if not all) of Blizzards current IP´s are on auto-pilot as far as cutting edge development goes. So moving some of the prime talent to other projects makes sense.
After all Blizzard is still a company and thus the end goal is making more money, mobile is getting big... Heck some of the new ipads rivals a basic mid-range laptop and the new pro will rival a high end one (of the specs turns out true) in pretty much everything but graphics.
Sure we are a bit out from running the latest CoD on a phone but as a platform mobile stand to kill the console market and push the low to mid range computers to the side.
As such, it is stupid to not invest in mobile as a market, and i´d hate to try and defend staying out to shareholders... "well you see good sir/madam... Nostalgia is keeping med from making this very important move because it impacts my engorged ego." =P
I do not like it but.. I did not care much for the console market either, i still saw the worth in investing in to that.
Not until mobile finds a way to ditch the touchscreen controls.
Tactile response is completely missing, and there's likited screen space because of how both UI and controls have to take up part of it, not to mention the rest of the player's finger/thumb that isn't actually touching the screen.. I don't see that scheme destroying the PC and console markets.
There are controllers that you can hook up to your mobile device. For at least 10 years at that.
That's 2 console generations.
You are way out of the loop.
I actually played Asphalt with such a controller and it was tons of fun. They've nailed the multiplayer aspect better than some PC games to be honest. I can't even recall a multiplayer over the internet racing game these days. And here I am, racing on a 4G wireless connection.
Too bad that controller doesn't fit in your pocket like the phone.
When you start adding peripheral devices to try and justify mobile gaming, it loses the single biggest boon the platform has. The vast majority of folks playing games like Jungle Run or Candy Crash have no interest in a game that requires them to buy another piece of equipment they aren't gonna be able to take with them like the phone itself.
On that note, you can also connect your phone to a big screen TV. But when they are designing games, they won't be taking that into consideration - neither the controller. There are some VR games though, probably.
Constantine, The Console Poster
"One of the most difficult tasks men can perform, however much others may despise it, is the invention of good games and it cannot be done by men out of touch with their instinctive selves." - Carl Jung
An issue i have with mobile gaming is that the game are usually shallow and you play it when you are bored, but i feel no real relaxation or accomplishment from it.
Plus, with PC. You can game and watch movies while playing.
Try the following:
Minecraft
The Banner Saga
Vendetta Online
Elder Scrolls Legends
This War of Mine
...all available on mobile. None of these are what I would consider "shallow". You are probably thinking more along the lines of titles like:
_PRISM
Desert Golfing
Prune
Angry Birds
...all of which are enjoyable in their own right.
...I'd also argue it's easier to watch a movie while playing on mobile than on PC?
only consoles can really threaten pc gaming and eventually they're going to be one and the same. mobile gaming is never going to go beyond that. unless you can whip out a huge holo screen wherever you are to play some awesome looking stuff.
You may be interested in a little technology by the name of Gear VR.
"The simple is the seal of the true and beauty is the splendor of truth" -Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar Authored 139 missions in VendettaOnline and 6 tracks in Distance
The irony is bitter to say the least. Using the success they had with our money to chase after mobile gamers. What happened to creating a subsidiary company to cater to the new market while continuing to rake in money with the current one? I find it bizarre.
only consoles can really threaten pc gaming and eventually they're going to be one and the same. mobile gaming is never going to go beyond that. unless you can whip out a huge holo screen wherever you are to play some awesome looking stuff.
I think you're wrong.
didn't wan't to copy/paste that wall of text but your argument seems to be that i'm wrong because in the future mobile phones will have all the things that would make a PC?
mobile gaming is gaming on a small screen for short bursts. it's not adding mouse/keyboard/monitor etc. and playing games that requires all of that.
Also: Tell that to all the Nintendo Switch users. What this has the potential to do is turn anyone's iPhone, Pixel, or Galaxy S/Note into - basically - a Nintendo Switch (in terms of gaming function and title availability/quality).
Developers don't care what you think. You are only one person. They aren't blind to the general trends in the industry; and they need to innovate or penetrate those markets in order to grow their profits.
