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{{short description|Video game played on a mobile device}}
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[[File:Playing with smartphone.jpg|thumb|A game being played on a [[smartphone]]]]
{{Video Games}}
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A '''mobile game''' is a [[video game]] that is typically played on a [[mobile phone]].<ref name=defi>{{cite book |last1=Dal |first1=Yong Jin |title=Mobile Gaming in Asia: Politics, Culture and Emerging Technologies |date=27 July 2016 |publisher=Springer |pages=6–7 |isbn=9789402408263 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o6rCDAAAQBAJ&q=definition+of+mobile+game&pg=PA6 |access-date=13 February 2021}}</ref> The term also refers to all games that are played on any [[portable device]], including from [[mobile phone]] ([[feature phone]] or [[smartphone]]), [[tablet computer|tablet]], [[Personal digital assistant|PDA]] to [[handheld game console]], [[portable media player]] or [[graphing calculator]], with and without [[network availability]].<ref name=defi />
A '''mobile game''' is a [[video game]] played on a [[mobile phone]], [[smartphone]], [[Personal digital assistant|PDA]], [[tablet computer]], [[portable media player]] or [[calculator]]. This does not include games played on dedicated [[handheld video game]] systems such as [[Nintendo 3DS]] or [[PlayStation Vita]].
The earliest known game on a mobile phone was a [[Tetris]] variant on the [[Hagenuk MT-2000]] device from 1994.<ref>{{cite web |title=This was the world's first cell phone with a game loaded |url=https://www.phonearena.com/news/This-was-the-worlds-first-cell-phone-with-a-game-loaded-on-it_id62920 |website=Phone Arena |date=16 November 2014 |access-date=16 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190522004814/https://www.phonearena.com/news/This-was-the-worlds-first-cell-phone-with-a-game-loaded-on-it_id62920 |archive-date=22 May 2019 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Blog|first=Microsoft Devices|date=2013-01-16|title=10 things you didn't know about mobile gaming|url=https://blogs.windows.com/devices/2013/01/16/10-things-you-didnt-know-about-mobile-gaming-2/|access-date=2021-08-20|website=Microsoft Devices Blog|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Andreas Elmenthaler (Elmi) |url=http://www.handy-sammler.de/Handys/Hagenuk_MT-2000.htm |title=Hagenuk MT-2000 with Tetris |publisher=Handy-sammler.de |access-date=2013-08-12 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130617124048/http://www.handy-sammler.de/Handys/Hagenuk_MT-2000.htm |archive-date=June 17, 2013 }}</ref>


In 1997, [[Nokia]] launched ''[[Snake (1998 video game)|Snake]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nokia.com/A4303014 |title=Snake is born:a mobile gaming |language=nl |publisher=Nokia |access-date=2013-08-12 |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090209232201/http://www.nokia.com/A4303014 |archive-date=February 9, 2009 }}</ref> ''Snake'', which was [[Pre-installed software|pre-installed]] in most mobile devices manufactured by Nokia for a couple of years, has since become one of the most played games, at one point found on more than 350 million devices worldwide.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://nokiaconnects.com/2011/02/15/7-nokia-world-records-that-will-blow-your-mind/ |title=7 Nokia World Records That Will Blow Your Mind |access-date=2013-08-12 |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120330201321/http://nokiaconnects.com/2011/02/15/7-nokia-world-records-that-will-blow-your-mind/ |archive-date=March 30, 2012 }}</ref> Mobile devices became more computationally advanced allowing for downloading of games, though these were initially limited to phone carriers' own stores. Mobile gaming grew greatly with the development of [[app store]]s in 2008, such as the [[iOS]] [[App Store (iOS)|App Store]] from [[Apple Inc|Apple]]. As the first mobile content marketplace operated directly by a [[Mobile operating system|mobile]]-[[platform holder]], the App Store significantly changed the [[consumer behaviour]] and quickly broadened the market for mobile games, as almost every smartphone owner started to download [[Mobile app|mobile apps]].<ref name="MGA_SoA">{{cite web|vauthors=Behrmann M, Noyons M, Johnstone B, MacQueen D, Robertson E, Palm T, Point J |url=http://www.mobilegamearch.eu/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Mobile-Game-Arch_D3.1_06122012_PU.pdf |title=State of the Art of the European Mobile Games Industry |publisher= Mobile GameArch Project |year=2012 |access-date=2013-08-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170505184626/http://www.mobilegamearch.eu/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Mobile-Game-Arch_D3.1_06122012_PU.pdf |archive-date=2017-05-05 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
The first game on a mobile phone was a [[Tetris]] game on the Hagenuk MT-2000 device from 1994.<ref>[http://www.hagenuk-germany.de/en/history.html Hagenuk history]</ref><ref>http://www.handy-sammler.de/Handys/Hagenuk_MT-2000.htm Hagenuk MT-2000 with Tetris</ref>


==History==
Three years later [[Nokia]] launched the very successful ''[[Snake (video game)|Snake]]'' on selected models in 1997.<ref>[http://www.nokia.com/A4303014 Nokia - Snake is born:a mobile gaming classic]</ref> Snake and its variants has since become one of the most-played video games and is found on more than 350 million devices worldwide.<ref>[http://blogs.nokia.com/nseries/2011/02/15/7-nokia-world-records-that-will-blow-your-mind/ 7 Nokia World Records That Will Blow Your Mind]</ref>
{{main|History of mobile games}}


Towards the end of the 20th century, mobile phone ownership became ubiquitous in the industrialised world due to the establishment of industry standards, and the rapid fall in cost of handset ownership, and use driven by [[economies of scale]]. As a result of this explosion, technological advancement by handset manufacturers became rapid. With these technological advances, mobile phone games also became increasingly sophisticated, taking advantage of exponential improvements in [[Display device|display]], [[processing power|processing]], [[Storage (memory)|storage]], [[Interfaces (computer science)|interfaces]], [[network bandwidth]] and [[operating system]] functionality. The first such game that demonstrated the desire for handset games was a version of ''[[Snake (video game genre)|Snake]]'' that [[Nokia]] had included on its devices since 1997.<ref name="pg history">{{cite web | url = https://www.pocketgamer.biz/feature/10619/a-brief-history-of-mobile-games-in-the-beginning-there-was-snake/ | title = A Brief History of Mobile Games: In the beginning, there was Snake | first = Chris | last = Wright | date = March 14, 2016 | access-date = August 18, 2020 | work = [[PocketGamer]] }}</ref>
Mobile games are played using the technology present on the device itself. For [[networked games]], there are various technologies in common use. Examples include text message (SMS), multimedia message (MMS) or GPS location identification. The first two-player game for mobile phones was a variant of the ''[[Snake (video game)|Snake]]'' game for the [[Nokia 6110]], using the [[infrared]] port.


In 1999, [[NTT Docomo]] launched the [[i-mode]] mobile platform in Japan, allowing mobile games to be downloaded onto [[smartphones]]. Several [[Japanese video game]] developers announced games for the i-mode platform that year, such as [[Konami]] announcing its [[dating simulation]] ''[[Tokimeki Memorial]]''. The same year, [[Nintendo]] and [[Bandai]] were developing mobile phone adapters for their [[handheld game consoles]], the [[Game Boy Color]] and [[WonderSwan]], respectively.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Mobiles: The New Gaming Platform (Big in Japan) |magazine=[[Edge (magazine)|Edge]] |date=24 November 1999 |issue=79 (December 1999) |page=10 |url=https://retrocdn.net/images/b/bb/Edge_UK_079.pdf#page=12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211028021316/https://retrocdn.net/images/b/bb/Edge_UK_079.pdf |archive-date=28 October 2021 |url-status=live }}</ref> By 2001, i-mode had {{nowrap|20 million}} users in Japan, along with more advanced handsets with graphics comparable to [[Third generation of video game consoles|8-bit consoles]]. A wide variety of games were available for the i-mode service, along with announcements from established [[video game developers]] such as [[Taito]], Konami, [[Namco]], and [[Hudson Soft]], including ports of [[Golden age of arcade video games|classic arcade games]] and 8-bit [[console games]].<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Big guns join the iMode revolution |magazine=[[Edge (magazine)|Edge]] |date=26 February 2001 |issue=95 (March 2001) |pages=18–9 |url=https://retrocdn.net/images/2/2d/Edge_UK_095.pdf#page=18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180714060203/https://retrocdn.net/images/2/2d/Edge_UK_095.pdf |archive-date=14 July 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref>
However, there are non networked applications, that simply use the device platform to run the game software. The games may be installed [[over-the-air programming|over the air]], [[side load]]ed onto the handset with a cable, or may be [[embedded system|embedded]] in the handheld devices by the [[OEM]] or by the mobile operator.


