App Developers Talk About Apple’s New iPad

Well, if you haven’t heard by now, shame on you. Apple’s latest creation, the iPad - a tablet device - is now out. We’ve touched on what this $500 device can do, and shared our expectations for third party developers, but just what are these developers saying? Here's a roundup of conversations we and others have been having with them. Note that the people who are talking are already focused on developing for the iPhone and other mobile platforms, so the news is most immediately relevant to them. Most of the responses are along the same lines -- the iPad is going to expand casual and mobile gaming. On the social front, the bigger screen, faster processing speed and Wifi and 3G connectivity means that the device could be especially good for multi-player games. Scoreloop has already announced its support for the Apple iPad through its Scoreloop Core Social, a mobile social networking platform. Chief executive Marc Gumpinger says that the first "Scoreloop enabled games for the iPad are already in the works.” One is to be Astro Ranch HD, a 3D space farming title from Tag Games (Astro Ranch is the iPhone title). We also recently spoke to the folks over at Aurora Feint, developers of the OpenFeint social platform on the iPhone. They expect the iPad “to be a key console for gaming and especially casual and social gaming" and that Apple will “bring all its capabilities and user base to the tablet.” And, Jason Oberfest of Ngmoco tells us that "we think the device is a big step forward for portable gaming and will give Apple a strong foothold in the home gaming space." Trip Hawkins, founder of social developer Digital Chocolate has also made positive comments towards the new device. In an interview with Pocket Gamer, he says that the “iPad and other tablets will be the expansion of the game market to include more ‘Omni Gamers’ who don’t currently think of themselves as gamers. These will be consumers from all walks of life and they’ll initially get a tablet instead of a laptop PC or DVD player and the next thing they know, they’ll be playing a game on Facebook and downloading apps.” VentureBeat's Dean Takahashi was at the iPad launch event yesterday in San Francisco, and interviewed a number of the developers who attended. Shervin Pishevar, founder and chairman of the Social Gaming Network, said "the iPad will turn our laptops into the rotary phones of the future," in that the device will take over as a central part of people's day to day activities. While developers are excited, they're also buy looking at how to build games that best fit the new device. Here are a couple of Takahashi's video interviews that address this point; the first is with Ge Wang, the chief technology officer at Smule and the second is with Travis Boatman of Electronic Arts' mobile division. Ge Wang of Smule talks about the iPad from Dean Takahashi on Vimeo. Travis Boatman of Electronic Arts talks about the iPad from Dean Takahashi on Vimeo.

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App Developers Talk About Apple’s New iPad

Christopher Mack

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Christopher Mack