They don't expect everyone to agree with everyone and everything. That would be... retarded.
But the people here generally are "playing willfully ignorant" to the fact that these are corporations and not their own personal slaves that farm out entertainment for their own personal enjoyment. The world is bigger than your preferences.
Roll with it.
Again, the fact that it's mobile has very little tot do with the reputation mobile gaming has. The quality and types of games has almost all to do with that. That is going to change as more developers get on board and start developing or porting titles to that form factor.
And I don't even think Diablo: Immortal is really going to be that transformative. I actually think Elder Scrolls: Blades is more along the lines of what I'm referring to.
Companies that are devoting huge resources to mobile are seeing huge profits there. NCSoft is one example, with Lineage 2: Revolution, etc.
Mobile gaming isn't just for short bursts. You seem to think that mobile only refers to smartphones. It doesn't. It just so happens that smartphones are basically the prototype for what companies like Nintendo (and Sony) have done for their own proprietary mobile gaming platforms (DS, Switch, PSP). In the future, the middle man is going to be cut out and the games will simply be on the App Store or Play Store.
And you can easily design a Switch-like enclosure for a smartphone.
P.S. My posts are long because I try to be though and explain myself, so that you don't have to guess. If reading is that hard, I'll start being cheeky and sarcastic like you guys and post two badly constructed sentences per reply. Let me know!
Which is why I didn't get a Switch. I've had PSP and DS in the past, they usually ended up gathering dust because most of my gaming was on PC. If I want to try out a mobile game, there was and is always my cell.
"We all do the best we can based on life experience, point of view, and our ability to believe in ourselves." - Naropa "We don't see things as they are, we see them as we are." SR Covey
only consoles can really threaten pc gaming and eventually they're going to be one and the same. mobile gaming is never going to go beyond that. unless you can whip out a huge holo screen wherever you are to play some awesome looking stuff.
I think you're wrong.
didn't wan't to copy/paste that wall of text but your argument seems to be that i'm wrong because in the future mobile phones will have all the things that would make a PC?
mobile gaming is gaming on a small screen for short bursts. it's not adding mouse/keyboard/monitor etc. and playing games that requires all of that.
Also: Tell that to all the Nintendo Switch users. What this has the potential to do is turn anyone's iPhone, Pixel, or Galaxy S/Note into - basically - a Nintendo Switch (in terms of gaming function and title availability/quality).
Developers don't care what you think. You are only one person. They aren't blind to the general trends in the industry; and they need to innovate or penetrate those markets in order to grow their profits.
They don't expect everyone to agree with everyone and everything. That would be... retarded.
But the people here generally are "playing willfully ignorant" to the fact that these are corporations and not their own personal slaves that farm out entertainment for their own personal enjoyment. The world is bigger than your preferences.
Roll with it.
Again, the fact that it's mobile has very little tot do with the reputation mobile gaming has. The quality and types of games has almost all to do with that. That is going to change as more developers get on board and start developing or porting titles to that form factor.
And I don't even think Diablo: Immortal is really going to be that transformative. I actually think Elder Scrolls: Blades is more along the lines of what I'm referring to.
Companies that are devoting huge resources to mobile are seeing huge profits there. NCSoft is one example, with Lineage 2: Revolution, etc.
Mobile gaming isn't just for short bursts. You seem to think that mobile only refers to smartphones. It doesn't. It just so happens that smartphones are basically the prototype for what companies like Nintendo (and Sony) have done for their own proprietary mobile gaming platforms (DS, Switch, PSP). In the future, the middle man is going to be cut out and the games will simply be on the App Store or Play Store.
And you can easily design a Switch-like enclosure for a smartphone.
P.S. My posts are long because I try to be though and explain myself, so that you don't have to guess. If reading is that hard, I'll start being cheeky and sarcastic like you guys and post two badly constructed sentences per reply. Let me know!
Which is why I didn't get a Switch. I've had PSP and DS in the past, they usually ended up gathering dust because most of my gaming was on PC. If I want to try out a mobile game, there was and is always my cell.