[[File:Edge (video game) mockup on Sony Ericsson phone.jpg|thumb|upright|Screenshot of ''[[Edge (video game)|Edge]]'' gameplay mocked up on a [[Sony Ericsson W880i]], an early [[smartphone]]]]
Mobile games are usually downloaded via the mobile operator's network, but in some cases are also loaded in the mobile handsets when purchased, via infrared connection, [[Bluetooth]], or memory card.


By the mid-2000s there was a large market for mobile games, of which many were built on the [[Java ME]] platform that many devices at the time supported. Earlier they could be obtained using [[SMS]] short codes before manufacturers as well as [[Mobile network operator|mobile network operators]] started offering them for download both on the [[Website|Web]] (on a PC to be transferred to the device) or directly via the air (using [[GPRS]], [[3G]] or [[Wi-Fi]]).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Develop state-of-the-art mobile games |url=https://www.infoworld.com/article/2161565/mobile-java-develop-state-of-the-art-mobile-games.html |access-date=2024-09-12 |website=InfoWorld |language=en-US}}</ref> The launch of Apple's [[iPhone]] in 2007 and the [[App Store (iOS)|App Store]] in 2008 radically changed the market. The iPhone's focus on larger memory, [[Multitasking (iOS)|multitasks]], and additional [[Sensing element|sensing devices]], including the [[touchscreen]] in later model, made it ideal for [[casual game]]s, while the App Store, which is also independent from [[mobile carriers]], made it easy for developers to create and post apps to publish, and for users to search for and obtain new games.<ref name=MGA_SoA /> Further, the App Store added the ability to support [[microtransaction|in-app purchase]]s in October 2009. This allowed games like ''[[Angry Birds]]'' and ''[[Cut the Rope]]'' to find new [[Monetization model|monetization models]] away from the traditional [[Premium (marketing)|premium]] "pay once" model. Meanwhile, Apple's disruption caused the market to stabilized around iPhone devices and [[Google|Google's]] [[Android (operating system)|Android]]-based phones which offered a similar app store through [[Google Play]].
== History ==


A further major shift game with 2012's ''[[Candy Crush Saga]]'' and ''[[Puzzle & Dragons]]'', games that used a stamina-like gameplay feature found in [[social-network game]]s like ''[[FarmVille]]'' to limit the number of times one could play it in a single period, but allowed optional [[in-app purchases]] to restore that stamina immediately and continue playing. This new monetization brought in millions of players to both games and millions of [[United States dollar|dollars]] in revenue, establishing the "[[freemium]]" model that would be a common approach for many mobile games going forward. Mobile gaming grew rapidly over the next several years, buoyed by rapid expansion in [[China]]. By 2016, top mobile games were earning over {{USD|100 million}} a year, and the total revenue for the mobile games sector had surpassed that of other video game areas.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://venturebeat.com/2017/07/13/mobile-game-revenue-finally-surpasses-pc-and-consoles/ | title = Mobile game revenue finally surpasses PC and consoles | first = Stephanie | last = Chan | date = July 13, 2017 | access-date = January 8, 2018 | work = [[Venture Beat]] }}</ref>
Towards the end of the 20th century mobile phones began to modernize.With the introduction of the "candy bar" cell phone mobile phones' capabilities significantly improved. With these technological advances mobile phone games were becoming increasingly sophisticated.


Other major trends in mobile games have include the [[hyper-casual game]] such as ''[[Flappy Bird]]'' and ''[[Crossy Road]]'' and [[location-based game]]s like ''[[Pokémon Go]]''.
Older cell phone games were not as expansive or popular as games for [[video game console|consoles]] since the hardware for the early mobile phone was not suited for high-color screening or sounds beyond differently pitched beeps. These games were also usually animated with shaded squares (i.e. ''[[Snake (video game)| Snake]]'') due to their limited graphical quality. Unlike today's cell phone games, which usually have to be purchased, these games came pre-installed and could not be copied or removed.


Mobile gaming has impacted the larger video game market by drawing demand away from [[handheld video game console]]s; both [[Nintendo]] and [[Sony]] had seen major drops in sales of their 2011 handhelds compared to their 2004 predecessors as a result of mobile gaming.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.theverge.com/2021/6/24/22545198/playstation-vita-10-year-anniversary-sony-handheld | title = 'The Little Handheld That Could': Examining The Vita's Impact A Decade Later | first= George | last= Yang | date = June 24, 2021 | accessdate = June 24, 2021 | work = [[The Verge]] }}</ref> At the same time, mobile gaming introduced the concept of [[microconsole]]s, low-cost, low-powered [[home video game console]]s that used mobile operating systems to take advantage of the wide variety of games available on these platforms.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://fortune.com/2014/10/16/android-tv-video-games-google/ | title = How Android TV is a (video) game changer | first= John | last = Gaudiosi | date = October 16, 2014 | accessdate = June 21, 2021 | work = [[Fortune (magazine)|Fortune]] }}</ref>
With the advent of the [[camera phone]] cell phones became more common. The storage and graphic capabilities of these phones were better than the older candy bar style phone which meant higher quality games could be produced. This also meant that companies could now make a profit off of the games because of their superior quality. Some early companies utilized the camera phone technology for mobile games such as [[Namco]] and [[Panasonic]]. In 2003 Namco released a fighting game that used the cell phone's camera to create a character based on the player's profile and determined the character's speed and power based on the image taken; the character could then be sent to another friend's mobile phone to battle. That same year Panasonic released a [[virtual pet]] game in which the pet is fed by photos of foods taken with the camera phone.<ref name="bbc_mobile"/>


===Calculator games===
In the early 2000s, mobile games gained popularity in [[Japanese mobile phone culture|Japan's mobile phone culture]], years before the United States or Europe. By 2003, a wide variety of mobile games were available on Japanese phones, ranging from [[puzzle game]]s and [[virtual pet]] titles that utilized camera phone and [[Fingerprint recognition|fingerprint scanner]] technologies to [[3D computer graphics|3D]] games with exceptionally high quality graphics. Older [[Arcade game|arcade-style games]] became particularly popular on mobile phones, which were an ideal platform for arcade-style games designed for shorter play sessions. Namco began to introduce mobile gaming culture to Europe in 2003.<ref name="bbc_mobile">{{cite web|last=Hermida|first=Alfred|title=Japan leads mobile game craze|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/3186345.stm|publisher=[[BBC News]]|accessdate=22 September 2011|date=28 August 2003}}</ref>
[[File:TI83tris.JPG|thumb|right|Clone of ''[[Tetris]]'' being played on a modified [[TI-83 Plus]]]]
[[File:TI-84 Portal.jpg|thumb|A fan-made game similar to the game ''[[Portal (game)|Portal]]'']]


Calculator gaming is a form of gaming in which [[Video game|games]] are played on [[programmable calculator]]s, especially [[graphing calculator]]s.
[[Nokia]] tried to create its own mobile gaming platform with the [[N-Gage]] in 2003 but this effort failed mainly because, at the time, the convergence of a cell phone and a [[Handheld game console|handheld gaming platform]] did not mix. Many users complained of having to talk on the phone 'taco-style' by tilting it sideways in order to speak and hear. There were hardware issues as well, and though some quality games came out, support for the platform was anemic.


In 1980, [[Casio]]'s MG-880 [[pocket calculator]] had a built-in "Invaders" game (essentially a downscaled ''[[Space Invaders]]'' clone),<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Technology: The games that aliens play |magazine=[[New Scientist]] |date=18 December 1980 |volume=88 |issue=1232–1233 |page=782 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ainC3-wuz_kC&pg=PA782 |publisher=[[Reed Business Information]] |issn=0262-4079 }}{{Dead link|date=April 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> released in the Summer that year.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Porter |first1=Matt |title=Episode 131 - Retro Gadgets - Part One - Casio MG-880 Music and Game Calculator |url=https://www.thegadgetman.org.uk/gadget-man-episode-131-retro-gadgets-part-one-casio-mg-880-music-and-game-calculator/ |website=The Gadget Man: Technology News and Reviews |access-date=2 December 2021 |date=11 May 2019}}</ref> Another early example is the [[type-in program]] ''[[Darth Vader|Darth Vader's]] Force Battle'' for the [[TI-59]], published in ''[[BYTE]]'' in October 1980.<ref name="jackson198010">{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1980-10/1980_10_BYTE_05-10_Software#page/n51/mode/2up | title=Darth Vader's Force Battle | work=BYTE | date=October 1980 | access-date=14 June 2014 | author=Jackson, Clete | pages=50–54}}</ref> The magazine also published a version of ''[[Hunt the Wumpus]]'' for the [[HP-41C]].<ref name="librach198102">{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1981-03/1981_03_BYTE_06-03_Programming_Methods#page/n231/mode/2up | title=Hunt the Wumpus with Your HP-41C | work=BYTE | date=February 1981 | access-date=18 October 2013 | author=Librach, Hank | pages=230, 232}}</ref> Few other games exist for the earliest of programmable calculators (including the [[Hewlett-Packard 9100A]], one of the first scientific calculators), such as the long-popular ''[[Lunar Lander (video game series)|Lunar Lander]]'' game often used as an early programming exercise. However, limited program address space and lack of easy program storage made calculator gaming a rarity even as programmables became cheap and relatively easy to obtain. It was not until the early 1990s when [[graphing calculator]]s became more powerful and cheap enough to be common among [[high school]] students for use in mathematics. The new graphing calculators, with their ability to transfer files to one another and from a [[computer]] for backup, could double as game consoles.
Today, cell phone games have come a very long way. Their graphics are about the same as you would expect on a [[History of video game consoles (fourth generation)|4th]] or [[History of video game consoles (fifth generation)|5th generation]] game console (which may not seem like a very big improvement yet is considered one because the game is being played on a cell phone). Cell phone games now tend to take up a large amount of memory on cell phones. Still, certain games such as "[[Tetris]]" and "[[Solitaire]]" are somewhat popular cell phone games.

