iphone has awesome games - why doesn't android?

[OM2]

someone showed me their iphone
I have to admit, my jaw dropped and I was drooling when I saw some of their games
(i would that all games were freebie versions)

question: why does the android platform not have games that are as good??

I remember seeing one games, I think it was called scooter - the whole damn screen moved as u mived the iphone left and right

I only played for a minute - but it looked damn awesome

why dont we have as good games!

the persons phone: heck, it was only an iphone 3g - so u cant say it was better hardware or anything

angry birds - I like - apart from that, I haven't seen any games I would even rate
(ok, so angry birds is just worms game reinvented - but the subtle use of great graphics make it brilliant)

important: I have an x10 mini pro which is STILL running android 1.6 - is this the reason why?

are there better games on 2.1 and 2.2?

or is it to do with the fact that there are better developers for the iphone?

thanks


om

 

[hydralisk]

You will see more apps in the market with a phone running 2.1-2.2 but there is really an obvious answer to your question.

Developers aren't making games for android.

There are a metric **** ton of reasons.

Android is fragmented like CRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAZY.
iOS games will likely run on the 2 latest iPhones (3GS and 4). Easy to develop for.
Game devs might be more comfortable with object C than java.
Android market is very, very bad. Doesn't expose apps too well.
Android isn't as profitable. Good games get downloaded on iOS more.
Apple partners up with big developers. Google doesn't.

The list goes on. In the long run, you'll find that iOS has the best games. Windows Phone 7 will likely be in the middle, and Android will probably have the weakest game showcase of them all.

 

[bbrosen]

Also lots of phones have limited memory...when you only have 156 mb of room to run apps, os etc etc it is not much room to build good games, graphics, music etc all take lots of space. Only the newer phones have the internal storage. bad design really, it is changing but very slowly and unevenly. It made a slow start even slower imho. there will always be some level of fragmentation, if not os wise then hardware wise as so many manufacturers are in the android game. Part of being open source really, to me it has it drawbacks but also it good points.....Im still not happy with android, but im stuck using it for now due to work. It has gotten better, ill admit it, but it comes unevenly and in fits and starts.

 

[strategy]

(i would that all games were freebie versions)

There's your reason. None of the rest actually matter.

 

[DroidGames]

First reason is that only 30% of apps downloaded on androids are paid apps, vs over 50% on the iphone, so iphone development is more commercially viable. Second problem is bootlegging, it's much much easier to bootleg android apps. Third problem is fragmentation, there are too many different android versions and devices with different parameters which makes developing for it a little bit more difficult.

 

[Gexas]

and Android will probably have the weakest game showcase of them all.

i have to disagree with that, I have x10 mini pro only for two days, but I can say that games are awesome in comparison with symbian os

 

[Intruder]

i have to disagree with that, I have x10 mini pro only for two days, but I can say that games are awesome in comparison with symbian os

Who mentioned symbian iphone's dont run that....

 

[hydralisk]

i have to disagree with that, I have x10 mini pro only for two days, but I can say that games are awesome in comparison with symbian os

I'm talking about android, iOS and WP7..... smartass

 

[prerunnerseth]

The biggest reason is because the android platform hasn't fully attracted a lot of the experiences game dev houses. This is changing as the popularity of android is growing rapidly. We have seen some major improvements with games like angry birds, pocket legends, the gamevil games, and the EA games. Being stuck on 1.6 is a major problem. Most the good games require 2.0+. Fragmentation isnt as big a deal as others portray it. Most handsets are on 2.0+. Unfortunately the lower end handsets are getting left behind because of their weaker performance and will likely never see 2.0 without rooting.

 

[Elisheba]

"Tesla Toy" is a cool game for Iphone.
I hope in the future this game will be available on Android.
Or at least something similar.

 

[Shocky]

If Apple ever release a phone with 4" - 4.5" screen and proper screen ratio to match I'll buy one.