I was saddened that Microsoft didn't attempt an Xbox phone with it's failed mobile OS. Mass market was android and IOS has the elite standardized platform. Uh you have a whole gaming division use it.
The left out obvious niche to me was to create a good gaming phone with game controller form and console like games. Release a new one ever couple of years. I mean people already are spending 1k for phones ever year or two.
"Honey, I'm leaving you. I know we've been together for 10 years and you've loved and supported me, but I have to go. I've decided to hang out at the local strip club 24/7 instead because there's simply more women there who show more. I can also spend a little extra and a couple of the girls will do things with me that you won't. I know that none of these women love me, and it's all about the transaction but this is the best move for me long term. I'm 100% sure the instant gratification will last longer than our marriage and none of this will have any negative effects on my ethics, or morality.
Sincerely, Blizzard"
"As far as the forum code of conduct, I would think it's a bit outdated and in need of a refre *CLOSED*"
An issue i have with mobile gaming is that the game are usually shallow and you play it when you are bored, but i feel no real relaxation or accomplishment from it.
Plus, with PC. You can game and watch movies while playing.
Try the following:
Minecraft
The Banner Saga
Vendetta Online
Elder Scrolls Legends
This War of Mine
...all available on mobile. None of these are what I would consider "shallow". You are probably thinking more along the lines of titles like:
_PRISM
Desert Golfing
Prune
Angry Birds
...all of which are enjoyable in their own right.
...I'd also argue it's easier to watch a movie while playing on mobile than on PC?
only consoles can really threaten pc gaming and eventually they're going to be one and the same. mobile gaming is never going to go beyond that. unless you can whip out a huge holo screen wherever you are to play some awesome looking stuff.
You may be interested in a little technology by the name of Gear VR.
Most people in this thread seem to prefer bloviating talking points more than actually educating themselves on how the market is shifting.
Mobile gaming is actually really good, and frankly the graphics aren't monumentally worse than a console (and in many cases, not worse at all). Much of that has little to do with the form factor, and more to do with the fact that Mobile has been the target of lower end games for a while. As more and more higher end games come to the platform, this will largely equalize.
Mobile platforms and hardware also evolve and improve much faster than Consoles, so that is in their favor.
Hooking a controller up to a Mobile device doesn't make it not mobile. The phone can basically dock into the controller the way a switch has controller attachments. Nintendo DS, Nintendo Switch and PlayStation Portable are mobile gaming platforms. They just run a different platform than Android and iOS devices, and have a slightly different form factor. The average Android/iOS flagship device is likely more powerful than a PSP, by a pretty big margin, these days. So, those platform are ripe and prepared for this.
I think PC gamers just feel threatened by these form factors, because they want to be the face of gaming...
However, this hasn't been the case for years, now. PC Gaming has only continued to be pushed as hard as it has been, because hardware companies like milking that market for profits; as they tend to buy expensive CPUs, GPUs, RAM, and other components/accessories... Once Razer brings peripheral support to Xbox One (and probably PS4, later) and more things start to shift... we'll see the marketing priorities shift, as well.
Consoles are bigger than PC gaming, and raking in more cash these days - even when you consider the "very debatable" numbers cited upthread.
That will not stop, as business models shift more towards MTX, In-App Purchases, DLCs and Seasons Passes, etc. and game companies reduce operating costs by not running their own services to duplicate PSN/XBL. We already see the start of this on PC with Steam, for example (which I don't use, cause I don't like all of my games tied to one account on this platform - among other oddities with it).
And I also agree (or think) that VR is probably going to take off on Mobile a lot better than it did on PC, due to system and hardware requirements (indirectly: costs) - along with the lack of fragmentation on mobile operating platforms for this tech (Both Google and Apple have first-party SDKs/APIs for this, instead of an amalgamation of solutions - all with their own hardware and software requirements - that exist on PC)...
Can't wait to see people faces when they finally announce the WoW sequel as a Mobile MMORPG.