After the integration of 3D APIs into mobile platforms, the mobile gaming world started to launch its own brand games. [[Real Soccer]], [[Assault Team 3D]], [[Crash Arena 3D]], [[Edge (video game)|Edge]], [[Labyrinth]] and [[Tournament Arena Soccer 3D]] were the first 3D games who became the sectoral well-known brands. After the huge success of [[Tournament Arena Soccer 3D]] by [[Mobilenter]] with getting over 35 millions of downloads in only 1 week before World Cup 2010, the 3D game development became the primary area of mobile game development and mobile gaming became one of the most important gaming platforms.

===Calculator games===
[[File:TI83tris.JPG|thumb|right|Clone of ''[[Tetris]]'' being played on a [[TI-83 Plus]]]]Calculator gaming is a form of gaming in which [[Video game|games]] are played on [[programmable calculator]]s, especially [[graphing calculator]]s. Few games exist for the earliest of programmable calculators (including the [[Hewlett-Packard 9100A]], one of the first scientific calculators), including the long-popular [[Lunar Lander (computer game)|Lunar Lander]] game often used as an early programming exercise. However, limited program address space and lack of easy program storage made calculator gaming a rarity even as programmables became cheap and relatively easy to obtain. It wasn't until the early 1990s when [[graphing calculator]]s became more powerful and cheap enough to be common among [[high school]] students for use in mathematics. The new graphing calculators, with their ability to transfer files to one another and from a computer for backup, could double as game consoles.


Calculators such as [[HP-48]] and [[TI-82]] could be programmed in proprietary [[programming language]]s such as [[RPL programming language]] or [[TI-BASIC (calculators)|TI-BASIC]] directly on the calculator; programs could also be written in [[assembly language]] or (less often) [[C (programming language)|C]] on a desktop computer and transferred to the calculator. As calculators became more powerful and memory sizes increased, games increased in complexity.
Calculators such as [[HP-48]] and [[TI-82]] could be programmed in proprietary [[programming language]]s such as [[RPL programming language]] or [[TI-BASIC (calculators)|TI-BASIC]] directly on the calculator; programs could also be written in [[assembly language]] or (less often) [[C (programming language)|C]] on a desktop computer and transferred to the calculator. As calculators became more powerful and memory sizes increased, games increased in complexity.


By the 1990s, programmable calculators were able to run implementations by hobbyists of games such as ''[[Lemmings (video game)|Lemmings]]'' and ''[[Doom (video game)|Doom]]'' (Lemmings for HP-48 was released in 1993;<ref>http://www.xeye.org/1995-2000/LemmGames.html</ref> Doom for HP-48 was created in 1995<ref>http://hpfool.free.fr/doom/images/index.html</ref>). Some games such as [[Dope Wars]] caused controversy when students played them in school.
By the 1990s, programmable calculators were able to run implementations by hobbyists of games such as ''[[Lemmings (video game)|Lemmings]]'' and ''[[Doom (1993 video game)|Doom]]'' (Lemmings for [[HP 48 series|HP-48]] was released in 1993;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.xeye.org/1995-2000/LemmGames.html |title=Lemming Games |publisher=Xeye.org |date=1997-04-06 |access-date=2013-08-12}}</ref> Doom for HP-48 was created in 1995<ref>{{cite web|url=http://hpfool.free.fr/doom/images/index.html |title=Le projet Doom |publisher=Hpfool.free.fr |date=2001-01-07 |access-date=2013-08-12}}</ref>). Some games such as [[Dope Wars]] caused controversy when students played them in school.


The look and feel of these games on an HP-48 class calculator, due to the lack of dedicated audio and video circuitry providing hardware acceleration, can at most be compared to the one offered by 8-bit handheld consoles such as the early [[Game Boy line|Game Boy]] or the [[Gameking]] (low resolution, monochrome or grayscale graphics), or to the built-in games of non-[[Java virtual machine|Java]] or [[Qualcomm Brew|BREW]] enabled [[cell phone]]s.<ref>http://www.hpcalc.org/hp48/games/arcade/</ref>
The look and feel of these games on an HP-48 class calculator, due to the lack of dedicated audio and video circuitry providing hardware acceleration, can at most be compared to the one offered by 8-bit handheld consoles such as the early [[Game Boy line|Game Boy]] or the [[Gameking]] ([[low resolution]], [[monochrome]] or [[grayscale]] graphics), or to the built-in games of non-[[Java virtual machine|Java]] or [[Qualcomm Brew|BREW]] enabled [[cell phone]]s.<ref>{{cite web|author=Eric Rechlin |url=http://www.hpcalc.org/hp48/games/arcade/ |title=HP 48 Arcade Games |publisher=Hpcalc.org |access-date=2013-08-12}}</ref>


Games continue to be programmed on graphing calculators with increasing complexity. A new wave of games has appeared after the release of the TI-83 Plus/TI-84 Plus series, TI's first graphing calculators to natively support assembly. TI-BASIC programming also rose in popularity after the release of third-party libraries. Assembly remained the language of choice for these calculators, which run on a [[Zilog Z80]] processor, although some assembly implements, have been created to ease the difficulty of learning assembly language. For those running on a [[Motorola 68000]] processor (like the TI-89), C programming (possible using [[TIGCC]]) has began to displace assembly.
Games continue to be programmed on graphing calculators with increasing complexity. A wave of games appeared after the release of the [[TI-83 plus|TI-83 Plus]]/[[TI-84 Plus series]], among TI's first graphing calculators to natively support assembly. [[TI-BASIC]] programming also rose in popularity after the release of third-party libraries. [[Assembly language|Assembly]] remained the language of choice for these calculators, which run on a [[Zilog Z80]] processor, although some assembly implements have been created to ease the difficulty of learning assembly language. For those running on a [[Motorola 68000]] processor (like the [[TI-89 series|TI-89]]), C programming (possible using TIGCC) has begun to displace assembly.


Because they are easy to program without outside tools, calculator games have survived despite the proliferation of [[Handheld device|mobile device]]s such as [[mobile phone]]s and [[Personal digital assistant|PDA]]s.
{{As of|2006}}, since other [[Handheld device|mobile device]]s such as [[mobile phone]]s and [[Personal digital assistant|PDA]]s have become popular and more powerful, and because some newer calculators do not have the same programming capabilities as earlier ones, calculator gaming no longer as popular as it once was. However, programming calculators to play games remains in schools since students are required to have in certain mathematics classes. They are also easily programmable without other tools, as opposed to cell phones or PDAs, which allow for easier uee.


