As Epic Games is preparing to ship its software developer kit (SDK) to iOS developers, the age of “so-so” computer graphics on mobile will end. We predicted that mobiles with OpenGL 2.0 would blow your mind when the iPhone 3GS came out with OpenGL ES 2.0, which is the equivalent of DirectX 9 in terms of features. That’s about what the current generation of consoles like the Xbox 360 and the PS3 support. John Carmack, the programmer of Doom and Quake has recently said that Apple’s mobile platform has already surpassed the Wii in terms of (graphic) capabilities, and so far, games such as Citadel prove him right.
With this SDK, developers can benefit from decades of R&D and talent from one of the best real-time computer graphics team in the industry. As long as they stay within that game genre, developers can focus on developing graphics and games. This doesn’t mean that simple games like Angry Bird or Cut the cord won’t continue to do well, but this means that the first-mover advantage is fading quickly and that game studios will now compete in the same way they do on established gaming platforms. More info at Epic Games
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