[IGDA Mobile-SIG List] Flash Mobile? (was user ping request)

[Matt Benic]

Imagine-we'd have games of the quality of Alien Hominid hitting the market.
Wouldn't that be just terrible ;)

I think the 'flooding' will depend on how these titles are distributed. To
be honest, while the 'flooding' is seen by many as a bad thing, I think it's
great, it gives small developers (who can afford to try new things) a
chance, while the current publishing model for PC and Console games cuts
that possibility out entirely (even on XBLA). I know the question of quality
always pops up in the mobile flooding conversation, but I don't see how
bigger development houses and publishers have been much good in increasing
quality anyway. In the end distributors happily plug incompatible games to
players, and this happens just as much with high-profile, bigger budget
titles as it does with the little titles.

Also, flash developers are.. different. We are used to separating the
artist/programmer role, but in my experience that line is far more blurred
when it comes to flash. In a way this is great, as you end up with less of
the age-old artist vs programmer clashes ;)

Matt

 

5DT
Fifth Dimension Technologies
Matt Benic
Tel. +27 (0)12 349 2690
Fax. +27 (0)12 349 1404
matt.benic at 5dt.com
www.5DT.com

-----Original Message-----
From: mobile_games-bounces at igda.org [mailto:mobile_games-bounces at igda.org]
On Behalf Of miikka.lyytikainen at aniway.fi
Sent: 16 March 2006 05:30 PM
To: Mobile Game Development SIG Mailing List
Subject: RE: [IGDA Mobile-SIG List] Flash Mobile? (was user ping request)

Hi Matt,

> I come from a console development background, so I'm by no means saying
> the
> amount of code work needs to be minimal-but I just find that mobile dev in
> Java involves a MUCH higher proportion of development time to art time
> than
> in those environments. I also find that real code reusability is a lot
> more
> difficult to achieve on mobiles than on console/PC game development. Now
> coming in at a higher level with a tool like flash, I think that _could_
> be
> less of a problem.

Agree.
Actually, the Flash Actionscript 2 is very similar to the syntax of the
Java/J2ME, and it is object oriented (using classes). One is able to use
some of the same codebase for the J2ME and Flash Lite development.



> Agreed on the profitability, I think that's something we all look to :) I
> just think that a rapid dev solution like flash could (if implemented
> properly) do away with some of the expensive, time consuming issues
> associated with mobile Java in it's current form-one of which is that high
> proportion of coding to asset generation.
>
> I also agree with you 100% that _for now_ java is the way to go; however I
> want to look forward as well. Flash has proved exceptionally well suited
> to
> the casual PC market, and I still see a far bigger future for casual games
> on mobiles than ports of console franchises (2D or 3D).

Also agree, J2ME is the tool to make games for masses in the western
countries - for now. Flash Lite can´t do all the things J2ME can, and vice
versa. Both casual and hardcore games are needed, casual has obviously a
bigger potential. One of the risks with rapid development tool like Flash
Lite is flooding the market, as we have already seen in the J2ME market.
Imagine when the 1-2 million existing Flash developers get a hold of the
mobile Flash... ;)

Cheers,
Miikka


__________________
Miikka Lyytikäinen
CEO
Aniway
Karjalankatu 2 A
FI-00520 HELSINKI
FINLAND
http://www.aniway.com





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