==Industry structure==
==Industry structure==
Total global revenue from mobile games was estimated at $2.6 billion in 2005 by ''Informa Telecoms'' and ''Media''. Total revenue in 2008 was $5.8 billion. The largest mobile gaming markets were in the [[Asia-Pacific]] nations [[Japan]] and [[China]], followed by the [[United States]].<ref>[http://www.3g.co.uk/PR/May2005/1459.htm Global mobile game industry turnover reaches $2.6 billion by 2005]</ref>
Total global [[Total revenue|revenue]] from mobile games was estimated at $2.6 billion in 2005 by [[Informa Telecoms & Media|''Informa Telecoms'' and ''Media'']]. Total revenue in 2008 was $5.8 billion. The largest mobile gaming markets were in the [[Asia-Pacific]] nations [[Japan]] and [[China]], followed by the [[United States]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.3g.co.uk/PR/May2005/1459.htm |title=Global mobile game industry turnover reaches $2.6 billion by 2005 |publisher=3g.co.uk |date=2005-05-19 |access-date=2013-08-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303231447/http://www.3g.co.uk/PR/May2005/1459.htm |archive-date=2016-03-03 |url-status=dead}}</ref> In 2012, the market had already reached $7.8 billion<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012-11-28-the-state-of-mobile-game-development |title= The State of Mobile Game Development |date= 28 November 2012 |publisher=gamesindustry.biz |access-date=2013-11-06}}</ref> A new report was released in November 2015 showing that 1887 app developers would make more than one million dollars on the Google and iOS app stores in 2015.<ref name="Salz-4-November-2015">{{cite journal|last1=Salz|first1=Peggy Anne|title=The Changing Economics of App Development|url=https://hbr.org/2015/11/the-changing-economics-of-app-development|journal=Harvard Business Review|publisher=Hank Boye|access-date=23 May 2016|date=4 November 2015}}</ref>

Mobile gaming revenue reached $50.4 billion in 2017, occupying 43% of the entire global gaming market and poised for further growth.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Wijman |first1=Tom |title=New Gaming Boom: Newzoo Ups Its 2017 Global Games Market Estimate to $116.0Bn Growing to $143.5Bn in 2020|url=https://newzoo.com/insights/articles/new-gaming-boom-newzoo-ups-its-2017-global-games-market-estimate-to-116-0bn-growing-to-143-5bn-in-2020/|website=newzoo.com|publisher=Newzoo|date=28 November 2017|access-date=12 July 2018}}</ref> It is expected to surpass the combined revenues from both [[PC gaming]] and [[console gaming]] in 2018.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Wijman |first1=Tom |title=Mobile Revenues Account for More Than 50% of the Global Games Market as It Reaches $137.9 Billion in 2018|url=https://newzoo.com/insights/articles/global-games-market-reaches-137-9-billion-in-2018-mobile-games-take-half/|website=newzoo.com|publisher=Newzoo|date=30 April 2018|access-date=12 July 2018}}</ref>


==Different platforms==
==Different platforms==
{{main|Mobile software}}
{{main|Mobile software}}


Mobile games are developed using platforms and technologies such as [[Windows Mobile]], [[Palm OS]], [[Symbian]], [[Adobe Flash Lite]], [[NTT DoCoMo]]'s [[DoJa]], [[Sun Microsystems|Sun]]'s [[Java ME]], [[Qualcomm]]'s [[Qualcomm Brew|BREW]], [[WIPI]], [[Apple Inc.|Apple]] [[iOS (Apple)|iOS]], [[Windows Phone 7]] or [[Google]] [[Android (operating system)|Android]].
Mobile games have been developed to run on a wide variety of platforms and technologies. These include the (today largely defunct) [[Palm OS]], [[Symbian]], [[Adobe Flash Lite]], [[NTT DoCoMo]]'s [[DoJa]], [[Sun Microsystems|Sun]]'s [[Java (programming language)|Java]], [[Qualcomm]]'s [[Qualcomm Brew|BREW]], [[WIPI (platform)|WIPI]], [[BlackBerry]], [[Nook]] and early incarnations of [[Windows Mobile]]. Today, the most widely supported platforms are [[Apple Inc.|Apple]]'s [[iOS (Apple)|iOS]] and [[Google]]'s [[Android (operating system)|Android]]. The mobile version of [[Microsoft]]'s [[Windows 10]] (formerly [[Windows Phone]]) is also actively supported, although in terms of market share remains marginal compared to iOS and Android.

[[Java (programming language)|Java]] was at one time the most common platform for mobile games, however its performance limits led to the adoption of various native binary formats for more sophisticated games.

Due to its ease of porting between mobile operating systems and extensive developer community, [[Unity (game engine)|Unity]] is one of the most widely used engines used by modern mobile games. Apple provide a number of proprietary technologies (such as [[Metal (API)|Metal]]) intended to allow developers to make more effective use of their hardware in iOS-native games.

==Monetization==
{{seealso|Video game monetization}}
With the introduction of the [[iOS App Store]] and support for in-app purchases by October 2009, the methods through which mobile games earn revenue have diverged significantly away from traditional game models on consoles or computers. Since 2009, a number of models have developed, and a mobile game developer/publisher may use one or a combination of these models to make revenue.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://qz.com/191931/the-phenomenal-growth-of-the-mobile-games-industry-in-charts/|title=This simple pricing strategy has driven the phenomenal growth of mobile gaming|first=John|last=McDuling|date=25 March 2014 }}</ref>

;Premium
:The premium model is akin to the traditional model where the user pays for the full game upfront. Additional [[downloadable content]] may be available which can be purchased separately. Initial games released to the App Store before in-app purchases were available used this approach, and still common for many types of games.

;Freemium
:The [[freemium]] or "free to try" model offers a small portion of the game for free, comparable to a [[game demo]]. After completing this, the player is given the option to make a one-time in-app purchase to unlock the rest of the game. Early games shortly after the introduction of the in-app purchase feature used this approach such as ''[[Cut the Rope]]'' and ''[[Fruit Ninja]]''.

;Free-to-play
:A [[free-to-play]] game requires no cost at all to play, and generally is designed to be playable from start to finish without having to spend any money into the game. However, the game will include gameplay mechanics which may slow progress towards completing the game. Commonly in mobile games, this is some form of energy or stamina that limits how many turns or actions a player can take each day. By using in-app purchases, the player can immediately restore their energy or stamina and continue on. In-app purchases can also be used to buy power-ups and other items to give the player a limited-time advantage to help complete the game. While free-to-play games had been common on computers prior to mobile, the method was popularized in mobile gaming with ''[[Candy Crush Saga]]'' and ''[[Puzzle & Dragons]]''.

[[File:AppfloodFullScreenInterstitial.png|thumb|A mobile game displaying a full-screen interstitial ad for a different game]]
;Advertising-supported
:A [[Ad-supported software|ad-supported]] game will be free to download and play, but periodically or persistently, the game will show an advertisement to the user which they will have to watch through before they can continue with the game. The [[Developer (software)|developer]] earns revenue from the advertising network. In some cases, an in-app purchase allows the player to fully disable ads in these games.

;Subscription model
:A [[Subscription business model|subscription-based game]] will offer a base version with limited features that can be played for free, but additional premium features can be obtained if the user pays a monthly subscription fee. If they terminate their subscription, they lose access to those features, though typically not any game progression related to those features, and can pick up those features later by restarting their subscription.


Many game apps are free to play through a combination of these models. Over time, mobile developers of these types of apps have observed that the bulk of their players do not spend any funds on their game, but instead revenues are generated from a small fraction, typically under 10% of their total players. Further, most of the revenue is generated by a very small fraction, about 2%, of the total players, who routinely spend large amounts of money on the game. A similar split on revenue had been seen in [[social-network game]]s played in [[Internet Browser|browsers]]. These players are known as "whales", inspired by [[High roller|same term used for high rolling gamblers]]. The social nature of a mobile game has also been found to affect its revenue, as games that encourage players to work in teams or clans will lead to increased spending from engaged players.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://venturebeat.com/2013/03/14/whales-and-why-social-gamers-are-just-gamers/view-all/ | title = What it means to be a 'whale' — and why social gamers are just gamers |first =Stephanie | last= Carmichael | date = March 14, 2013 | access-date = August 21, 2020 | work = [[VentureBeat]] }}</ref>
[[Java (programming language)|Java]] is the most common platform for mobile games, however its performance limits lead to the adoption of various native binary formats for more sophisticated games.


==Common limits of mobile games==
==Common limits of mobile games==
Mobile games tend to be small in scope (in relation to mainstream PC and console games). Storage and memory limitations (sometimes dictated at the platform level) place constraints on file size that presently rule out the direct migration of many modern PC and console games to mobile. One major problem for developers and publishers of mobile games is describing a game in such detail that it gives the customer enough information to make a purchasing decision.
Mobile games tend to be small in scope and often rely on good gameplay rather than graphics, due to the lack of processing power of the client devices. One major problem for developers and publishers of mobile games is describing a game in such detail that it gives the customer enough information to make a purchasing decision. Most of the mobile games are built around a particular theme or have a specific story line. Currently, Mobile Games are mainly sold through Network Carriers / Operators portals and this means there are only a few lines of text and perhaps a screen shot of the game to excite the customer. Two strategies are followed by developers and publishers to combat this lack of purchasing information, firstly there is a reliance on powerful brands and licenses that impart a suggestion of quality to the game such as [[Tomb Raider]] or [[Colin McRae]] and secondly there is the use of well known and established play patterns (game play mechanics that are instantly recognisable) such as [[Tetris]], [[Space Invaders]] or [[Poker]]. Both these strategies are used to decrease the perceived level of risk that the customer feels when choosing a game to download from the carrier’s deck.


