The launch of OpenFeint on Android might have been billed as a major step forward for the platform, but not everyone is convinced it's so significant in and of itself

In ustwo co-founder mill's view, it's more a reflection of the growing appeal of Google's OS with the masses – an appeal that existed long before Aurora Feint's network made the leap from iPhone.

So having released games dot1 and dot2 for Android, we asked mills what challenges developers who decide to take a punt on Android's burgeoning marketplace will have to face.

Pocket Gamer: How big a factor do you think OpenFeint will be in fostering development on Android?Mills: It will probably help but I think most developers now have enough of a reason to develop for Android. I think developers can easily add value to their apps using OpenFeint so this should encourage its adoption.

It's unlikely the addition of OpenFeint to Android - or just Feint as we know it on Android - will convince a developer to start developing for Android unless they have had massive success with the network on iPhone.

I think consumer up take of Android is the largest factor in fostering new and increased development. Whether developers work traditionally on iPhone or web, Android has swiftly morphed from a techie only platform to the platform for the masses.

How easy is it to port to Android?

We're not really porting in the traditional sense of taking each class and converting it from iPhone code to Android code.

We re-use assets, code design, game balancing, logic and algorithms where possible, but start off coding each Android project based on our own separate library of Android templates.

This is partly due to the differences in app structure between Android and iPhone and the higher level nature of Android development generally.

Performance wise, how does dot on Android compare with the iOS release?

On a similarly powered Android device it's no different. Performance is a little worse on lower end devices but we've worked hard to make it playable on as many devices as possible.

How have you implemented OpenFeint's cross platform elements between Android and iOS?

We've not implemented this yet.

When we release Dot3 for Android, we'll share the same achievements as the iPhone version, which could massively open up the games visibility and audience to users friends.

What business models are you experimenting with on Android?Dot games are free but contain advert banners for ustwo's other paid Android apps. We also have a wallpaper app called showOFF, which promotes our Android apps amongst a selection of ustwo designed, free wallpapers.

The payment model for the Android Market is a huge blocker. Paid apps are only available in certain countries and then purchased only via Google Checkout.

This has helped breed the free culture that exists on Android Market.

Thankfully it seems this is being addressed. We've heard murmurings that suggest paid apps will be available for sale in more countries and a change in terms and conditions hints at future payment methods being allowed.

[Note: Google has since unveiled an expansion of the paid apps market on the platform.]

How is dot performing in terms of downloads on Android so far?

We've had 10,000 downloads so far with 6,000 of them achieved post Feint. Dot1 has performed relatively poorly compared to dot2, which has achieved 50,000 solely via ustwo's own promotion.

However it should be noted that dot1 is super simple. Dot2 will be updated with Feint integration in a matter of days and it will be interesting to see how many additional users it can achieve. We haven't got figures for Feint users yet.

If OpenFeint made the leap to further formats, would you consider taking your titles with it?I don't see Feint being a catalyst for us to move into new platforms.

For us it's all about seeing potential in a new platform and then deciding if we believe we could benefit from being a part of it. Right now we only see iPhone and Android as the two most viable platforms to invest in to make money.
Thanks to mills for his time.