This is yet another slow Monday with basically nothing going on in the mobile gaming industry. Therefore it is editorial time. QuicklyBored is in the business of trying to find a mobile game that does not suck. In doing so, we’ve come across certain unbreakable rules that mobile games should currently follow and by doing so will help create the perfect game. The perfect mobile game should have the following features: Simple user interface, quick play, and multiplayer.
What I mean by a simple user interface is recognizing that handsets are not built for complex gaming. That being said, designing a game around the one- or two-button game model provides for excellent gaming on a mobile phone. Track and Field had the right idea when it comes to button interface. Tony Hawk's AW is a great example of a terrible use of button interface. Puzzle games will almost always be a success in this aspect of mobile gaming and other genres can learn a lot from this game type.
A user will play a mobile game for about 11 minutes. This tells us that a game level which requires any more than this to pass is simply too long. By creating a mobile game which involves quick matches, the user can progress through the game each time they play which helps in keeping the user engaged. A good example of this is Texas Hold'em games. Being able to play a few hands, win some money and then return at a later point makes Texas Hold'em a great mobile game. It also adheres to the other two rules. Tetris Marathon is a good example of a game that takes way to long. Even the game's name lets you know that it is going to be long. The levels take forever to play and the rewards you get for the amount of time played is unsatisfying.
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