By the time that happens, people may be so accustomed to Mobile Gaming that they wouldn't bat an eyelash.
But I'd reckon that they're more likely to bring this to console, assuming cross-play was available.
And it's not likely to "play like WoW," either (tab targeted, hotkey combat). Probably will be something closer to what ESO or GW2 is, as far as combat is concerned.
I'm getting a bit, of a distinct feeling that Blizzard isn't really interesting in staying in the MMORPG scene. They are trying to build eSports, and if they can do that successfully; they'd be more than happy winding WoW down or releasing a version that is... "basically just Arenas." With the pace of content clearing in WoW, and the constant gear resets, I don't personally see any point in playing it unless you do the PvP stuff, either. Anything else is just wasted time; even if it's just an entertainment medium.
I also think they are doing everything they can to distance themselves from their "toxic" legacy player communities. This is more blatant in their newer games, but it's certainly working its way backwards.
The Diablo community is probably the most toxic community they have, and must deal with. It would not surprise me if they were to cancel a Diablo 4 simply to drop those players, and simply focus on a different market altogether.
The left out obvious niche to me was to create a good gaming phone with game controller form and console like games. Release a new one ever couple of years. I mean people already are spending 1k for phones ever year or two.
Xiaomi Black Shark comes close with the gamepad add on that has its own battery. Two gamepads if you get the larger memory Helo now.
The irony is bitter to say the least. Using the success they had with our money to chase after mobile gamers. What happened to creating a subsidiary company to cater to the new market while continuing to rake in money with the current one? I find it bizarre.
I wish CCP had decided to take that road instead of spending it mostly on titles which tanked miserably.
Oh well, hindsight is 20/20 and few could have predicted the state the MMORPG genre currently finds itself in.
Just trying to live long enough to play a new, released MMORPG, playing New Worlds atm
Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV
Don't just play games, inhabit virtual worlds™
"This is the most intelligent, well qualified and articulate response to a post I have ever seen on these forums. It's a shame most people here won't have the attention span to read past the second line." - Anon
The problem with mobile gaming is that I don't want to be squinting at 5,6 or 7 inch screen. I'd much rather sit at my PC and play on a nice 24" widescreen any day. Then there's the controls. No touch screen can offer the control of a good keyb and mouse, or even a controller if you're a console peasant.
Mobile games, in my opinion, offer a completely inferior experience and aren't worth the time it takes to download them. It doesn't matter how many titles Blizzard bring out on mobile platforms, I won't be playing any of them.
The problem with mobile gaming is that I don't want to be squinting at 5,6 or 7 inch screen. I'd much rather sit at my PC and play on a nice 24" widescreen any day. Then there's the controls. No touch screen can offer the control of a good keyb and mouse, or even a controller if you're a console peasant.
Mobile games, in my opinion, offer a completely inferior experience and aren't worth the time it takes to download them. It doesn't matter how many titles Blizzard bring out on mobile platforms, I won't be playing any of them.
That is your problem. Not theirs.
It is a free world. They can, and they do, chase any audience they want. They have zero obligations to make games for you.
At the same time, you don't have to play Blizz games anymore.
I am not going to lose sleep of what Blizz is or is not going to do. If Diablo Immortal is fun (for me), i will play it. Otherwise, i won't. I highly doubt, even though i really like D3, i will have nothing to entertain me if Blizz does not make a new Diablo PC game.
The left out obvious niche to me was to create a good gaming phone with game controller form and console like games. Release a new one ever couple of years. I mean people already are spending 1k for phones ever year or two.
Xiaomi Black Shark comes close with the gamepad add on that has its own battery. Two gamepads if you get the larger memory Helo now.
The ASUS ROG phone might as well.
Yeah but they are not game developers though. I think PSP phone failure killed that type of project from being tried again. One of the problems with the PSP phone was it wasn't even as powerful as its counter parts.
The left out obvious niche to me was to create a good gaming phone with game controller form and console like games. Release a new one ever couple of years. I mean people already are spending 1k for phones ever year or two.
Xiaomi Black Shark comes close with the gamepad add on that has its own battery. Two gamepads if you get the larger memory Helo now.