==Location-based mobile games==
Recent innovations in mobile games include Singleplayer, Multiplayer and 3D graphics. [[Virtual love games]] belong to both singleplayer and multiplayer games. Multiplayer games are quickly finding an audience, as developers take advantage of the ability to play against others, a natural extension of the mobile phone’s connectivity. With the recent [[Poker boom|internet gambling boom]] various companies are taking advantage of the mobile gaming market to attract customers, [[Ongame]] the founders of [[PokerRoom]] developed in 2005 a working mobile version of its poker software available in both play money and real money. The player can play the game in a singleplayer or multiplayer mode for real or play money. As well, the [[MMORPG]] boom significantly impacted mobile gaming. [[CipSoft]] developed the first MMORPG for mobile phones, called [[TibiaME]].
Games played on a mobile device using localization technology like [[Global Positioning System|GPS]] are called [[location-based game]]s or [[location-based mobile game]]s.<ref name="spacetimeplay">{{Citation
| editor1-last= von Borries | editor1-first= Friedrich
| editor2-last= Walz | editor2-first= Steffen P.
| editor3-last= Böttger | editor3-first= Matthias
| title = Space Time Play
| place = Basel, Boston, Berlin
| publisher = Birkhäuser Verlag AG
| year = 2007
| url = http://spacetimeplay.org
| isbn = 978-3-7643-8414-2}}</ref> These are not only played on mobile hardware but also integrate the player's position into the game concept. In other words, while it does not matter for a normal mobile game where exactly the player is (play them anywhere at any time), the player's [[Coordinates|coordinate]] and movement are the main elements in a location-based mobile game.


A well known example is the outdoor recreational activity of [[geocaching]], which can be played on any mobile device with integrated or external GPS receiver.<ref name="spacetimeplay"/> External GPS receivers are usually connected via [[Bluetooth]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=GPS Hardware|url=https://serc.carleton.edu/research_education/geopad/GPS_hardware.html|access-date=2021-09-02|website=Teaching with GeoPads|language=en}}</ref>
Often trivia or quiz games will run out of questions on mobile devices. Some publishers like [[MobileQs]] will offer expansion packs to the original game to get around this problem.


Several other location-based mobile games, such as the 2001 game ''[[BotFighters]]'', were closer to research [[Prototype|prototypes]] rather than being commercial successes.
==Location-based games==
Games played on a mobile device using localization technology like [[Global Positioning System|GPS]] are called [[location-based game]]s. These are not only played on mobile hardware but also integrate the player's position into the game concept. In other words: while it does not matter for a normal mobile game where exactly you are (play them anywhere at anytime), the player's coordinate and movement are main elements in a [[location-based game]]. The best-known example is the treasure hunt game [[Geocaching]], which can be played on any mobile device with integrated or external [[GPS]] receiver. External GPS receivers are usually connected via [[Bluetooth]]. More and more mobile phones with integrated [[GPS]] are expected to come.


Location-based mobile games sometimes have [[augmented reality]] functionality, such as in the case of the 2016 game ''[[Pokémon Go]]''. Usually in these cases the augmented reality functionality is not at the center of the experience.
Besides Geocaching, there exist several other [[location-based game]]s which are rather in the stage of research prototypes than a commercial success.


==Multiplayer mobile games==
==Augmented reality games==
{{Main|Augmented reality}}
A '''multiplayer mobile game''' is often a re-branding of a [[multiplayer game]] for the PC or console. Most mobile games are single player mobile games perhaps with [[artificially intelligent]] opponents. Multiplayer functionality is achieved through [[Infrared]], [[Bluetooth]], [[GPRS]], [[3G]], [[Wi-Fi]], [[AI]], [[Multimedia Messaging Service|MMS]], or [[Wireless LAN]] connection.
Mobile devices have been used as a platform for Augmented reality (AR in short) games, using the device's camera(s) to as an input for the game. While playing the game, the player aims the device's camera at a location and through the device's screen, sees the area captured by the camera plus [[computer-generated graphics]] atop it, augmenting the display and then allowing the player to [[Human–computer interaction|interact]] that way.{{Citation needed|date=January 2022}} The graphics are generally drawn as to make the generated image appear to be part of the captured background, and will be rendered app memorizing as the player moves the device around.{{Citation needed|date=January 2022}} The most successful and notable example for a mobile game that has an augmented reality feature is ''[[Pokémon Go]]'' (2016), where the player travels to locations marked on their GPS map and then can enable the augmented reality mode to find [[Pokémon|Pokémon creatures]] to capture.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/12/technology/pokemon-go-brings-augmented-reality-to-a-mass-audience.html | title = Pokémon Go Brings Augmented Reality to a Mass Audience | first1 = Nick | last1 = Wingfield | first2 = Mike | last2= Isaac | date = July 11, 2016 | access-date = February 16, 2017 | work = [[The New York Times]] }}</ref> However, as of January 2022 there has been a lack of significant AR mobile games success since, with several AR mobile game projects being shut down, such as [[Microsoft]]'s [[Minecraft Earth]] and Niantic's [[Catan: World Explorers]]<ref>{{Cite web|last=Campbell|first=Ian Carlos|date=2021-09-17|title=Niantic is shutting down its AR Catan game after a year of early access|url=https://www.theverge.com/2021/9/17/22680166/niantic-catan-world-explorers-shutdown-early-access|access-date=2022-01-04|website=The Verge|language=en}}</ref> <ref>{{Cite web|last=Webster|first=Andrew|date=2021-11-03|title=There will never be another Pokémon Go|url=https://www.theverge.com/2021/11/3/22761166/pokemon-go-ar-games-future-pikmin-harry-potter|access-date=2022-01-04|website=The Verge|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Warren|first=Tom|date=2021-01-05|title=Microsoft's ambitious Minecraft Earth game is closing down on June 30th|url=https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/5/22215253/minecraft-earth-closing-down-june-2021-microsoft|access-date=2022-01-04|website=The Verge|language=en}}</ref>


== Multipurpose games ==
Some "community" based games exist in which players use their cellphones to access a community website where they can play browser-based games with other players. Such games typically have limited graphical content so that they can run on a cellphone, and the games focus on the interaction between a large number of participants.
Since mobile devices have become present in the majority of households (at least in the [[developed countries]]), there are more and more games created with [[Educational technology|educational]], [[Lifestyle (sociology)|lifestyle]] and, [[health]] improvement purposes. For example, mobile games can be used in [[speech-language pathology]], children's [[Rehabilitation (penology)|rehabilitation]] in hospitals (Finnish startup Rehaboo!), acquiring new useful or healthy habits ([[Habitica]]), memorizing things and learning languages ([[Memrise]]).


There are also apps with similar purposes which are not games per se, in this case, they are called ''gamified apps''. Sometimes it is difficult to draw a line between multipurpose games and gamified apps.
===Infrared===
Older mobile phones supporting mobile gaming have [[infrared]] connectivity for data sharing with other phones or PCs.


==Multiplayer mobile games==
===Bluetooth===

Some mobile games are connected through [[Bluetooth]] using special hardware. The games are designed to communicate with each other through this protocol to share game information. The basic restriction is that both the users have to be within a limited distance to get connected. A bluetooth device can accept up to 7 connections from other devices using a client/server architecture.
Many mobile games support multiple players, either remotely over a network or locally via [[Wi-Fi]], Bluetooth or similar technology.

There are several options for playing multiplayer games on mobile phones: live [[synchronous]] [[Tournament|tournaments]] and [[Turn based|turn-based]] [[asynchrony (game theory)|asynchronous]] tournaments. In live tournaments random players from around the world are matched together to compete. This is done using different networks such as [[Game Center]], [[Google Play Games]], and [[Facebook]].


In asynchronous tournaments, there are two methods used by game developers centered around the idea that players matches are recorded and then [[Broadcasting|broadcast]] at a later time to other players in the same tournament. Asynchronous gameplay resolves the issue of needing players to have a continuous live connection. This gameplay is different since players take individual turns in the game, therefore allowing players to continue playing against human opponents.
===WAP, GPRS, UMTS, HSDPA===
A [[GPRS]] connection which is common among [[GSM]] mobile phones can be used to share data globally. Developers can connect mass numbers of mobile games with one server and share data among the players. Some developers have created cross platform games, allowing a mobile gamer to play against a PC gamer. WAP and GPRS best supports turn based games and small RPG games. (Most counties have a weak GPRS speed in their carriers. In these types of games, the phone communicates with a global server which acts as a [[router (computing)|router]] between the [[mobile phone]]s. Faster connections like UMTS and HSDPA allow real time multiplayer gaming. More multiplayer mobile continue games entering the market with an increasing connectivity.


