Game Design Secrets

What Doesn’t Work on iOS

Now that you know what works best on iOS, take a look at what doesn’t work so well.

Full 3D Games

The App Store’s top-grossing list for 2011 is scant on games with full 3D graphics, which display a first-person perspective or display the game space with a camera that rotates along the full X/Y/Z axis. Indeed, the only 3D game to make the top-grossing chart in 2011 was the fighting/RPG game Infinity Blade (see Figure 2-2).

Figure 2-2: Infinity Blade, one of the few 3D games that performs extremely well on iOS

There are probably a number of reasons for the lack of top-selling 3D games on iOS, chief among them the gameplay context. Unlike a couch or desk, where 3D games are traditionally played, an iOS game is often played in open, public, and semi-public areas, where it’s difficult for a player to devote the high degree of focus and time that 3D games typically demand. Further, maneuvering in a 3D space is difficult to do without the keyboard/joystick controls that PCs and consoles have but the iOS lacks. And if you’ve ever tried playing a 3D game on iOS, you’re probably familiar with the calluses they tend to give your fingertips!

Gaming Console Ports

Games that are based on or ported from bestselling console and PC games are also scant on the App Store’s top-grossing and top-paid lists. Although titles like Grand Theft Auto : Chinatown Wars and Street ...