 

[Rob_A]

I don't know what market you guys are looking at but I have a ton of Awesome games on my android phone

 

[j0hnh0lmes]

I don't know what market you guys are looking at but I have a ton of Awesome games on my android phone

Agreed. I have probably 2-3 pages (screens) full of games. You are just way too picky and/or cheap. Try out some games even if the name sounds dumb. Alot are awesome. Hell I have probably 4 different tower defenses alone. All of them are different and all of them are fun in their own way.

 

[Elisheba]

j0hnh0lmes, I think it is rude to say that people are cheap.

 

[Bnice]

Android have some good games out there. Go to gameloft and you can get quality games.I agree that some are frugal when it comes to buying apps on Android, you read their comments on some of the reviews and most want it for free.Don't you buy games for your Wii,PS3, and xbox? so why should it be other wise for your phone.

 

[glockjs]

tbh i haven't really searched for many games on droid due to the emulators...i've had the roms for ages and played em on anything from pc, dreamcast, and pda....that's all i've ever needed. the greatest games that were ever made imo were on snes, genesis and nes :/

 

[VentureForth]

Are there any RPG or MMORPG games out there for Android? There was a rumor a couple years ago that WOW would come out with an app, but I haven't seen anything yet.

I really hope to see X-Plane some day.

Not up to date on the programming issues, but I understand you can't port from iOS to Android like you can Mac - PC or other platforms. These typically require a total rewrite. When there are 10x more iPhones (and don't forget iPod Touches) out there and folks are paying money for the games, a developer will probably lean towards iPhone before Android.

It will be interesting to see if the Windoze phones take off...

 

[Palmetto Fellow]

j0hnh0lmes, I think it is rude to say that people are cheap.

How about poor?

Cheap sounds better than poor to me.

Of course, frugal is probably the most PC and polite term to use.

 

[Essex]

@OP: I think the simple answer to your query (why does iOS have better games than Android) is that it is probably more lucrative for a developer to make games for iOS. Despite Android's rise in 2010, the iPhone is still the best-selling phone. Since it generally costs more to own an iPhone than an Android device, perhaps iPhone users are more affluent than the typical Android user and are thus, more willing to spend money on app games...

As Android gamers, we can influence the types of games that get released to Android by:

(1) sending a brief and polite email to the developer of an iOS game that you would like to see their game(s) on Android. This is tangible proof to a developer that there is some interest in an Android port of their iOS game(s); and

(2) We (Android gamers) need to actually PAY for our favorite games. I will refrain from calling other people "cheap" or "poor", as we are in the midst of a global recession and how folks choose to spend their money is none of my business. But, the best way for us to send a message to developers that Android makes good business sense is to pay for full versions of games. I know this isn't what some people want to hear but it is the simple economic truth. We control the "demand" side of the supply-and-demand equation...

Google, on the other hand, MUST update the Market to include better search filters. I should be able to search for "Highest Rated" free and paid games instead of "Most Popular". There are plenty of highly rated games that aren't "popular" that get buried in the Market. Google must address the piss-poor search function currently provided in the Market. Also, Google needs to allow users to write more detailed reviews in the Market (like iTunes), as well as the ability to uprank and downrank reviews. (Android 2.2 has this feature, but as far as I can tell, downranking a review has no discernible effect.)

Additionally, Google must continue the Nexus line of phones and encourage manufactures to produce phones with comparable specs. Basically, the Android superphones of a given year should all have specs comparable to the latest Nexus phone. The less variation between the specs of high end Android phones will probably make it easier to develop for the platform.

 

[PinkMirrorKirby]

iPhone has more games because of 3 simple reasons:

1. OVERRATED!
2. OVERHYPED!
3. (Seriously) App Store had a head-start compared to Android Market, Apple persuade (possibly blackmail) companies to develop games ONLY for their platform.

 

[T.M.M.L]

People seem to forget that for all sakes and purposes, Android is still in its intfancy stage, well maybe terrible two's. Apple has had a long time to iron out a lot of its kinks and problems. The fact that they only have a few select models also plays to their advantage. Even with being able to look and see what your competitors are doing, creating the whole Android infrastructure from the ground up, is a monumental task.

