Are iPod games worth the time?

[Fraser]

Well, are they?

The quality bar is quite high granted but with so many other solutions for playing games on the move is there space for iPod gaming especially when there are so few titles.

And then there is that awkward control scheme to consider, surely even mobiles can lay claim to a better interface method for gaming than the iPod.

Or is it all a sea of untapped potential, should Guitar Hero, Tower Bloxx and other high profile licenses get ports.

Let us know in the usual way.

[oshada4763]

Well, as an iPod Touch owner, I've been really disappointed with the lack of native games for the Touch. The surfeit of webgames doesn't really make up for it. But it'll be interesting to see how game developers, especially Activision (now Activision Blizzard), face the challenge of developing original games for the multi-touch screen. The prospect of Guitar Hero on the Touch...

All I can do is wait, and dream.

[Fraser]

Not long now oshada4763, the iPhone/iPod Touch SDK is set to ship to third parties this month. All that is left to discover is how Apple controls the content. It seems likely at least that stuff will be delivered via iTunes but here's hoping it is a torrent rather than a drip feed.

[oshada4763]

The SDK javascript:emoticon(':D') was incredibly good news. And your comment is true, Apple needs to control the deluge of user-generated content sensibly. By the way, I didn't mention that I was living in Sri Lanka. The iTunes Store is not officially supported in Sri Lanka, which is quite ridiculous, considering that we have Apple Authorized Resellers. So even if Guitar Hero is finally developed, how can I access it? Or can I use the iTunes Store even if it's not officially supported?

[SetsFireToPoshHammer]

I think it is safe to assume that if and when iPod Touch/iPhone games get off the ground (on the back of the SDK shipping to third parties) that the games will be delivered via iTunes which is a bummer for folks like yourself oshada. The up-side for people who do have access to iTunes is that hopefully there will be loads of them available.

As for the more traditional iPods and their games I have to say I have been pleasantly surprised. Granted the click wheel isn't ideal for some games (Sonic the Hedgehog being one of the most notable examples) but for titles like Zuma and iQuiz its perfect.

What's even better is that despite annoying control niggles, the games always seem to be polished to the max. If Apple maintain a tight hold on what appears on the iPod via iTunes, it might really be a good thing. The last thing we want is the platform becoming a shovelware repository.

[Accelorata Jengold]

I don't know. I mean, I understand why people want games on something like the iPhone. It has the scope for some decent controls, it has wifi and some pretty powerful guts. More importantly is is something that you are likely to have with you all of the time. I am less convinced however about the Nano and the Classic.

If I am out and about I don't always have my iPod with me and even if I did, the first place I turn to game when I haven't thought to bring my DS is my phone. It's not like I am against iPod gaming but I just don't know if it's worth shoehorning titles onto a platform that just isn't suited to most genres, especially when chances are you have a better gaming solution in your pocket most of the time anyway (i.e. your phone).

[deannali]

How can I successfully sync my ipod on two computers? In the past, I've plugged in my ipod on the primary computer and another computer in my house. Both had itunes installed. However, whenever I plugged my ipod into the second computer, the files were erased off my ipod. Therefore, I had to plug it into the primary computer to retrieve the files again. So, how can I save the same files on both computers without running the risk of deleted files?
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[Fraser]

I'm not sure but I think you can only sync one device per one iTunes account. As in, you can't have multiple iTunes accounts synced with one device simultaneously. It should be possible to share all of your iTunes music across two computers and run the same iTunes account on both however, which would mean you could use the same iPod with both machines without the hassle of constantly erasing and re-adding stuff to your portable device.

Where is your music saved? On your computer's hard drive? If so, you could look into getting a wireless hard drive that serves your music to both machines. Are the machines both in the same place, or is this a work computer/home computer situation? To be honest, this is about the limit of my knowledge on the subject. You might be able to do something clever with iDisk/Mobile Me in terms of saving all your music in one place for accessing on two machines running the same iTunes account, but I'm really not sure.

Wish I could be more helpful...

[luo717ge]

if the ipod can really provide unique and exciting games ,i think it is worth....