The ASUS ROG phone might as well.
Yeah but they are not game developers though. I think PSP phone failure killed that type of project from being tried again. One of the problems with the PSP phone was it wasn't even as powerful as its counter parts.
Not comparable, at all.
The PSP Phone was rife with proprietary, Sony-exclusive stuff. Developers aren't going to target that, when they can just target Vanilla Android or iOS.
And that's exactly what happened, killing the PSP Phone :-P
It didn't help that Sony has very bad carrier support in markets like the US, as well. That made it very hard to get market penetration in some of the more affluent markets.
This phone was a long time ago, as well, IIRC. Hardware has advanced a ton since then, and the platforms themselves have advanced a ton since then. Android devices have Vulkan Support. iOS has Metal. VR Services are fairly standard on both of them. Mobile CPUs, GPUs, Storage, and RAM performance is an order of a magnitude higher now than it was when that PlayStation phone launched.
And, of course, the developers simply weren't there. In a way, the PSP Phone was ahead of its time. It arrived in a market that simply wasn't ready to accept it.
Would it be successful today? Probably not. Why would I buy a Proprietary PlayStation Gamer Phone when I can buy something else and play any Android games using platform-standard multiplayer and social services with any of my friends who have an Android phone?
I mean, that's just forcing yourself to deal with the current XB1/PS4 Cross Play issues all over again!
The problem with mobile gaming is that I don't want to be squinting at 5,6 or 7 inch screen. I'd much rather sit at my PC and play on a nice 24" widescreen any day. Then there's the controls. No touch screen can offer the control of a good keyb and mouse, or even a controller if you're a console peasant.
Mobile games, in my opinion, offer a completely inferior experience and aren't worth the time it takes to download them. It doesn't matter how many titles Blizzard bring out on mobile platforms, I won't be playing any of them.
You had me up until the second paragraph. There are some very good use cases for mobile gaming.
Edit: also, console peasant, wth? Is that like 'I wish I had a console'? Value isn't tied to one's choice of platform.
"The simple is the seal of the true and beauty is the splendor of truth" -Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar Authored 139 missions in VendettaOnline and 6 tracks in Distance
Comments
PC revenue = $29,000,000,000 USD
PC + console revenue = ~$63,000,000,000 USD
Exponential growth. The PC games nor console games had never been bigger in terms of number of users and revenue. Some of you guys are making it out as somehow this market is on the decline hence the developers have no choice but to move to mobile games. Yes PC/Console games cover a smaller percentage of the market - that's inevitable every time a new platform joins the game. And that new platform brings in whole new demographics and customers alongside with it, it's not like mobile gaming is in direct head-to-head competition with PC gaming or console gaming.
Now I can't say for sure what is happening inside Blizzard, no one here can. If it is a case of expansionism then more power to them. If it's a focus shift then fine, best of luck. But failing in a market is very different from a market failing you. To insist on the latter to justify the shift is just stupid.
So Blizzard is not about to becoming a mobile only gaming company, but some posters seem to think that means there is nothing to this story. This indicates the direction of travel gaming has been on for a decade, one where PC's and console are competing with mobile...and losing.
The values, expectations and demands of mobile players have already started to influence gaming, they are spending more than PC and console players together each year, mobile gaming accounts for over 75% of mobile revenue. The people who play these games are mostly not what we would think of as gamers, they only play mobile games and playing Candy Crush does not make you a gamer in my eyes. But gamers who do play smartphone games think that mobile players are like them. They are not.
Mobile gamers bring a beyond casual and beyond butterfly gamer approach to games. If you think that behaviour is fine, you have not seen anything yet. The ethos and design principles of mobile from gambling to log on for five minutes is going to influence all gaming.
We see players asking "why can't I log onto my MMO for half an hour and do something meaningful". Mobile players will be asking "why can't I log on for 5 minutes in my MMO and do something meaningful?" This is exacerbating some of the worse trends gaming has.
That's 2 console generations.
You are way out of the loop.
