N-Gage Is Doomed
Nokia’s new N-Gage platform is just as doomed as the first attempt. Yes, that’s right. That’s my honest opinion. However, that’s not to say it can’t still be saved. It’s early in the game (pun partially intended) and I think something can still be done.
There are two main reasons that I say it’s doomed, with one weighing a bit heavier than the other. The first reason is due to pricing. $11-13.50 is simply outrageous for a mobile game. I realize it’s different in other countries, but that’s still a handful of dollars over other mobile games. Yes, I know what you’re thinking, ‘but N-Gage is supposed to be better than other mobile games. It offers more.’
Which brings me to my second point – it doesn’t. There simply aren’t any benefits to buying an N-Gage game over any other game, as far as I can tell. This is the bigger reason, though, and so I want to camp out on this one for a moment. There are several reasons that N-Gage says its better than other mobile games, and I think there’s some real potential here.
Discovery/availability – the ability to download games right to your phone is negated by the 8-9 different icons in my Download! application under ‘Games’ (and the rather glaring lack of the N-Gage icon – I had to hunt down the mobile site) on my N95-3. So Nokia themselves have made it just as simple to get a non-N-Gage game directly on your device. Add to this that most consumers likely hit up their carriers’ deck, and you’ve lost that completely.
So, where are non-N-Gage games and N-Gage games similar or the same? Well, currently, both are limited to being used on the specific device that you buy the game for – based on IMEI. Sure, Nokia says this will change for N-Gage, but why should it take so long? Obviously it’s important to consumers, why doesn’t it feel important to Nokia? Also, with both platforms, once you format your phone or update the firmware, you’re back at Level 1. There’s no way to save your progress and store it online or anything.
The experience is also the same when you consider multiplayer/online aspects. With all of its current N-Gage-capable handsets sporting WiFi or 3G connectivity, it’s a bit embarrassing that the only online interaction you get from N-Gage is basically global rankings, with one or two exceptions. There’s no mobile access to the N-Gage forums through the application, which would at least offer *some* sort of online community.
So, thus far, the only benefit of N-Gage vs non-N-Gage gaming is what? The supposed quality of the games? Is that really worth an extra $4 per game, or more? Is it really all that apparent to most mobile gamers?
Right, so here are my suggestions for saving the second iteration of N-Gage from certain doom (in order of importance):
1. Pricing – either drop the price a bit, or prove to us that the price difference is justifiable.
2. Enhance the online – with WiFi and 3G connections, there *has* to be some better online uses than simple rankings. At least customise the rankings so that they’re relevant to me (among just my friends, for instance). Use the online to backup gaming records, or to change my currently registered device, by IMEI.
3. Enhance the interactivity – mobilize the entire N-Gage experience – blog, forums, everything. Anything related to N-Gage should be available on my phone, directly through the app. Also, use the online feature to alert me to tournaments and the like. You already know what games I have installed, why not, when I connect to N-Gage, let me know when the next tournament for my games is coming, and allow me to easily add that to my phone’s calendar, so I can set a reminder to get back online. You need to be reaching out to me to encourage me to game, not just hoping I’ll remember to boot the app occasionally.
4. Enhance availability – Currently only a handful of Nseries handsets are supported. It’s high-time you add to the collection. Put any resources you can towards getting the N73 supported, and even a few *gasp* Eseries devices. More importantly, for the devices that are currently supported, remove that silly N-Gage preview and stick the new installer in the Download! app. And make it so that when I install the full N-Gage, it automatically removes the preview. I should be able to get the N-Gage installer *everywhere*.
5. Enhance the ‘cool’ factor – Get exclusive games, or at least an exclusive introductory period. I.e. ‘Gameloft’s new Dark Knight game is available now for Nokia N-Gage, with other platforms coming available in three months’. If you can’t get the entire thing exclusive, settle for the introduction period.