This is done using different networks including [[Facebook]]. Some companies use a regular turn-based system where the end results are posted so all the players can see who won the tournament. Other companies take [[Screencast|screen recordings]] of live players and broadcast them to other players at a later point in time to allow players to feel that they are always interacting with another human opponent.
===3G and Wi-Fi===
[[3G]] allows in most cases realtime multiplayer gaming and is based on technologies faster than GPRS. Wi-Fi is often used for connecting at home. Not every mobile device allows games to use the Wi-Fi connection.


==Distribution==
==Distribution==
Mobile games can be distributed in one of four ways:
Mobile games can be distributed in one of four ways:
* Over the Air (OTA) - a game [[binary file]] (usually [[Qualcomm Brew|BREW]] or [[Java (programming language)|Java]]) is delivered to the mobile device via wireless carrier networks.
* Over the Air (OTA): a game [[binary file]] is delivered to the mobile device via wireless carrier networks.
* Sideloaded - a game binary file is loaded onto the phone while connected to a PC, either via [[USB]] cable or [[Bluetooth]].
* [[Sideloading|Sideloaded]]: a game binary file is loaded onto the phone while connected to a PC, either via [[USB]] cable or [[Bluetooth]].
* Pre-installed - a game binary file is preloaded onto the device by the [[original equipment manufacturer]] (OEM).
* Pre-installed: a game binary file is preloaded onto the device by the [[original equipment manufacturer]] (OEM).
* Mobile browser download - a game file (typically [[Adobe Flash Lite]]) is downloaded directly from a mobile website.
* [[Mobile browser]] download: a game file is downloaded directly from a mobile website.


In the US, the majority of mobile games are sold by the US wireless carriers, such as [[AT&T]], [[Verizon]], [[Sprint]] and [[T-Mobile]]. In Europe, games are distributed equally between carriers, such as Orange and [[Vodafone]], and off-deck, third party stores such as [[Jamba]], [[Jamster]], Kalador and [[Gameloft]]. Third party, off-deck game stores have not yet taken off (as of 2007) in the US, as the US based carriers use a '[[walled garden (technology)|walled garden]]' approach to their business models.
Until the launch of Apple App Store, in the US, the majority of mobile games were sold by wireless carriers, such as [[AT&T Mobility]], [[Verizon Wireless]], [[Sprint Corporation]] and [[T-Mobile US]]. In [[Europe]], games were distributed equally between carriers and off-deck, third-party stores.


With the rise of mobile OS platforms like Apple [[iOS (Apple)|iOS]], Google [[Android (operating system)|Android]], and Microsoft [[Windows Mobile 7]], the mobile OS developers themselves have launched digital download storefronts that can be run on the devices using the OS or from software used on PCs. These storefronts (like Apple's iOS [[App Store (iOS)|App Store]]) act as centralized digital download services from which a variety of entertainment media and software can be downloaded, including games.
After the launch of Apple App Store, the mobile OS platforms like Apple [[iOS]], Google [[Android (operating system)|Android]], and Microsoft [[Windows Phone]], the mobile OS developers themselves have launched digital download storefronts that can be run on the devices using the OS or from software used on PCs. These storefronts (like Apple's iOS [[App Store (iOS)|App Store]]) act as centralized digital download services from which a variety of entertainment media and software can be downloaded, including games and nowadays majority of games are distributed through them.


The popularity of mobile games has increased in the 2000s, as over $3 billion USD worth of games were sold in 2007 internationally, and projected annual growth of over 40%. Ownership of a smartphone alone increases the likelihood that a consumer will play mobile games. Over 90% of smartphone users play a mobile game at least once a week.<ref>http://www.marketingforecast.com/archives/10608</ref>
The popularity of mobile games has increased in the 2000s, as over US$3 billion worth of games were sold in 2007 internationally, and projected annual growth of over 40%. Ownership of a smartphone alone increases the likelihood that a consumer will play mobile games. Over 90% of smartphone users play a mobile game at least once a week.<ref>{{cite web|author=Kathy Crosett |url=http://www.marketingforecast.com/archives/10608 |title=Mobile Game Marketing to Increase &#124; Marketing Forecast from Ad-ology |date=2011-03-18 |access-date=2013-08-12 |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120321162003/http://www.marketingforecast.com/archives/10608 |archive-date=March 21, 2012 }}</ref>


Many mobile games are distributed free to the end user, but carry paid advertising: examples are ''[[Flappy Bird]]'' and ''[[Doodle Jump]]''. The latter follows the "freemium" model, in which the base game is free but additional items for the game can be purchased separately. Some of the most popular mobile game developers and publishers include [[Gameloft]] and [[King (company)|King]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2005/09/19/mobile-luminaries-michel-guillemot |title=Mobile Luminaries: Michel Guillemot |first=Levi |last=Buchanan |date=19 September 2005 |website=IGN |access-date=20 July 2018 |archive-date=20 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180720170202/http://www.ign.com/articles/2005/09/19/mobile-luminaries-michel-guillemot |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-09-27 |title=Celebrating 20 Years of Gaming Excellence: King's Milestone Journey |url=https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230927734494/en/Celebrating-20-Years-of-Gaming-Excellence-Kings-Milestone-Journey |access-date=2023-10-04 |website=www.businesswire.com |language=en}}</ref>
In recent years,{{When|date=February 2011}} there has been a move towards mobile games which are distributed free to the end user, but carry prominent, paid advertising.


==See also==
==See also==
*{{annotated link|Digital zombie}}
*[[Mobile software]]
*[[iPod game]]
*[[Handheld electronic game]]
*[[Handheld game console]]
*[[Handheld video game]]
*[[List of most-played mobile games by player count]]
*[[Mobile app]]
*[[Mobile gambling]]
*[[Mobile gambling]]
*[[Mobile development]]
*[[Mobile development]]
*[[Handheld video game]]
*[[N-Gage (device)]]
*[[Handheld electronic game]]
*[[Scalable Network Application Package]]
*[[Scalable Network Application Package]]
*[[N-Gage]]
*[[Transreality gaming]]
*[[iPod game]]


==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist|30em}}

{{Mobile phones}}
{{Mobile phones}}
{{Video game platforms}}
{{Pervasive games}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Mobile Game}}
[[Category:Mobile games| ]]
[[Category:Mobile games| ]]
[[Category:Mobile software|Game]]
[[Category:Mobile software|Game]]
[[Category:Video game platforms]]

[[Category:Video game terminology]]
[[ca:Joc per a mòbils]]
[[de:Handyspiel]]
[[es:Videojuego para móviles]]
[[ko:모바일 게임]]
[[ja:携帯電話ゲーム]]
[[pt:Jogo para celular]]
[[ru:Игры для мобильных устройств]]
[[fi:Mobiilipeli]]
[[sv:Mobilspel]]
[[zh:手机游戏]]

Latest revision as of 18:05, 16 November 2024

A game being played on a smartphone

A mobile game is a video game that is typically played on a mobile phone.[1] The term also refers to all games that are played on any portable device, including from mobile phone (feature phone or smartphone), tablet, PDA to handheld game console, portable media player or graphing calculator, with and without network availability.[1] The earliest known game on a mobile phone was a Tetris variant on the Hagenuk MT-2000 device from 1994.[2][3][4]

In 1997, Nokia launched Snake.[5] Snake, which was pre-installed in most mobile devices manufactured by Nokia for a couple of years, has since become one of the most played games, at one point found on more than 350 million devices worldwide.[6] Mobile devices became more computationally advanced allowing for downloading of games, though these were initially limited to phone carriers' own stores. Mobile gaming grew greatly with the development of app stores in 2008, such as the iOS App Store from Apple. As the first mobile content marketplace operated directly by a mobile-platform holder, the App Store significantly changed the consumer behaviour and quickly broadened the market for mobile games, as almost every smartphone owner started to download mobile apps.[7]

History

[edit]

Towards the end of the 20th century, mobile phone ownership became ubiquitous in the industrialised world due to the establishment of industry standards, and the rapid fall in cost of handset ownership, and use driven by economies of scale. As a result of this explosion, technological advancement by handset manufacturers became rapid. With these technological advances, mobile phone games also became increasingly sophisticated, taking advantage of exponential improvements in display, processing, storage, interfaces, network bandwidth and operating system functionality. The first such game that demonstrated the desire for handset games was a version of Snake that Nokia had included on its devices since 1997.[8]

