Gaming has come a long way over the past couple of decades, becoming almost unrecognizable when compared to its early beginnings. The latest step, the move to mobile gaming, will further alter how we play our games forever, making them more accessible than ever before.
In this article, we’ll look at whether developers are prioritizing mobile gaming and why this switch might be beneficial. The mobile gaming take over is here and looks set to herald an era of dominance for mobile gamers, perhaps explaining why developers could be starting to prioritize mobile games over console games.
Which type of gaming is more popular?
The two types of gaming that have been most popular with gamers in recent years are console gaming and mobile gaming, with both having their own specific advantages. Console gaming is dominated by the two biggest hitters in the gaming space, Microsoft and Sony, and was previously seen as being the go-to method of gaming for those who are serious about it.
That attitude to hardcore gaming has changed somewhat with the rise of PC gaming, but has been challenged further by the emergence of immersive mobile gaming. Although still seen as the method preferred by casual gamers, this does appear to be changing somewhat as mobile devices become more powerful and can handle more interactive games. The tide is indeed turning.
The gap has been closed considerably in recent years, and the figures certainly seem to back that up. Mobile gaming is no longer seen as something done solely by the young, with mobile gaming revenue now being ahead of console gaming, presumably largely down to how common in-game microtransactions are in games played by mobile users.
Why are developers prioritizing mobile devices?
Game developers will follow the money, and with mobile games now being the leading money maker for many game development companies, this prioritization is largely understandable. While this attitude is worrying for those who still prefer to play on their consoles, it’s hard to fault game developers who need this income in order to fund current game maintenance as well as future development projects.
We can also hypothesize that another reason gaming developers may be prioritizing the development of mobile games is because of the sheer volume of gamers who play on mobile. With there being around three billion mobile gamers around the world, it suddenly becomes much easier to understand why game developers are drawn to this market. This huge audience of people is simply too big to ignore.
Why are gamers moving to mobile gaming?
Now that we’ve established why developers are moving their focus towards the mobile gaming market, largely down to the money involved and how many people are there wanting new games to play, we can look at why this shift has happened in the first instance. Here we’ve listed some of the ways mobile gaming is ahead of console gaming and what that means for gamers.
Greater accessibility
Mobile games can be played anywhere at any time, which is great when you consider that console games have to be played in a set place with an active power connection. Although cloud gaming has become more popular, this still links to mobile gaming and so doesn’t solve the issue of gaming consoles not being compatible with the modern gamer, somebody on the move and wanting to play when it suits them.
Cheaper games
Mobile games are also generally much cheaper than console games. With many mobile games being free to play, even though you’ll likely end up paying for in-game microtransactions, they’re still far cheaper in the long run than console games which cost in excess of $70 when they’re first released. This price is simply too high for many and is a luxury that is just not needed when mobile gaming is so cheap.
More variety
The mobile gaming libraries offer a huge variety of games that are just not available on consoles and PC, as well as mobile versions of many of the console games that we know and love. People love to be given choice, and with many now being more able than ever to make their own games and have them released on mobile, we can start playing games that we really want to play, as opposed to playing games we aren’t mad about.