These are just a few suggestions. I have no doubt that there’s an entire team of N-Gage people out there working their backsides off to make this one stick, and they’re doing ok. I wish I could say better than that, but I can’t. I bought the new Snakes (against my better judgement of paying for Snakes) for my N82, and it’s now useless to me cause I’m back on my N95-3.
With games making a huge splash on……other platforms…….it’s high time that N-Gage gets shifted into high gear, to avoid getting overshadowed and falling back into taco-talk territory.
Krisse from AllAboutSymbian stated in a previous comment here on Symbian-Guru:
I know people talk about N-Gage games helping to sell S60 phones, but I honestly don’t think many people buy a phone for its games. IMHO phone games are the equivalent of a hotel minibar, there to tempt you to spend a little more after you’ve already booked the room. For most people, games are part of a package rather than a main feature.
Is that how Nokia really wanted N-Gage to be seen?
Agree
When is the DARK NIGHT coming to N-Gage?
Yeah i totally agree….and get N73 supported already….damn.
What can I say?
You’ve written (as usual) a very detailed analysis of the situation for the current N-gage.
There was however some exclusivity to it when they launched the service for the N81 users, whereas we other users tended to hacked solutions. Most of us even got an activation for Mile High Pinball (in which case now I’ve got two).
Putting that introductory period of the N-gage service aside. There really haven’t been any neat surprises.
I do know about gaming tournaments and events and such, but (very very) rarely do I go the the ngage website other than to check if new games have arrived. Leading to your point about the integration with notification on the calendar.
Please not that this information below can be faulty
I’m not 100% sure but I think I saw something about the games being tied to the simcard. (It could have been that the word “simcard” was mentioned because I paid that way).
If that’s the case then they’ve changed their license system a bit from before.
excellent post. totally agree.
I agree 97%. The only part from the above that differs from my experience is that the N-gage application was easy to find on my N82. I like the ease of browsing for and trying new games. I have not bought any yet, primarily due to the price. I think $9.95 would be the upper limit of what I pay for a game especially if it is stuck to a specific IMEI. $7.95 would be a more reasonable price and I would probably have purchased two or three games by now. As it stands, I have five demos and no full versions on my phone.
@Kevin – Was the N-Gage app on your N82 the *actual* app, or was it the preview that required you to still download the full app? And what did you do with the preview icon once you’d installed the full version?
I tried N-Gage on my N95 last week. The #1 selling game was Tetris!? It looked like about half the games were available non-N-Gage, and the one I grabbed a demo of looked exactly like the N-Gage version demo. Dead-nutz on about network gaming. I read the N-Gage API is different from the normal S60 API, and judging by the games available (EA, Nokia, etc), it’s (at least partially) for gate-keeping. I guess we should expect to see Petz, Petz 2008, Petz 2009, Petz 2010. :( More developers, and get some indies… anyone seen what’s available via WiiWare? As long as someone controls quality Indies are great (WiiWare), when they don’t it’s a disaster (iPhone).
Agree with you in terms of availability. But I think, the quality of games will gradually evolve with time, as pointed out in an article in All About Symbian/N-Gage (e.g. Asphalt 4 will probably have Bluetooth multiplayer, the recently released Symbian version of Asphalt 4 has it.). Personally, I feel that the biggest problem for N-Gage is Nokia’s policy, which is so stupid, Nintendo and Sony and even those on streets can’t help laughing.
Here are my rants over N-Gage http://www.allaboutsymbian.com/forum/showpost.php?p=382781&postcount=10
Well here’s a breaking news for y’all: I backed up my phone, reformatted it, and then restored everything. Almost all non-N-gage games had preserved my progress – but not N-gage!!!
Also I need to mention somethings that reviewers keep ignoring. The app is slow. As in SLOW. On my N82, which has no shortage of RAM, it launches in 5-6 seconds with the screen blinkin in and out in a scary manner. Once there, click on a game, and wrie off another 10-15 seconds.
Even JAVA games are faster to launch. Yes I know they are kick-ass 3D games. But guess what: Gameloft has a whole new line of ‘HD’games, i.e. games like Asphalt and Assasin’s Creed in full, glorious, high FPS 3D. And all they need to launch is a click rather than multiple hoops that N-gage requires.
