Long gone are the days when publishers traditionally at home on consoles would turn a blind eye to mobile EA perhaps the best example of a major player currently reaping the rewards of the smartphone market.
In comparison, rival Activision has been notably quiet.
Major releases, such as Call of Duty: World at War: Zombies, have made an appearance on the App Store, but its development was outsourced and gameplay focused on the franchise's living dead-inspired offspring rather than the main event.
The publisher's apparent prudence, however, is less to do with any concern that smartphones aren't a suitable vehicle for its franchises, but rather a worry that its titles simply wouldn't stand out.
Modern marketplace warfare
Speaking to the New York Times, Activision chief executive Eric Hirshberg told the paper that the company plans to test the waters with Call of Duty: Elite the franchise's new online multiplayer service, also available (to a degree) via apps on iOS and Android.
However, no full Modern Warfare releases are forthcoming.
"There are 400,000 apps in the iTunes App Store," Hirshberg said.
"I don't want to be number 400,001."
Hirshberg said it has to make sense from a business perspective for Activision to risk porting its big series over to mobile.
"What we're trying to do is use new technologies and new devices in gaming to strengthen our core business," he added.
"We don't just want to go and spread our roulette chips around the table. We also don't want to do anything that we can't do with excellence."
Serving up Spyro
Nonetheless, Activision does plan more mobile releases in the near future, including the multi-platform Skylanders Spyros Adventure, which will hit consoles, mobile, and the web.
Aimed at kids between 6 to 12, it's a tentative look at the market rather than a full blown assault, with Hirshberg repeating he is wary of betting the farm on the mobile market.
"[Mobile is] a double-edged sword," he concluded.
"On one hand you have a huge install base, but what we are not doing is just shotgunning all of our games onto mobile."
[source: New York Times]
News
With a fine eye for detail, Keith Andrew is fuelled by strong coffee, Kylie Minogue and the shapely curve of a san serif font.
Related Articles
Feature
May 7th, 2024
April 2024 mobile game charts: Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile loses launch momentum and Brawl Stars’ astronomical rise
Feature
Apr 29th, 2024
Hot Five: Supercell’s Squad Busters levels up, retro Nintendo on iOS, and Genshin Impact’s worst month yet
Top Stories
Feature
May 17th, 2024
New release roundup: The best new mobile games from a battle royale to a console classic remake
Feature
May 16th, 2024
Behind the scenes: How adding sandwich offers to an idle merge game boosted three metrics at once
Events
Digital Dragons | Europe | May 19th |
GamesBeat Summit 2024 | North America | May 20th |
Mobidictum Meetup Tallinn May 2024 | Europe | May 21st |
Nordic Game Spring 2024 | Nordic | May 21st |
Impact 2024 - Indie Games | May 23rd | |
Morocco Gaming Expo | Africa | May 24th |
MomoCon 2024 | North America | May 24th |
Unreal Fest Gold Coast 2024 | Australasia | May 29th |
Popular Stories
Feature
May 14th, 2024
53 top mobile games in soft launch: Squad Busters, Battle Guys: Royale, Plants vs. Zombies 3, LEGO Hill Climb Adventures, and more
Feature
May 13th, 2024
Hot Five: Dubai's new Gaming Visa, April's mobile game charts, and Xbox studio closures
Feature
May 14th, 2024