Mobile phone games have come a long way from the days of “Snake” on Nokia phones. But, what does it take to create an intriguing gaming app?
For the past 10 years or so, the gaming industry has made huge leaps and the norms of the industry have changed drastically. What was once considered to be the epitome of gaming, is now available easily on mobile phone devices. That is not to say that their quality has diminished with time. However, that does imply the rapid evolution of mobile phone devices. An example of this is the GTA series. Those games are usually considered power-hungry titles that require quality hardware to work smoothly. Fast-forward to 2020, and you have mobile phone devices that play them just fine.
But, the question is not the quality of the games or the devices. The real question is, how do you make something that has a similar effect? According to stats, there are almost 428000 mobile phone games on Google’s Playstore. Yet, if you were asked to name them, you would only be able to remember a few. So, how do you make a game that sees a high number of downloads on any Appstore? Here is what you need to understand about game development.
1. Interesting Characters
When a movie was first presented to an audience in 1895in a theatre, it became an overnight sensation. While people were in awe of the moving pictures on the screen, it was the characters that they found more relatable. But, people loving characters in a story is way before any sort of visual medium was presented to an audience. From the Shakespearean area of plays until modernized films and the latest edition to entertainment, gaming, the world has seen many instances where an entity became successful because of characters.
Now, think about it, from comics to movies to games, it is characters that make you want to read the book, watch the movie and play the game. So, how else can you hope to achieve such an effect without making interesting characters? The bottom line is that if you wish to make your game a success, you need characters in it that drive the story forward.
2. Gripping Stories
Speaking of stories, none of them can be compelling without characters, that is a given. However, if the characters are compelling and the story is bland, then it won’t work either way. This is why the gaming industry has started treating the “Story” aspect of any sort of game more seriously. Whether they are set in a usual environment or in the most fantasy-Esque setting possible, stories are the reason many people want to play games. So, you need to make sure you have a story that does your characters justice and keeps your gamers hooked.
3. Intriguing Visuals
Out of all the leaps that the gaming industry has made, nothing has come as far in story-telling as the visual of these games. From achieving unimaginable sceneries to making visuals that are seemingly impossible in live-action movies, games can ride on the back of interesting graphics. That is why your focus after the story should be on making your game a treat for the eyes. Whether you make it for Consoles, mobile phones or PC, you need outstanding visuals to compel your audience.
4. Exciting Game Mechanics
This part of your game development process depends entirely on the subject platform. For instance, if you wish to create a game for mobile phones, then experts suggest that game mechanics are one of the integral parts of it. Think about it, on consoles you have a controller that allows you to play those games. Whereas PC offers you keyboard, mouse, and controllers of various kinds. Yet, mobile phone gaming depends entirely on the motion sensors and the touchscreen itself. So, it is up to you to make interesting game mechanics with limited control.
5. Performance & Stability
Much like any application on a phone or computers, games are treated by the hardware the same. So, if you create an app like Uber or make a game like COD, you need elements that make it perform well on any platform. Now, there is a reason that many companies and developers make platform-exclusive titles. I.E God of War or Spiderman on PlayStation.The same could be said about a few mobile phone titles. But, the key here is to make sure your gaming app remains stable even if it is played for hours.
6. Cross-Platform Support
As mentioned above, there are many games that are platform-exclusive. But, what do you do when your game needs to gather a large number of people? You need to enthuse cross-platform support into it. So, if you are making it for hand-held devices, then make sure you have support for two of the major platforms i.e. Android and iOS.
7. Multiplayer Mode
If you wish to find many players for your game from every corner of the world, then you need to provide a multiplayer gaming mode. If you don’t know what it is, then it is where players from different devices can play together through the internet. So, depending on the nature and category of your app, you can make an interesting game for your target audience.
8. DLCs & Updates
As you move forward in time, the game you have made can become obsolete or stale in the eyes of your target users. Yet, there are many ways some major companies overcome this problem. So, how can you do it too? By providing timely DLCs (downloadable content) and updates. An example of this is GTA V.It will keep your title fresh and keep it going for years to come.
Conclusion
Making a game for any sort of platform poses a challenge. Yet, this is the basic formula that major developers seem to be working with right now. So, your focus should be on characters, visuals, story, and multiplayer mode.