Apple’s OS devices have been carving a chunk out of the gaming industry for a while, for a number of reasons. In fact, according to Asymco analysts Horace Dediu and Dirk Schmidt, iOS devices have become the world largest gaming platform of all time!
According to the analysts, Apple’s Game Center is widely expected to cross the 200 million member barrier – something which no other gaming platform has ever done.
- No gaming device has ever reached the 200 million mark
- At the current growth rate the number of Game Center accounts will surpass 200 million before the year end
Game Center aside, the report also notes that OpenFeint (an alternative to Game Center on iOS) has already surpassed 180 million members. If you combine OpenFeint and GameCenter together, iOS is already the clear winner for the most popular gaming platform ever.
Even considering that some users may have more than one OpenFeint or GameCenter account, it’s still quite likely that the total number of combined gaming accounts is greater than 200 million.
It’s hardly surprising, of course. Besides the fact that Apple’s iOS devices work together as a shared ecosystem, there’s also a very compelling argument to make that Apple’s iOS devices are far, far more affordable long-term than any gaming console:
Furthermore, although the iPad is more expensive up front than a game console, the savings in games can add up very quickly. For the sake of argument, let’s consider that the most expensive iPad available costs $830, compared to the $299 price tag for a PlayStation 3, and let’s assume that professional iOS games cost an average of $10, versus an average of $40 on the PlayStation 3 (these are just rough figures).
With these figures, you’d only have to purchase 11 games to account for the cost difference – and you’d be getting a whole host of additional apps, a personal organizer, a music and video player, a book reader, and a web browsing device as a free bonus! Additionally, most games for the iPad, even professional quality games, are $10 or less.
It’s pretty remarkable that Apple, which is definitely not a gaming company, has managed to outshine the likes of Nintendo (a dedicated gaming company!) in the console race. Way to go Apple! I wonder how many more points they have to score to earn an extra life?
