The launch of a new mobile platform is always a balance between getting early exposure versus the lack of install base, and even the possibilities you're backing a lemon. 

As Mikkel Thorsted – one of the three partners behind Copenhagen-based developer Press Play – points out, issues such as technical gremlins can also makes things more difficult than they otherwise could be. 

We caught up with Mikkel to find out why bringing Max & the Magic Marker to Windows Phone 7 wasn't the smoothest of rides.

Pocket Gamer: How did you get involved with developing for Windows Phone 7?

Mikkel Thorsted: We got involved mostly by accident. During a trip myself and my two partners made to Gamescom last spring, we spent some time showing off an early prototype of a port of Max & the Magic Marker for iPhone.

It was suggested in a meeting with one of our Microsoft contacts that we meet up with one of Microsoft's main Windows Phone 7 guys. The meeting went ahead and is pretty much what led us to here.

What is the platform like to work with?

First off, this is the first game I've worked on using XNA, so getting use to it was the first step I had to make to start working on the platform.

I would say XNA has been a really nice framework to work with, in the sense that it gives the programmer enough control while also being very fast and foolproof.

For me, the platform is a good choice when making games that run on PC, Xbox 360 and Windows Phone 7 with only minor changes needed to be made to the code. I really believe this is a genuine strength, and not just part of the hype.

On the other hand, I would be lying if I said that being a first mover on XNA 4.0 and Windows Phone 7 had been a walk in the park. Quite a few times we ran into problems that were related to the state of the SDK and the platform's untested hardware.

Many times during the process, production was halted in specific areas due to the SDK, but I guess this is how things are when you choose to be a part of a launch. 

Overall I think Microsoft did a great job with XNA to create an easy, accessible, yet very capable platform for creating both small casual as well as larger games. Another great thing is nobody is excluded - the SDK is free, and it even provided a very solid emulator and a lot of samples.

What opportunities does Windows Phone 7 offer?

For us, Windows Phone 7 is great opportunity to enter the mobile gaming market as a launch title on a platform that isn't overcrowded like the iPhone.

It has also been a great chance to get some of Microsoft's insight on the games we are making. We are hoping that Microsoft's initiative to embrace the mobile gaming market seriously will help us get more attention for the games we make.

Do you think the emphasis Microsoft has put on games with Windows Phone 7 will give it an advantage over other smartphones?

I would find it very hard to argue that iPhone's vast games catalog and userbase isn't a supreme advantage right now, but I definitely think that if Microsoft keeps putting its strength behind the gaming side, and if it manages to get a bunch of great exclusive titles, it could end up on top of the mobile gaming market.

What aspects of Windows Phone 7's set-up are you looking to take advantage of?We are, of course, using Xbox Live integration, but other than that we're not making use of any special aspects.

How would you say it compares to the likes of iPhone and Android?

Being a big iPhone fan and daily iPhone 4 user, I'm pretty familiar with how it works, but I don't have any real experience with Android.

In general I would say that the whole user experience with the Windows Phone 7 is fantastic. The tiled dash board seems to work really well and the phone seems very responsive. In my opinion, the UI itself gives the user a better experience than what is currently found on the iOS.

The screen on our WP7 dev phone also has a very high resolution, with the richest colour display I've ever seen on a smartphone.

I really like what Microsoft has done to keep platform requirements strict. We always know that we have at least 1GHz Snapdragon processing power to play with, and a 800 x 480 resolution display. This makes WP7 the smartphone platform with the highest denominator in terms hardware specs for gaming.

Do you think the smartphone market is becoming overcrowded?I don't really know too much about the coming platforms, but I think competition is good in any market and I'm looking forward to see what is coming. I'm sure the future is bright for mobile gaming.

Any further plans for Windows Phone 7 in future?

Yes, we are working on a few games that should end up on WP7. One of these is called Tentacles, which I strongly believe will be a huge blockbuster hit.
Thanks to Mikkel for his time.