[Alcedes]

Talk about too little too late. 90% of my gaming is on iOS, with the remaining 10% reserved for blockbusters on 360 or ps3. Nintendo is the next RIMM in terms of company direction. The Wii U will officially usher in the next "Gamecube" era. Sad times for Mario fans.

[dgallagher]

I think Nintendo has three advantages in the mobile-space (Nintendo 3DS vs. iOS/Android). #1, Nintendo-branded games. They're the "Disney" of video games, and have a large loyal following.

#2, dedicated gaming controls. Certain games need D-pads, analog sticks, and tactile buttons. Hard-wired controllers allow for more accurate control, and are essential in some "twitch-based" video games. Touchscreen's are phenomenally good for some types of games like board games and Angry Birds, but terrible for others like platformers and FPS's.

#3 is price. $40/$30 for a new game is extremely expensive for iOS games, but not 3DS ones. This may attract bigger budget games to the 3DS since developers/publishers could potentially make more on the 3DS than on iOS/Android. This can be considered a disadvantage too, since consumers may be deciding between one $40 3DS game, or 40 $0.99 iOS games. 3DS games will have to offer more perceived-value to justify premium pricing.

Currently I see #2, controls, as the biggest problem in the mobile-phone gaming space, which is why you're seeing 3rd-party solutions (iCade, 60beat GamePad, etc). Since 3rd-party solutions are not widely adopted and will result in high fragmentation, it'll probably require Apple or Google to design and release an "official" controller of some sort (ideally built into each device). If this never happens, there will still be a clear distinction between "portable gaming system" and "portable mobile phone/tablet".

[talmand]

Another of these "this thing is dead" pronouncements. Those tend to turn out wrong.

RIMM? Really? So you think Nintendo's new market strategy is to run around suing everybody over questionable technology ownership claims? Because that's RIMM. I'm not getting the comparison.

EDIT: wait, RIMM, wrong company in my head. I would still disagree with the comparison though.

Too little too late? Is that in general or just for you? Because I don't assume to guess the future of the market based on such a small sample size.

[freehunter]

Yup, your iOS gaming really hurt the sales of the Wii, a product that is only slowing down in sales because everyone owns one already.