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Activision's Guitar Hero Leaps into Cell Phones
Date : 18 Jul 2008 Category : Technology
NewsFactor NetworkThe answer is a resounding yes.
Cell phone carriers are rolling out a mobile version of Activision's rock music game, and customers are subscribing at a pace that could make it the most successful console-to-cell phone crossover game in history. As the cell phone rapidly emerges as the next computing platform, cell phone games would seem to be a natural application.
For consumers, the trend could eventually lead to big improvements in mobile gaming -- a market that has drastically fallen short of market projections. But for now the Guitar Hero phenomenon is a lot like Jimi Hendrix, circa 1968: a great solo act, without backup.
Drag your finger down the list of the top-selling games for phones from the mobile industry statistics firm M:Metrics, for instance, and you'd pass by an array of yawners -- sorry, Tetris fans - before hitting a really engaging game.
As of May, the latest period for which M:Metrics provided data, Guitar Hero's mobile version ranked at No.9, but it had climbed from No.85 in three months. It will go further. Hands-On Mobile, which adapted the game on behalf of Activision, said it would introduce Guitar Hero III Backstage Pass, a new version of the game for Sprint and AT&T customers on Thursday, with other carriers to follow.
The networks finally have a breakout success on their hands and more is to come. Electronic Arts, the giant game maker, is releasing Spore, its long-awaited game for cell phones, including the iPhone, not just on the well-known game platforms.
Hands-On Mobile, is also selling a classic Mac game, Crystal Quest. This and "Kung Fu Panda," Electronic Arts' mobile adaptation of the Activision console game, and "The Dark Knight," Glu Mobile's game...