The N-Gage Will Rise Again [Slashdot]

[DP ServBot]

The New York Times has an article up this week talking about Nokia's third attempt to get their N-Gage brand into the minds of gamers. This time it's a service, not a device, and the company is betting that branding mobile games will be a better tactic than their previous attempts. "The Ideo and Nokia executives concluded that users mainly want to play against their friends and, at the very least, they want to know the skill level of their opponents. As a result, the new N-Gage permits users to see what games their friends have on their phones and whether they are online. They can also see how many points a person has earned in the game, as well as how much time they devote to solitary play versus group play. The researchers also asked players what their greatest frustrations were. High on the list was buying a game that turned out to be disappointing. In the new N-Gage service, customers will be able to sample games free before buying them. The selection will lean toward the casual side of gaming, with soccer and fishing titles and the popular puzzle game Bejeweled, among others. Nokia has not yet discussed prices."Read more of this story (http://games.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/08/28/1627249&from=rss) at Slashdot.
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[tom]

Sounds good. I love my N-Gage.

[Ed Oscuro]

Jeez Tom, you got enough whitespace in your sig there? <g>

Anyway, these folks better make it quick because I'm about to get a phone (and hoping I don't make the wrong decision...gotta look at network coverage and so on.)

[roushimsx]

This forum is one of the few places that's not cluttered with, "lol n-gage sucks sidetalkin'!" whenever the system is brought up. Perhaps it's because this is one of the few places with people that have actually played an n-gage.

God, I wish I could find a physical copy of High Seize.

[Kitsune Sniper]

http://img502.imageshack.us/img502/1876/alloik3.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
http://img502.imageshack.us/img502/1876/alloik3.466476c8ff.jpg (http://g.imageshack.us/g.php?h=502&i=alloik3.jpg)

I couldn't resist. XD Long live the taco!

Edit: oops, don't hate me, roushimsx, I only posted that in good fun. No NGage hate from me! :D

[DigitalSpace]

Speaking of the N-Gage, Nokia seems a little too excited about Crash Bandicoot coming to the platform.

Crash Crashes N-Gage (http://kotaku.com/gaming/crashtastic/crash-crashes-n+gage-294337.php) (Kotaku)

[Gemini-Phoenix]

"The Ideo and Nokia executives concluded that users mainly want to play against their friends and, at the very least, they want to know the skill level of their opponents.

I have to disagree with this statement i'm afraid. The whole concept of games on mobile phones is based on the fact that many people who play games on their phones are those who need a simple distraction

A twenty minute bus journey is made bearable by the fact that you can whip out your phone and play a short simple game, such as Snakes. Something you can pick up and put down very easily. A concept Nintendo has picked up on with their WarioWare franchise of short mini-games. It is most likely that you are going to be playing games on your phone whilst on a tea break at work; Sitting on the toilet; Or whilst standing outside a women's dressing room waiting for your other half...

At the end of the day, you don't want to really be spending too much time fiddling with your phone unless you're at a loose end or in one of the above situations.

And haven't we already established that the mobile phone interface is more or less uncomfortable to use for playing any kind of serious game. Plus, we have learnt from the past that by playing games on your phone, the battery life is decreased sufficiently ~ Not good if you actually need to use your phone for it's actual intended primary use

[roushimsx]

Edit: oops, don't hate me, roushimsx, I only posted that in good fun. No NGage hate from me! :D

Hah, it's all in good fun ;)

[Kitsune Sniper]

Hah, it's all in good fun ;)

Yay. ;)

By the way, that is NOT ME, OKAY? My hair is not that afro-y. :p

[Vinnysdad]

Speaking of the N-Gage, Nokia seems a little too excited about Crash Bandicoot coming to the platform.

Crash Crashes N-Gage (http://kotaku.com/gaming/crashtastic/crash-crashes-n+gage-294337.php) (Kotaku)

Doesnt the Ngage already have a Crash Bandicoot game? It was the cart racing one I think.

[j_factor]

Didn't they give a huge presentation about this at the last GDC or something? This sounds like a bunch of stuff I've already heard about.

[Sothy]

All other handhelds can go butt rape themself

[The_4th_Survivor]

All other handhelds can go butt rape themself

o_O i dun unnerstan, Sothy. plies xplien.


lol


In all seriousnessity, Viva N-Gage! ^_^

[Ed Oscuro]

Speaking of the N-Gage, Nokia seems a little too excited about Crash Bandicoot coming to the platform.
Hey, I like the 'coot.

@ Gemini-Phoenix:

I think that with the good data rates phones are pulling down now that two-player action even in action games is a good idea for phone games.

[Steve W]

Doesnt the Ngage already have a Crash Bandicoot game? It was the cart racing one I think.

Yes it was. I really liked Crash Nitro Racing on the GameCube, so I was looking forward to getting the N-Gage version. Ugh, it was terrible. The vertical orientation of the screen meant you couldn't see too much off to either side which meant you missed turns a lot. And the graphics were choppy and poorly done, making the game a chore to play instead of a fun diversion.

I never bothered activating my N-Gage QD, mainly because I'm a bitter shell of a human being who doesn't have any desire to speak to people on a phone. Recently my brother set me up on his T-Mobile cell phone plan and gave me his old phone. If I can get the N-Gage working (it'll turn on for a few seconds and then switch off, even with a new battery) I might have to put the SIM into it. I'd love to see my QD fully functional.