Kevin Bostic
Google Play-hosted games have moved into the second place spot behind iOS games in terms of revenue generated, putting the digital store ahead dedicated portable game consoles from both Nintendo and Sony.
The revenue jump happened over the past quarter, according to app industry analyst App Annie. The firm's latest Portable Gaming Report found that revenue from dedicated portable gaming devices dropped year-over-year, while revenue for Google's Play Store and iOS App Store games continued to rise.
Consumer spending on games for iOS and Android is now four times the revenue seen by dedicated gaming handhelds.
The latest figures mark the continuation of a trend that began with the debut of Apple's iOS App Store. As smartphones grow in power and popularity, it is increasingly difficult for many consumers to justify the cost of a dedicated gaming handheld.
With 225,000 units sold in July, Nintendo's 3DS was the bestselling gaming console for that month in the United States. It must compete, though, with millions of iOS and Android devices being sold in the same time span. Those devices are also often easier to develop games for, and the titles are sold at a lower price.
The pace at which mobile gaming is outstripping the traditional portable gaming may well be accelerating. A App Annie study from May found iOS and Android gaming revenue to be only three times greater than dedicated portable consoles.
Traditional game makers have taken notice of trends in the industry. Sony cut the price of its PS Vita in Japan earlier this year, and just this week the Japanese electronics giant announced that the portable would be available for $199. Nintendo, meanwhile, has taken to courting developers in hopes of bringing some of the best selling mobile OS games over to its touch-capable Wii U and portable 3DS.
Malcolm Owen
Christine McKee
Amber Neely
19 Comments
Just wait. Remember WWDC? iOS 7 now has added support for gaming controllers. They also had a session on controllers and showed a couple reference designs for things like a snap-in controller you put your phone into. They also added a new framework for hardware accelerated animation.
If Logitech (or others) have a good gaming controller out when the new iPhone is announced then it will be game over for Nintendo. There will be no more excuses as to why gaming "sucks" on a touchscreen.
This reminded me of Amazon's kindle, Amazon don't break out the numbers so the analysts made guesses. Now it is google's turn, a research firm has to guess how much they are making in google play. Well I guess it is just a guessing game when Apple is not concerned.
[quote name="EricTheHalfBee" url="/t/159158/google-play-gaming-revenue-moves-ahead-of-sony-and-nintendo-portables-still-trails-apple#post_2383586"]Just wait. Remember WWDC? iOS 7 now has added support for gaming controllers. They also had a session on controllers and showed a couple reference designs for things like a snap-in controller you put your phone into. They also added a new framework for hardware accelerated animation. If Logitech (or others) have a good gaming controller out when the new iPhone is announced then it will be game over for Nintendo. There will be no more excuses as to why gaming "sucks" on a touchscreen. [/quote] My son uses his Xbox controller with one of his games on the Nexus 7. EDIT: He said the game is Shadowlands but there's a couple of other games he's used it with too. So I agree it won't be long before the dedicated game systems loose much of their advantage. Edit2: There's actually a pretty long list of games that can make use of Xbox/PS3 controllers. I imagine there's quite a few for iOS too. Apparently there's just not a search category in the app stores to figure out which ones they are. http://www.droidgamers.com/index.php/game-news/android-game-news/5992-like-using-a-controller-here-s-a-huge-list-of-games-you-can-play
I guess all those free Android games add up to make revenue if there's enough of them...?
EDIT: He said the game is Shadowlands but there's a couple of other games he's used it with too. So I agree it won't be long before the dedicated game systems loose much of their advantage.
I disagree. With the next generation gaming consoles coming out in November, they will continue to be very far ahead of portable gaming. Portable gaming can't handle games such as Battlefield 4, FIFA 14, even current generation like The Last of Us. Having said that, I am looking forward to the future of portable gaming, especially guessing what Apple has in store. With iOS7 having support for gaming controllers and the future of Apple TV, things are looking great for gamers on all platforms.