Now that gaming on phones is more popular than on any other platform, it’s no wonder that a whole new generation of aspiring game developers is emerging. The variety of games available on iPhones and Android Smartphones is vast, giving us more than we could have ever imagined even a decade ago.
With game development comes a fantastic outlet for creativity, storytelling and graphic design that should be explored. Below, we examine eight ways that smartphone gaming has sparked the imagination of creative individuals across the globe.
Table of Contents
Accessibility of games on smartphones
It’s easier than ever to be entertained by games on our phones. In the past, games needed to be purchased from a shop, or shared among friends to be accessed. You needed a decent computer or console to play them. Today, games are everywhere, and those who were never previously gamers fill their time playing Candy Crush, Farmville and Tetris on a daily basis.
With this accessibility comes the opportunity to create. Those who want to make their imaginations come to life enter the gaming industry with stories to tell, animation to create, and strategies to implement.
Growing variety of smartphone games
There is now a veritable mountain of games to choose from too. High-tech games can be accessed through smartphones and most of them can be played for free, at least initially. From hyper-casual and simulation games to action and racing games, there’s a large variety of games available in the genre that appeals to you the most.
Money to be made in game development
We used to purchase our games in a once-off fashion and may have upgraded them with expansions later on, but today the gaming industry is a billion-dollar industry largely due to microtransactions. Mobile games are predominantly free, but you might end up spending more on free mobile games than on those on other platforms, because there are ways to advance based on how much you spend.
Upgrades, ads and premium versions are usually there to entice you to whip out your credit card. For this reason, smartphone games have become a self-propelling career move for many. Developers like Martin van Blerk have become entrepreneurs in this field and make their living by developing, analyzing and improving games that others have thought up. One of van Blerk’s current projects includes a global multiplayer game called Reckless Rivals.
Affordable education for creative developers
Game development education is more accessible today than it’s ever been. App development platforms are virtually free nowadays, and tutorials on how to navigate them are inexpensive and available online. Since most game developers learn by doing, it doesn’t take creative people long to learn how to create their fantasy game quickly and make it available for others to play.
Evolution and improvement of existing games
Since we have decades of games as a reference, it’s no wonder that today’s games are so intuitive, creative, and downright addictive! We learn as we play. If we find a game, we like but find flaws in it based on our own preferences or the preference of a larger gaming community, a newer creation that’s had all the flaws ironed out is likely to be produced.
In fact, game developers lean on their own gaming experiences to develop better versions of the games they loved as kids. Add to that the psychology of making games more addictive, as well as the creativity of good storytelling, and you have a whole range of amazing games to choose from.
Wider range of game genres
In the past, games were more basic in nature. We had adventure games, racing games, first-person shooters, and puzzle games. Today, game genres are spread out into dozens of categories and types. This spread has become so great that we’ve had to hyphenate the sub-genre names we use to refer to them! Just look at some of them:
- Survival-adventure
- Hybrid-casual
- Racing-simulation
- Adventure-building
- Simulation-farming
Creative forms of animation
The animation of games is enough to spark the creativity of artists everywhere. With new software constantly being developed to help realize the imagination of creators, there are many different types of animation directions creative individuals can take. Gone are the days when pixelated characters and scenery were the only animations we had. Today’s graphic evolution showcases just about anything your imagination can come up with.
Gamifying life and work
The term “gamification” is catching on in all forms of work, life and even schooling. Today, we have games that take your to-do list and turn it into a game, making those mundane daily tasks a joy rather than a chore. Companies are developing ways to gamify their employees’ work lives, and educators are evolving to include gamification within their classrooms.
Final thoughts
Individuals who are compelled to give their talents and imagination a creative outlet should seriously consider the gaming industry. There’s so much that’s been done, but still so many ways the games we have can be developed and evolved. Gaming is still an open canvas, allowing creativity to run wild while generating a decent income too.