Given time, hopefully google can smooth out the wrinkles and polish this incredible system so that your question will become a moot subject. That's if we can get the wireless company's here in America to quit putting their own spin on the operating system.

"Good luck with that one"

 

[grainysand]

important: I have an x10 mini pro which is STILL running android 1.6 - is this the reason why?

are there better games on 2.1 and 2.2?

Yes and yes. The X10 mini is a mediocre, low-end piece of crap with worthless specs and an outdated OS. I'm not sure how Sony Ericsson managed to flog even ten units of that shit and I'm very sorry you were sucked into getting one. On phones with Snapdragon chips or better, particularly with 2.2, you've got:

The Gameloft Catalogue (NOVA, Modern Combat: Sandstorm, Avatar, Assassin's Creed, Asphalt 5, Dungeon Hunter, Hero of Sparta, Let's Golf. 12 titles in total)
Pocket Legends BETA (3D MMO) - Android app on AppBrain
ExZeus Arcade - Android app on AppBrain
Castle Warriors - Android app on AppBrain
Raging Thunder 2 - Android app on AppBrain
HEAVY GUNNER 3D - Android app on AppBrain

Oh, and Need for Speed: Shift and The Sims 3 HD. Last but not least, PSX4Droid. If it helps, your phone can run none of them. Research specs next time, eh? But hey, you can probably manage Angry Birds and Zenonia. If that pathetic 240x320 resolution can even display them properly.

Also lots of phones have limited memory...when you only have 156 mb of room to run apps, os etc etc it is not much room to build good games, graphics, music etc all take lots of space. Only the newer phones have the internal storage. bad design really, it is changing but very slowly and unevenly. It made a slow start even slower imho. there will always be some level of fragmentation, if not os wise then hardware wise as so many manufacturers are in the android game. Part of being open source really, to me it has it drawbacks but also it good points.....Im still not happy with android, but im stuck using it for now due to work. It has gotten better, ill admit it, but it comes unevenly and in fits and starts.

Large games put their data on the sdcard and Froyo comes with built-in apps2sd, dun dun dun. You've still got a Hero, haven't you? Even if it had 9000 GB of internal storage, it'd still not run graphics-intensive games anyway. Also, know what else "suffers" from hardware fragmentation? That's right--desktop PCs! Strangely enough, that doesn't seem to hinder PC gaming any and PC games continue to make console graphics look like 3D vomit.

 

[Palmetto Fellow]

People seem to forget that for all sakes and purposes, Android is still in its intfancy stage, well maybe terrible two's. Apple has had a long time to iron out a lot of its kinks and problems. The fact that they only have a few select models also plays to their advantage. Even with being able to look and see what your competitors are doing, creating the whole Android infrastructure from the ground up, is a monumental task.

Given time, hopefully google can smooth out the wrinkles and polish this incredible system so that your question will become a moot subject. That's if we can get the wireless company's here in America to quit putting their own spin on the operating system.

"Good luck with that one"

I think that standardized hardware to some degree will help out. I know it goes against the whole OPEN notion...but without it, you will never get the accessory makers getting on board 100%. I saw at least 15 dockable iPod alarm clocks and mini sound systems at Best Buy. I have a workaround though...it's called Bluetooth A2DP.

I didn't see ONE damn speaker device that supported Bluetooth A2DP. What the hell!?!?!

So I guess I'll order online.

 

[nomadic]

If it helps, your phone can run none of them. Research specs next time, eh?

That's not the easiest thing to do. I have the Hero and that thing can do Raging Thunder and Homerun Battle 3D just fine, but can't play Angry Birds for crap.

Not only that, but the market doesn't do a good job of describing just what kind of phone specs the game requires.

What irritates me is that games don't have to have XBOX-like graphics to be good, but most of the better game developers are focusing on exploiting the latest phone hardware, leaving people with older phones no other good and new options even though their phones might decently handle a less graphically intensive game.

 

[PinkMirrorKirby]

I have a HTC Aria and I could run most games perfectly (some 3D games work too).