Ask any informed mobile gamer (i.e. QuicklyBored reader) about the major problems impeding the progress of the mobile games industry and you’ll probably get them saying something like this: getting games not offered through my carrier is difficult (or in some cases, impossible), multiplayer gaming generally sucks, and why does it matter that my buddy has a phone from Verizon and I have a Sprint phone?
What if I were to tell you that Microsoft (yes, that Microsoft) is about to change everything? Welcome to the wonderful world of Live Anywhere.
Here’s the skinny. Live Anywhere is the logical extension of Microsoft’s very successful online gaming service for Xbox and Xbox360, now coming to both PC and mobile. For anyone who’s simply a Microsoft-console gamer, this is good news. Live Anywhere will allow you to access your gamer tag, compare rankings, message friends, activate downloads and purchase content for your 360, all from your phone.
Live Anywhere will also take advantage of what mobile devices offer to enhance your play. For example, messaging your friends can now mean sending text, voice and video content – all from your phone (if it has a camera). Also, using Live Anywhere to play games on your mobile can change the way you play 360 versions of franchise games (for instance, doing really well in the “Halo 3 Mobile Minigames” game will unlock new stuff or secret areas in the 360 version).
So what, you say. I don’t have a 360, so this doesn’t mean that much to me. Oh, but it does, specifically because of what Microsoft has to do to make Live Anywhere work. Live Anywhere is a huge undertaking that will require a lot of help from carriers and device manufacturers: Microsoft is looking to have Live Anywhere run not only on Windows Mobile devices, but Java, Brew and S60/Symbian phones as well. What this really means is that Microsoft will use its muscle to move the mobile gaming industry towards some form of device and API standardization, which means an easier time for developers and a better time for gamers (if you don’t believe me, just ask Helios).
Microsoft is also looking to provide Live Arcade style content for mobile Live Anywhere gamers (which makes sense since most Live Arcade games are basically graphically-enhanced mobile games). The mobile Live Arcade will be open to 3rd party developers, not just Microsoft products. What does this mean? It means that Microsoft is setting itself up for some bizarre Trojan horse end-run past North America’s walled garden of mobile carriers. First, Microsoft offers a service that most of their 360 gamers and any respectable mobile gamer will want. In offering such a service, they create a demand that by necessity standardizes the mobile development environment, eventually making mobile gaming better. Finally, they will offer carrier-agnostic mobile games for download that essentially removes the control carriers have on what games we get to play – because I can’t see Microsoft screwing their gamers by offering varied levels of service depending on whether they’re a Sprint or a Verizon customer, and I can’t see carriers not wanting to play ball because there’s too much money to be made from data charges. Live Anywhere means Live Anywhere for Everybody.
Just think about it. How good does signing in to Live Mobile with your buddy and playing a multiplayer-enabled Bejeweled 2 with no muss or fuss sound? Apparently, most of what’s mentioned above will be implemented by next E3. I never thought I’d say this, but thank you Microsoft for saving mobile gaming.
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