There are plenty of people who think Apple could do a lot more with its official iOS social gaming network Game Center.

Of course, there are plenty of thirdparty cross platform networks too, ranging from OpenFeint to Plus+ (aka Mobage West) and the RIM-owned Scoreloop.

And now it looks like there's going to be another option.

Previously unknown US outfit Parsith Studios has announced its FriendSt@r utility, which is designed to help people find friends to play with on iOS devices.

Spreading the net

A standalone app, it will automatically populate itself with your existing Game Center friends, (although a Game Center account isn't required), as well as letting you create a profile with interests that will help you find likeminds. Interestingly, the developer suggests people use the same username as Game Center to make searching for friends easier.

Search filters include gender, dating fields such as single or married, similar interests in terms of games, as well as what days of the week you normally play. Other ways of finding friends are via Facebook, Twitter or email via Game Center.

Chatty players

A key feature Parsith stresses is FriendSt@r's real time chat, which will eventually include private rooms and direct linking to games on your device.

There will be a free version of the app, and a 99c Pro version, which removes ads and raises the limit on chat message size, the number of chat message per month, and number of friends.

In order to try to get the network viable, there will also be an API for developers to integrate into their games so they can take advantage of the chat and friend finding features. It's planned FriendSt@r will eventually support all mobile and desktop platforms to provide a universal solution.

Certainly an ambitious undertaking, FriendSt@r is due to available on the App Store soon, assuming Apple doesn't have a problem with it.