The whole N-gage platform is proving to be a hindrance rather than a convenience. Why can’t I have a shortcut to FIFA 08 N-gage on my standby? Why do tiny games like Brain Age take ages to load? Whats the point of the whole N-gage interface if it essentially adds nothing to the gaming experience?
Why do most N-gage games on N82 (equipped with ASR, mind) play in portrait while the same games play in landscape on non-Accelerometer-equipped N81?
And lastly, why limit the platform to N-series only? Shouldn’t it become a selling point for S60 rather than a niche within a niche?
The list goes on and on. Assasins Creed HD by Gameloft is better than anything offered by N-Gage (with the exception of COtD) and cheaper at $4.00. They should better fix or they are doomed to oblivion.
PS: Brilliant work, Gameloft
i agree with some points but not the point about they offer no more than a standard mobile game.
they are full of extra features what a norml game does’nt have
@ donutty,
What are the extra features in N-Gage games except rankings and multiplayer in a VERY few games? If you talk about rankings, why would I bother to know that I am the 2427th best player of a game? And the multiplayer available in N-Gage games is generally online, which can’t be played at all places (like India – no 3G here, Wi-Fi hotspots are next to absent). If the games featured Bluetooth multiplayer, that could have made a difference. And if you mean the N-Gage point pickups, well, they are buggy. Often they are not registered for tasks one has completed. Add to that a handful of bugs in the application itself, and N-Gage is nothing better. In fact, whenever I start playing any N-Gage game, I fear of losing my progress, as the application (mind it, not the game) can exit randomly, therefore wiping out my last 10-15 mins of gameplay. Yeah, you get this headache as extra with N-Gage, no doubt about that.
@Donutty
I agree with Sandy..where are the extra features??
it’s not nokia’s fault your country is slow on getting 3g and wifi hotspot to support the devices.
a few of the games what Nokia have had direct involvmrent in are packed with much more than a normal 2MG sis game.
MHP,PSG,COTD are all much better than a normal game packed with various modes,online features ,rankings,and NGP and are all a lot longer and more playable
It’s the dam 3rd party port’s what are the big let down and way over priced
we are charged more than double the price of the identical non N-gage version’s
so i agree in a big way 90% of titles have been the biggest let down ever.
It’s still early and there is a long way to go but this summer is big for N-gage with a lot of the big names due to be released and if they don’t live upto the hype nokia have created around them then it could all be downhill like the N-gage of old
I hope they suceed but they have got to start convining us it’s worth it
You see guy’s i do agree with almost everthing
just that 2 or 3 games stand out and deserve better
if that standard was met with all game’s then N-gage would be onto a winner but sadly that standard will not be met
Oh i have to mention that i think the games and APP must of been tested by monkey’s and when playing it’s like i’m testing beta versions
the amout of errors in app & games is unreal and should’nt be expected in full releases.
well, i’d only like to comment on one part: the price. because, i think it’s quite ridiculous how ppl are complaining about it. i live in hungary (go look up economy and prices here if u wish), bein a student with little to no income yet. and i can honestly say the only part of pricing was how they put an “equal to” signs between usd eur, cuz that IS rather unreal; but, i never ever complained about the prices themselves. and yes, i do have four games downloaded and paid for. i swear its like vista’s requirements all over again: everyone’s running around with c2d cpus, at least 2 gigs of ram and 8800 vgas, and they complain about how high the system reqs are, when their rig is more than totally able to run everything fine?… gimme a break please. it’s simply ridiculous.
on a sidenote: idk how the n-gage icon was missing from an n95-3, cuz it was already in the PREVIOUS firmware (yes, demo only, but still) of my N95-1. in any case, get to n-gage.com and download the damn app instead of whining?…
Excuse me, reality check:
1) Its not Nokia’s fault that ’some countries’ are slow on the 3G uptake? Right. I am about to petition my government to lay down a billion dollars so that I can compare rankings with a guy in Peurto Rico.