In 1999, NTT Docomo launched the i-mode mobile platform in Japan, allowing mobile games to be downloaded onto smartphones. Several Japanese video game developers announced games for the i-mode platform that year, such as Konami announcing its dating simulation Tokimeki Memorial. The same year, Nintendo and Bandai were developing mobile phone adapters for their handheld game consoles, the Game Boy Color and WonderSwan, respectively.[9] By 2001, i-mode had 20 million users in Japan, along with more advanced handsets with graphics comparable to 8-bit consoles. A wide variety of games were available for the i-mode service, along with announcements from established video game developers such as Taito, Konami, Namco, and Hudson Soft, including ports of classic arcade games and 8-bit console games.[10]

Screenshot of Edge gameplay mocked up on a Sony Ericsson W880i, an early smartphone

By the mid-2000s there was a large market for mobile games, of which many were built on the Java ME platform that many devices at the time supported. Earlier they could be obtained using SMS short codes before manufacturers as well as mobile network operators started offering them for download both on the Web (on a PC to be transferred to the device) or directly via the air (using GPRS, 3G or Wi-Fi).[11] The launch of Apple's iPhone in 2007 and the App Store in 2008 radically changed the market. The iPhone's focus on larger memory, multitasks, and additional sensing devices, including the touchscreen in later model, made it ideal for casual games, while the App Store, which is also independent from mobile carriers, made it easy for developers to create and post apps to publish, and for users to search for and obtain new games.[7] Further, the App Store added the ability to support in-app purchases in October 2009. This allowed games like Angry Birds and Cut the Rope to find new monetization models away from the traditional premium "pay once" model. Meanwhile, Apple's disruption caused the market to stabilized around iPhone devices and Google's Android-based phones which offered a similar app store through Google Play.

A further major shift game with 2012's Candy Crush Saga and Puzzle & Dragons, games that used a stamina-like gameplay feature found in social-network games like FarmVille to limit the number of times one could play it in a single period, but allowed optional in-app purchases to restore that stamina immediately and continue playing. This new monetization brought in millions of players to both games and millions of dollars in revenue, establishing the "freemium" model that would be a common approach for many mobile games going forward. Mobile gaming grew rapidly over the next several years, buoyed by rapid expansion in China. By 2016, top mobile games were earning over US$100 million a year, and the total revenue for the mobile games sector had surpassed that of other video game areas.[12]

Other major trends in mobile games have include the hyper-casual game such as Flappy Bird and Crossy Road and location-based games like Pokémon Go.

Mobile gaming has impacted the larger video game market by drawing demand away from handheld video game consoles; both Nintendo and Sony had seen major drops in sales of their 2011 handhelds compared to their 2004 predecessors as a result of mobile gaming.[13] At the same time, mobile gaming introduced the concept of microconsoles, low-cost, low-powered home video game consoles that used mobile operating systems to take advantage of the wide variety of games available on these platforms.[14]

Calculator games

[edit]
Clone of Tetris being played on a modified TI-83 Plus
A fan-made game similar to the game Portal

Calculator gaming is a form of gaming in which games are played on programmable calculators, especially graphing calculators.

In 1980, Casio's MG-880 pocket calculator had a built-in "Invaders" game (essentially a downscaled Space Invaders clone),[15] released in the Summer that year.[16] Another early example is the type-in program Darth Vader's Force Battle for the TI-59, published in BYTE in October 1980.[17] The magazine also published a version of Hunt the Wumpus for the HP-41C.[18] Few other games exist for the earliest of programmable calculators (including the Hewlett-Packard 9100A, one of the first scientific calculators), such as the long-popular Lunar Lander game often used as an early programming exercise. However, limited program address space and lack of easy program storage made calculator gaming a rarity even as programmables became cheap and relatively easy to obtain. It was not until the early 1990s when graphing calculators became more powerful and cheap enough to be common among high school students for use in mathematics. The new graphing calculators, with their ability to transfer files to one another and from a computer for backup, could double as game consoles.

Calculators such as HP-48 and TI-82 could be programmed in proprietary programming languages such as RPL programming language or TI-BASIC directly on the calculator; programs could also be written in assembly language or (less often) C on a desktop computer and transferred to the calculator. As calculators became more powerful and memory sizes increased, games increased in complexity.

By the 1990s, programmable calculators were able to run implementations by hobbyists of games such as Lemmings and Doom (Lemmings for HP-48 was released in 1993;[19] Doom for HP-48 was created in 1995[20]). Some games such as Dope Wars caused controversy when students played them in school.

The look and feel of these games on an HP-48 class calculator, due to the lack of dedicated audio and video circuitry providing hardware acceleration, can at most be compared to the one offered by 8-bit handheld consoles such as the early Game Boy or the Gameking (low resolution, monochrome or grayscale graphics), or to the built-in games of non-Java or BREW enabled cell phones.[21]

Games continue to be programmed on graphing calculators with increasing complexity. A wave of games appeared after the release of the TI-83 Plus/TI-84 Plus series, among TI's first graphing calculators to natively support assembly. TI-BASIC programming also rose in popularity after the release of third-party libraries. Assembly remained the language of choice for these calculators, which run on a Zilog Z80 processor, although some assembly implements have been created to ease the difficulty of learning assembly language. For those running on a Motorola 68000 processor (like the TI-89), C programming (possible using TIGCC) has begun to displace assembly.

Because they are easy to program without outside tools, calculator games have survived despite the proliferation of mobile devices such as mobile phones and PDAs.

Industry structure

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Total global revenue from mobile games was estimated at $2.6 billion in 2005 by Informa Telecoms and Media. Total revenue in 2008 was $5.8 billion. The largest mobile gaming markets were in the Asia-Pacific nations Japan and China, followed by the United States.[22] In 2012, the market had already reached $7.8 billion[23] A new report was released in November 2015 showing that 1887 app developers would make more than one million dollars on the Google and iOS app stores in 2015.[24]

Mobile gaming revenue reached $50.4 billion in 2017, occupying 43% of the entire global gaming market and poised for further growth.[25] It is expected to surpass the combined revenues from both PC gaming and console gaming in 2018.[26]

Different platforms

[edit]

Mobile games have been developed to run on a wide variety of platforms and technologies. These include the (today largely defunct) Palm OS, Symbian, Adobe Flash Lite, NTT DoCoMo's DoJa, Sun's Java, Qualcomm's BREW, WIPI, BlackBerry, Nook and early incarnations of Windows Mobile. Today, the most widely supported platforms are Apple's iOS and Google's Android. The mobile version of Microsoft's Windows 10 (formerly Windows Phone) is also actively supported, although in terms of market share remains marginal compared to iOS and Android.

Java was at one time the most common platform for mobile games, however its performance limits led to the adoption of various native binary formats for more sophisticated games.

Due to its ease of porting between mobile operating systems and extensive developer community, Unity is one of the most widely used engines used by modern mobile games. Apple provide a number of proprietary technologies (such as Metal) intended to allow developers to make more effective use of their hardware in iOS-native games.

Monetization

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With the introduction of the iOS App Store and support for in-app purchases by October 2009, the methods through which mobile games earn revenue have diverged significantly away from traditional game models on consoles or computers. Since 2009, a number of models have developed, and a mobile game developer/publisher may use one or a combination of these models to make revenue.[27]

Premium
The premium model is akin to the traditional model where the user pays for the full game upfront. Additional downloadable content may be available which can be purchased separately. Initial games released to the App Store before in-app purchases were available used this approach, and still common for many types of games.
Freemium
The freemium or "free to try" model offers a small portion of the game for free, comparable to a game demo. After completing this, the player is given the option to make a one-time in-app purchase to unlock the rest of the game. Early games shortly after the introduction of the in-app purchase feature used this approach such as Cut the Rope and Fruit Ninja.
Free-to-play
A free-to-play game requires no cost at all to play, and generally is designed to be playable from start to finish without having to spend any money into the game. However, the game will include gameplay mechanics which may slow progress towards completing the game. Commonly in mobile games, this is some form of energy or stamina that limits how many turns or actions a player can take each day. By using in-app purchases, the player can immediately restore their energy or stamina and continue on. In-app purchases can also be used to buy power-ups and other items to give the player a limited-time advantage to help complete the game. While free-to-play games had been common on computers prior to mobile, the method was popularized in mobile gaming with Candy Crush Saga and Puzzle & Dragons.
A mobile game displaying a full-screen interstitial ad for a different game
Advertising-supported
A ad-supported game will be free to download and play, but periodically or persistently, the game will show an advertisement to the user which they will have to watch through before they can continue with the game. The developer earns revenue from the advertising network. In some cases, an in-app purchase allows the player to fully disable ads in these games.
Subscription model
A subscription-based game will offer a base version with limited features that can be played for free, but additional premium features can be obtained if the user pays a monthly subscription fee. If they terminate their subscription, they lose access to those features, though typically not any game progression related to those features, and can pick up those features later by restarting their subscription.

