Games for cellphones

[character]

hello Fede. i'm not sure about all games but the game we're making here at work is java based. i think that's the standard really, not sure about that tho'

[barcode]

Verizon phones uses Brew which is C++ based. All the other carriers use Java. Brew is faster, but anyone can program a Java game, put it on there phone and distribute it (you have to go through Verizon to do all that for Brew). So yeah, if you are just getting started Java is the way to go. As for where to start looking there is some info on the forums at www.wgamer.com. Also check out the IGDA special interest group for cell phone games (www.igda.org/mobile). Recently several books have come out on programming mobile games as well.

[Fede]

Sweet for the answers guys i really apreciate the help.

I'll search around now knowing more or less what to look for.

Thanx again.

[DevilHacker]

Yes if your really into the whole development process of your game, you will need to be looking the direction of the Java based programming language.

If you’re just a hobbyist, looking to do some things for fun, and not make any money off your creation look at Omega Basic (http://omegabasic.thegamecreators.com/?f=index).

[Hookswords]

check Fat Frog Studios website, they made a cell game called Eye of Rana. On the site they have info on where to look to get into making cell games

[arramor]

doesn't cellphone games have to be in assembly?

[pgregory]

doesn't cellphone games have to be in assembly?
Absolutely not, as a previous poster mentioned, games in the Mobile arena are split between Java (J2ME) and BREW. Probably with Java having the Lions share.

Things you have to bear in mind when writing games for Mobiles include...


To be a success, the game has to be ported to dozens of handsets. Simply producing it on a single handset isn't going to get your game into the network providers decks. This fact alone makes assembly development out of the question. Java and BREW both make it relatively easy to port to other handsets. NOTE: I say, relatively easy, not automatic as some Java proponents would have you believe, there is still quite some effort, but not nearly as much as writing natively for each device.
The shelf life of a Mobile game is generally very short, people will play for at most a couple of months, then dump the game and go looking for a new title. This is reflected in the average cost of Mobile games, and in the development costs of the title. As such, the development time needs to be kept to a minimum to make the venture cost effective. Java and BREW both address this point.
There are major quality assurance issues. Games will only be delivered across a providers network if they have passed very very very stringent quality assurance. A simple example, your game has to behave properly if a call should come in during gameplay. More importatnly it should be virtually impossible for the game to crash the handset. Last thing the providers need is loads of customers sueing them for missed calls, or lost communication because of a game. Both Java and BREW facilitate this level of quality by providing abstractions to the important device level features.
Mobile games are (at the moment) a completely different breed of game to the console/PC gaming market. Games have to be...

Simple, you need to appeal to a wider audience, not just hardcore Halo2 gamers. Think '80s 8bit games, where quality of gameplay was paramount above the latest and greatest visual effects.
Easy to get into, people want a quick fix gaming experience during short periods of downtime. A mobile game is no good if you have to go through 20 pages of setup before you can play.
Should take advantage of the unique features of the device, i.e. network connectivity, camera, etc.

Of course, all these points are really from a commercial Mobile game developer point fo view. If you are developing Mobile games just for fun, things are a lot less serious.

Just my two pennorth.

PaulG

[arramor]

That makes a lot of sense.

I have absolutely no experience with cellphone games, but i always thought such games used low-level assembly due to low memory space.

Shows how much i know :)

[TogaMario]

I have a wonderful book that deals with J2ME programming (what a lot of cell phones will accept as far as Java games go). If I can find it, I'll post the title, but there are plenty of excellent sources to pull from at Books a Million or even a few websites.

Here are a few links to check out, one's very technical, but I'd keep it in case you need it one day, lol.

http://www.cswl.com/whiteppr/tech/j2me.html#b

And a nice little example page, complete with a "design" element to it.

http://developers.sun.com/techtopics/mobility/blueprints/articles/game/

Oh, and NetBEANS, I believe you need that to compile the code. (Free?)

http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.4.2/download.html


Good luck!

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