Well, news: Bluetooth works in every country in the world, and is faster than normal EDGE connections. In 1997 I could play Need for Speed II via phone with a friend. So 3G is not essential for multiplayer.
2) “Extras”? How many times have we even LOOKED at anything besides ‘instant play’ option in main menus of N-gage games? If the core game sucks or is just ho-hum, NOTHING can save it.
3) How do you guys explain the HD lineup of Gameloft? Does it require a stupid, buggy app to run? No.
4) Price: Well some of us might not complain, but I sure am. It is my decision how much I want to pay for a mobile game, and for most people that won’t amount to much.
I agree with Tim. It is not our fault that our country hasn’t taken up 3G yet, and I have to pay for the online components of the game which I can’t use (the price factor definitely applies here. While standard mobile games (without any online features) cost about 1/2 to 1/4 of N-Gage games (with useless online features)). Rankings could have been easily dealt with WAP, but it doesn’t work, at least, in my case. Bluetooth multiplayer is universal, and it is THE fun to beat up your friends, not someone you don’t know which makes the multiplayer popular.
donutty is talking aboutextras; I don’t know, but how many N-Gage games have downloadable extras? 20 levels were promised with Snakes Subsonic, where are they?
Actually I think Nokia’s policy regarding N-Gage has been quite paradoxical. They haven’t built the runtime environment (read the N-Gage application) and they expect readied games to work well on a buggy platform. When you design applications, you must have the OS designed first. How will you test for runtime errors without that?
Why do you even need a separate N-gage application? For me, the app does nothing but make the games difficult to access. I think N-gage should not be an app – it can be a ‘brand’ or a ’standard’ to be placed on enhanced versions of mainstream games such as BT multiplayer, rankings, higher resolution, link to n-gage site in the main menu, and of course, available only through n-gage online shop.
In other words, keep the games as simple .sisx files, just channel them through the n-gage brand.
Why do I keep referring to Gameloft HD? Kill me ;-)
Tim, it’s not your or my fault. Not everyone shares same outlook, that’s it. And the silliest thing is, some companies often don’t understand that they are doing silly things. I agree with your last post 100%, but that’s because I can’t agree more. It’s great to know that at least some people in the world think like me.
What you’ve written I agree with 100%.
in the u.k the games are around £8 on average (still £3 more expensive than other game developers)
but with the 2 games that I have bought (pro series golf&creatures of the deep) both of them CRASH!!
they give you an error code,say sorry but don’t allow you to carry on.i’ve had to uninstall the games&re-install them&start again.
I know i’m not the only person to suffer this,nor is it the fact that i’m using the an early N95.if you go to http://forums.arena.n-gage.com which is an official n-gage forum there are so many other nokia n-gage users suffering from the same system bugs!!
for money they cost it really shouldn’t happen.
It is nice to see that you guys share my thoughts on this.
As for crashing – well for the longest time I had this error of N-gage crashing out whenever I clicked on ANY game – saying a ‘kern-exec 3′ error has occurred. For about three-four months I couldn’t play a single second of any n-gage demo.
Needless to say, i tried every forum in existence. No replies to any of my questions, just many other users piping in to share the same misery as myself.
Then, by pure chance, the trial period of my Adaptxt software ran out (it is a software to enhance T9 typing by predicting entire words rather than just letters). I had to disable it.
Again by pure coincidence, I hit the n-gage shortcut and then FIFA 08. Viola! The game was working!So my message to anyone stuck with N-gage errors: try disabling the background apps.
But I would point out that so far I have received no response on this from Nokia guys.
Interestingly, I have not got any errors with N-Gage while running other applications in the background (may be the applications I’ve installed don’t clash with N-Gage). Only one time I encountered an error with N-Gage was once when I rebooted my phone using JBak Taskman (to free up more memory), i.e., when the background apps weren’t running. Strange thing this N-Gage is!
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