I actually played Asphalt with such a controller and it was tons of fun. They've nailed the multiplayer aspect better than some PC games to be honest. I can't even recall a multiplayer over the internet racing game these days. And here I am, racing on a 4G wireless connection.
as other pointed out mobile game are a huge cash market because they focus on one thing, low cost with plenty of ways to give you incentives to make them money. things like watching adds, play their gatcha or low cost packages that give you loads of items.
i read this fact today an it broke my heart, as it further proof that if/when mobile games becomes the industry leader nothing good will come from it.
" Pachinko Machines (mechanical games used for gambling) make Sega more money in Japan than game sales worldwide. "
so when dlc is no longer good money since everyone hated it and can avoid it easily, how do you make money for lower cost? hmmm, maybe mobile games? you know with those ads, gatcha, cheap optional packs you can buy to help cut down wait times or boost you up. of course maybe am wrong and am just resisting change and mobile games will become higher quality games with no adds, gatcha or cheap packs to nickel and dime us....right?
"Developing mobile games ate my soul"
"Why I stopped developing for mobile"
"Mobile games was not why I wanted to become a developer"
"How I regained my love for making games" (aka quitting mobile and going back to pc games)
And many more like that.. Go fact check it for yourself.
And why is that? I will say it again, it is because mobile games are not for gamers, it is for people who need to kill time. You don't design mobile games for excellent gameplay, you design them for lowest common denominator and spending pattern analysis and manipulation.
"I am my connectome" https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HA7GwKXfJB0
When you start adding peripheral devices to try and justify mobile gaming, it loses the single biggest boon the platform has. The vast majority of folks playing games like Jungle Run or Candy Crash have no interest in a game that requires them to buy another piece of equipment they aren't gonna be able to take with them like the phone itself.
Minecraft
The Banner Saga
Vendetta Online
Elder Scrolls Legends
This War of Mine
...all available on mobile. None of these are what I would consider "shallow". You are probably thinking more along the lines of titles like:
_PRISM
Desert Golfing
Prune
Angry Birds
...all of which are enjoyable in their own right.
...I'd also argue it's easier to watch a movie while playing on mobile than on PC?
You may be interested in a little technology by the name of Gear VR.
"The simple is the seal of the true and beauty is the splendor of truth" -Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar
Authored 139 missions in Vendetta Online and 6 tracks in Distance
"We all do the best we can based on life experience, point of view, and our ability to believe in ourselves." - Naropa "We don't see things as they are, we see them as we are." SR Covey
The left out obvious niche to me was to create a good gaming phone with game controller form and console like games. Release a new one ever couple of years. I mean people already are spending 1k for phones ever year or two.
Sincerely,
Blizzard"
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Mobile gaming is actually really good, and frankly the graphics aren't monumentally worse than a console (and in many cases, not worse at all). Much of that has little to do with the form factor, and more to do with the fact that Mobile has been the target of lower end games for a while. As more and more higher end games come to the platform, this will largely equalize.
Mobile platforms and hardware also evolve and improve much faster than Consoles, so that is in their favor.
Hooking a controller up to a Mobile device doesn't make it not mobile. The phone can basically dock into the controller the way a switch has controller attachments. Nintendo DS, Nintendo Switch and PlayStation Portable are mobile gaming platforms. They just run a different platform than Android and iOS devices, and have a slightly different form factor. The average Android/iOS flagship device is likely more powerful than a PSP, by a pretty big margin, these days. So, those platform are ripe and prepared for this.
I think PC gamers just feel threatened by these form factors, because they want to be the face of gaming...
However, this hasn't been the case for years, now. PC Gaming has only continued to be pushed as hard as it has been, because hardware companies like milking that market for profits; as they tend to buy expensive CPUs, GPUs, RAM, and other components/accessories... Once Razer brings peripheral support to Xbox One (and probably PS4, later) and more things start to shift... we'll see the marketing priorities shift, as well.
Consoles are bigger than PC gaming, and raking in more cash these days - even when you consider the "very debatable" numbers cited upthread.
