Today, I read a press release from UK firm MoMac who announced the launch of a browser-based games platform, which uses Flash Lite. I had been looking at the use of Flash Lite for mobile gaming quite a while ago (2 years back in fact; see here and here). The front-runners on this (not browser-based but downloadable) was Mobitween, a French company that was bought by Zed last year. Back in 2008, the estimated install base of Flash Lite on mobile phones was already approaching half a billion, so just ever so slightly more than there are e.g. iPhones. In principle, all good.
But where did it go from there? uGenGames, the company’s original user-generated games site, seems to be stuck where it was back then. There is still the showcase of mobiGamz, a Flash-Lite-based gaming portal on Verizon Wireless. But otherwise? Nothing much…
So MoMac will do it in the browser then. I don’t think it makes that much of a difference but, given my early enthusiasm, wondered where the pitfalls (of which there apparently are some; otherwise it would have taken off more forcefully) might be. So where then?
I have argued in the interim the advantages of applications vs mobile web, and this still stands: apps often will give better usability and navigation tailored to the input constraints of (small) handsets when compared to browser-based solutions.
Discoverability might be another – albeit perhaps short-term – constraint: people are not (yet!?) used to looking for games (or other “applications”) on the web. That is arguably one reason of the huge success of the app store: it does what it says on the tin and it is very easy to discover.
Billing would be the third big differentiator: Apple managed what probably only a brand of Apple’s power can command, namely that people happily and without second thoughts sign up with credit cards and all via iTunes. To replicate this somewhere on the open seas of the wide web is almost certainly wishful thinking at best. The only other companies who have as easy a billing interface are the carriers who will almost always be more control-minded than independent service providers might wish for. MoMac claims that
the first casual games portal to go live on major MNO’s in October
and that might change things in this department a little. However, it will arguably take a few of those major MNOs in order to make it worthwhile for developers to address the platform.
A fourth point – and this is following from the above – is content. MoMac seems a little light on this side. It claims the availability of 30 games through its partner Booster Media and, with no disrespect (!), they do not seem to have the most compelling stuff available. This of course is nothing that comes with the concept but perhaps with the (current) offering, the announcement of which I believe might actually have come a little early because of this.
Anyway: the principle is (still) great, and I really wish them all the very best. Keep me up to date, guys; I’d love to publish a retraction of my take here…
Laurens Rutten
Good piece, nice to read some history on Flash based gaming in the previous years!
A reaction on your analysis: clearly, MoMac is not taking on high-end native apps from the big gaming studios like EA. Instead, this initiative aims at offering a range of well known and popular game concepts you’ll also find on the web based casual gaming websites: puzzles, brain-trainers, skill games and classic arcade hits. Aimed at a broad audience, easy to play, without any downloads or installations required. And for a far lower price compared to native mobile gaming.
In our view, premium native games and easy-to-access casual games are two different approaches and can coexist side by side. And sure, the iPhone has set the standard for great accessibility of apps through iTunes, but it remains to be seen if any of the other platforms/app-stores will even get close to this success. And since at the same time mobile browsers are getting much better quickly, and Flash (Lite) is now being supported by all major mobile OS (except for iPhone), it is paving the way for game access in a different way than the classical downloads.
Being involved in this initiative, I also know the pipeline of many of the upcoming Flash games. And, again, though they’re not trying to take on the native topgames from iPhone, they will certainly match the quality an avarage gamer frequenting casual gaming websites expects.
So yes, it’s a relative new development, but conditions for ‘IP based mobile gaming’ seem to be much better now than a few years ago. And Flash Lite is gaining ground at other ‘screens’ as well now (Wii, Chumby, MP3 players, PSP etc)
So thanks for your support, we’ll certainly keep you posted on the developments! 😉
Rocco
there was an interesting comment during my session at OverTheAir last Friday on app stores and billing: companies like Amazon should start opening app stores. They already have all my data to bill me and I trust them enough to be a happy application shopper 😉
Rocco
there was an interesting comment during my session at OverTheAir last Friday on app stores and billing: companies like Amazon should start opening app stores. They already have all my data to bill me and I trust them enough to be a happy application shopper 😉
Car Games
there was an interesting comment during my session at OverTheAir last Friday on app stores and billing: companies like Amazon should start opening app stores. They already have all my data to bill me and I trust them enough to be a happy application shopper 😉
Bike Games
I think this idea would kill the DS and p2p because an itouch screen is as big as other handheld…so why not buy something for multipurposes. It would be much cheaper.