Many game apps are free to play through a combination of these models. Over time, mobile developers of these types of apps have observed that the bulk of their players do not spend any funds on their game, but instead revenues are generated from a small fraction, typically under 10% of their total players. Further, most of the revenue is generated by a very small fraction, about 2%, of the total players, who routinely spend large amounts of money on the game. A similar split on revenue had been seen in social-network games played in browsers. These players are known as "whales", inspired by same term used for high rolling gamblers. The social nature of a mobile game has also been found to affect its revenue, as games that encourage players to work in teams or clans will lead to increased spending from engaged players.[28]

Common limits of mobile games

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Mobile games tend to be small in scope (in relation to mainstream PC and console games). Storage and memory limitations (sometimes dictated at the platform level) place constraints on file size that presently rule out the direct migration of many modern PC and console games to mobile. One major problem for developers and publishers of mobile games is describing a game in such detail that it gives the customer enough information to make a purchasing decision.

Location-based mobile games

[edit]

Games played on a mobile device using localization technology like GPS are called location-based games or location-based mobile games.[29] These are not only played on mobile hardware but also integrate the player's position into the game concept. In other words, while it does not matter for a normal mobile game where exactly the player is (play them anywhere at any time), the player's coordinate and movement are the main elements in a location-based mobile game.

A well known example is the outdoor recreational activity of geocaching, which can be played on any mobile device with integrated or external GPS receiver.[29] External GPS receivers are usually connected via Bluetooth.[30]

Several other location-based mobile games, such as the 2001 game BotFighters, were closer to research prototypes rather than being commercial successes.

Location-based mobile games sometimes have augmented reality functionality, such as in the case of the 2016 game Pokémon Go. Usually in these cases the augmented reality functionality is not at the center of the experience.

Augmented reality games

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Mobile devices have been used as a platform for Augmented reality (AR in short) games, using the device's camera(s) to as an input for the game. While playing the game, the player aims the device's camera at a location and through the device's screen, sees the area captured by the camera plus computer-generated graphics atop it, augmenting the display and then allowing the player to interact that way.[citation needed] The graphics are generally drawn as to make the generated image appear to be part of the captured background, and will be rendered app memorizing as the player moves the device around.[citation needed] The most successful and notable example for a mobile game that has an augmented reality feature is Pokémon Go (2016), where the player travels to locations marked on their GPS map and then can enable the augmented reality mode to find Pokémon creatures to capture.[31] However, as of January 2022 there has been a lack of significant AR mobile games success since, with several AR mobile game projects being shut down, such as Microsoft's Minecraft Earth and Niantic's Catan: World Explorers[32] [33][34]

Multipurpose games

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Since mobile devices have become present in the majority of households (at least in the developed countries), there are more and more games created with educational, lifestyle and, health improvement purposes. For example, mobile games can be used in speech-language pathology, children's rehabilitation in hospitals (Finnish startup Rehaboo!), acquiring new useful or healthy habits (Habitica), memorizing things and learning languages (Memrise).

There are also apps with similar purposes which are not games per se, in this case, they are called gamified apps. Sometimes it is difficult to draw a line between multipurpose games and gamified apps.

Multiplayer mobile games

[edit]

Many mobile games support multiple players, either remotely over a network or locally via Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or similar technology.

There are several options for playing multiplayer games on mobile phones: live synchronous tournaments and turn-based asynchronous tournaments. In live tournaments random players from around the world are matched together to compete. This is done using different networks such as Game Center, Google Play Games, and Facebook.

In asynchronous tournaments, there are two methods used by game developers centered around the idea that players matches are recorded and then broadcast at a later time to other players in the same tournament. Asynchronous gameplay resolves the issue of needing players to have a continuous live connection. This gameplay is different since players take individual turns in the game, therefore allowing players to continue playing against human opponents.

This is done using different networks including Facebook. Some companies use a regular turn-based system where the end results are posted so all the players can see who won the tournament. Other companies take screen recordings of live players and broadcast them to other players at a later point in time to allow players to feel that they are always interacting with another human opponent.

Distribution

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Mobile games can be distributed in one of four ways:

  • Over the Air (OTA): a game binary file is delivered to the mobile device via wireless carrier networks.
  • Sideloaded: a game binary file is loaded onto the phone while connected to a PC, either via USB cable or Bluetooth.
  • Pre-installed: a game binary file is preloaded onto the device by the original equipment manufacturer (OEM).
  • Mobile browser download: a game file is downloaded directly from a mobile website.

Until the launch of Apple App Store, in the US, the majority of mobile games were sold by wireless carriers, such as AT&T Mobility, Verizon Wireless, Sprint Corporation and T-Mobile US. In Europe, games were distributed equally between carriers and off-deck, third-party stores.

After the launch of Apple App Store, the mobile OS platforms like Apple iOS, Google Android, and Microsoft Windows Phone, the mobile OS developers themselves have launched digital download storefronts that can be run on the devices using the OS or from software used on PCs. These storefronts (like Apple's iOS App Store) act as centralized digital download services from which a variety of entertainment media and software can be downloaded, including games and nowadays majority of games are distributed through them.

The popularity of mobile games has increased in the 2000s, as over US$3 billion worth of games were sold in 2007 internationally, and projected annual growth of over 40%. Ownership of a smartphone alone increases the likelihood that a consumer will play mobile games. Over 90% of smartphone users play a mobile game at least once a week.[35]

Many mobile games are distributed free to the end user, but carry paid advertising: examples are Flappy Bird and Doodle Jump. The latter follows the "freemium" model, in which the base game is free but additional items for the game can be purchased separately. Some of the most popular mobile game developers and publishers include Gameloft and King.[36][37]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
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  2. ^ "This was the world's first cell phone with a game loaded". Phone Arena. 16 November 2014. Archived from the original on 22 May 2019. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  3. ^ Blog, Microsoft Devices (2013-01-16). "10 things you didn't know about mobile gaming". Microsoft Devices Blog. Retrieved 2021-08-20.
  4. ^ Andreas Elmenthaler (Elmi). "Hagenuk MT-2000 with Tetris". Handy-sammler.de. Archived from the original on June 17, 2013. Retrieved 2013-08-12.
  5. ^ "Snake is born:a mobile gaming" (in Dutch). Nokia. Archived from the original on February 9, 2009. Retrieved 2013-08-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  6. ^ "7 Nokia World Records That Will Blow Your Mind". Archived from the original on March 30, 2012. Retrieved 2013-08-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  7. ^ a b Behrmann M, Noyons M, Johnstone B, MacQueen D, Robertson E, Palm T, Point J (2012). "State of the Art of the European Mobile Games Industry" (PDF). Mobile GameArch Project. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-05-05. Retrieved 2013-08-12.
  8. ^ Wright, Chris (March 14, 2016). "A Brief History of Mobile Games: In the beginning, there was Snake". PocketGamer. Retrieved August 18, 2020.
  9. ^ "Mobiles: The New Gaming Platform (Big in Japan)" (PDF). Edge. No. 79 (December 1999). 24 November 1999. p. 10. Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 October 2021.
  10. ^ "Big guns join the iMode revolution" (PDF). Edge. No. 95 (March 2001). 26 February 2001. pp. 18–9. Archived (PDF) from the original on 14 July 2018.
  11. ^ "Develop state-of-the-art mobile games". InfoWorld. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  12. ^ Chan, Stephanie (July 13, 2017). "Mobile game revenue finally surpasses PC and consoles". Venture Beat. Retrieved January 8, 2018.
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  20. ^ "Le projet Doom". Hpfool.free.fr. 2001-01-07. Retrieved 2013-08-12.
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  24. ^ Salz, Peggy Anne (4 November 2015). "The Changing Economics of App Development". Harvard Business Review. Hank Boye. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
  25. ^ Wijman, Tom (28 November 2017). "New Gaming Boom: Newzoo Ups Its 2017 Global Games Market Estimate to $116.0Bn Growing to $143.5Bn in 2020". newzoo.com. Newzoo. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  26. ^ Wijman, Tom (30 April 2018). "Mobile Revenues Account for More Than 50% of the Global Games Market as It Reaches $137.9 Billion in 2018". newzoo.com. Newzoo. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
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  28. ^ Carmichael, Stephanie (March 14, 2013). "What it means to be a 'whale' — and why social gamers are just gamers". VentureBeat. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
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  37. ^ "Celebrating 20 Years of Gaming Excellence: King's Milestone Journey". www.businesswire.com. 2023-09-27. Retrieved 2023-10-04.