That will not stop, as business models shift more towards MTX, In-App Purchases, DLCs and Seasons Passes, etc. and game companies reduce operating costs by not running their own services to duplicate PSN/XBL. We already see the start of this on PC with Steam, for example (which I don't use, cause I don't like all of my games tied to one account on this platform - among other oddities with it).
And I also agree (or think) that VR is probably going to take off on Mobile a lot better than it did on PC, due to system and hardware requirements (indirectly: costs) - along with the lack of fragmentation on mobile operating platforms for this tech (Both Google and Apple have first-party SDKs/APIs for this, instead of an amalgamation of solutions - all with their own hardware and software requirements - that exist on PC)...
By the time that happens, people may be so accustomed to Mobile Gaming that they wouldn't bat an eyelash.
But I'd reckon that they're more likely to bring this to console, assuming cross-play was available.
And it's not likely to "play like WoW," either (tab targeted, hotkey combat). Probably will be something closer to what ESO or GW2 is, as far as combat is concerned.
I'm getting a bit, of a distinct feeling that Blizzard isn't really interesting in staying in the MMORPG scene. They are trying to build eSports, and if they can do that successfully; they'd be more than happy winding WoW down or releasing a version that is... "basically just Arenas." With the pace of content clearing in WoW, and the constant gear resets, I don't personally see any point in playing it unless you do the PvP stuff, either. Anything else is just wasted time; even if it's just an entertainment medium.
I also think they are doing everything they can to distance themselves from their "toxic" legacy player communities. This is more blatant in their newer games, but it's certainly working its way backwards.
The Diablo community is probably the most toxic community they have, and must deal with. It would not surprise me if they were to cancel a Diablo 4 simply to drop those players, and simply focus on a different market altogether.
The ASUS ROG phone might as well.
Oh well, hindsight is 20/20 and few could have predicted the state the MMORPG genre currently finds itself in.
"True friends stab you in the front." | Oscar Wilde
"I need to finish" - Christian Wolff: The Accountant
Just trying to live long enough to play a new, released MMORPG, playing New Worlds atm
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Don't just play games, inhabit virtual worlds™
"This is the most intelligent, well qualified and articulate response to a post I have ever seen on these forums. It's a shame most people here won't have the attention span to read past the second line." - Anon
It is a free world. They can, and they do, chase any audience they want. They have zero obligations to make games for you.
At the same time, you don't have to play Blizz games anymore.
I am not going to lose sleep of what Blizz is or is not going to do. If Diablo Immortal is fun (for me), i will play it. Otherwise, i won't. I highly doubt, even though i really like D3, i will have nothing to entertain me if Blizz does not make a new Diablo PC game.
The PSP Phone was rife with proprietary, Sony-exclusive stuff. Developers aren't going to target that, when they can just target Vanilla Android or iOS.
And that's exactly what happened, killing the PSP Phone :-P
It didn't help that Sony has very bad carrier support in markets like the US, as well. That made it very hard to get market penetration in some of the more affluent markets.
This phone was a long time ago, as well, IIRC. Hardware has advanced a ton since then, and the platforms themselves have advanced a ton since then. Android devices have Vulkan Support. iOS has Metal. VR Services are fairly standard on both of them. Mobile CPUs, GPUs, Storage, and RAM performance is an order of a magnitude higher now than it was when that PlayStation phone launched.
And, of course, the developers simply weren't there. In a way, the PSP Phone was ahead of its time. It arrived in a market that simply wasn't ready to accept it.
Would it be successful today? Probably not. Why would I buy a Proprietary PlayStation Gamer Phone when I can buy something else and play any Android games using platform-standard multiplayer and social services with any of my friends who have an Android phone?
I mean, that's just forcing yourself to deal with the current XB1/PS4 Cross Play issues all over again!
Edit: also, console peasant, wth? Is that like 'I wish I had a console'? Value isn't tied to one's choice of platform.
"The simple is the seal of the true and beauty is the splendor of truth" -Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar
Authored 139 missions in Vendetta Online and 6 tracks in Distance