id Software will be bringing its Rage game to the Apple iPhone and iPad and the company is promising some crazy graphics. How crazy? Is 60 frames-per-second crazy enough for you?
The company showed off a sneak preview of the Rage game at the QuakeCon conference (check out video at Kotaku) and it said this will blow away graphics on the PlayStation 2 or original Xbox. That’s pretty impressive for an Apple iPhone game, especially when you add on the Game Center elements of the iOS 4.
The company said the Rage game will have 60 frames per second action and that it will work on the iPhone 3GS and 4, but is best experienced on the iPad. Look for a smaller, “show-off” version and the full version will come out next year. These good graphics are made possible by the id Tech 5 engine, which, if it delivers as id promises, could lead to a new crop of visually-pleasing iPhone games.
The move could further cement the Apple iPhone as the leader in the mobile gaming space, as games are routinely among the most-downloaded apps in the App Store. When you throw in the iPad and iPod Touch, the iOS platform represents a sizable audience for game makers.
But competitors loom for the Apple iPhone in the mobile gaming space, as Google is beefing up its Android gaming platform with investments, new developer tools and developer outreach.
The traditional mobile game makers are also feeling the heat from Apple, as Nintendo already considers the iPhone maker the “enemy of the future.” It is hoping the Nintendo 3DS will provide a unique experience that will surpass any app.
Sony Ericsson is taking a different approach and it is embracing Android for an upcoming device that may finally be the much-rumored PlayStation Phone. This handset is supposed to rock Android 3.0, a slide-out controller and a Sony ecosystem for downloading high-performance games.
The future looks bright for mobile gamers.