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On upscaling iPhone games to iPad

Feature by Ben Briggs, February 23, 2010

Without getting our hands on the iPad as of yet, we can’t test its capabilities. It shares its capacitive touch screen, accelerometer and multitouch capabilities with its smaller brethren, but without putting these features through their paces we can’t be too sure how well games will translate over. Sure, you can run existing content in pixel perfect resolution, but the scope here is so much larger. Although it makes total sense to tilt the iPhone like a steering wheel, it might not make sense for iPad; time will tell of course, but we think that multitouch based games will become more prevalent. As developers will inevitably build iPad specific games to make full use of the hardware, we’re going to take an educated shot in the dark and highlight a few genres that we think will do well, and games that could be even better in native resolution.

Canabalt; or richly designed games with simple control schemes

One of those simple one button games, Canabalt delivers on execution. It is a really immersive game that would be even more so on a larger screen. Yes, you can play it in a browser window on your Mac or PC, but a fullscreen iPad Canabalt would be amazing. Better yet, use the increased resolution to create a multiplayer component on the same device.

Also, the line drawing genre is a natural fit for the iPad, where screen space is a lot greater. Games like Harbor Master could have huge maps without sacrificing on playability, and because they don’t require a fixed set of control wheels they could be easily played between two or more people laying the device flat.

PopCap games; or games that use a single finger as the primary input

Let’s face it; PopCap have ported over some truly excellent content for iPhone, usually at the expense of running them under a small resolution. Peggle, and more recently, Plants vs. Zombies, both use a single finger and a set of control buttons rather than multiple finger gestures and would look fantastic on Apple's new device. Sure, it was harder for us to get excited about Bejeweled 2 given the glut of match three puzzlers, but we cannot deny that it would be a smart move for PopCap to do an iPad version of the gem matching blockbuster.

The iPhone has proved that touch based interfaces work best when each application has its own set of unique controls. Because the input mechanism is so much more direct than a mouse pointer, we’re betting that single finger games are going to do as well on the new iPad.

Real time strategy; where a HUD is paramount

Cramming a fully featured RTS onto the iPhone is a daunting task; but the iPad has ample room for onscreen buttons without sacrificing precious viewing space. Multiple finger gestures should also be easier to perform on the device with its greater surface area, and overall RTS games like Galcon or Space Station: Frontier would benefit from the increased resolution. It would enable developers to build feature rich games without compromising on options.

New games for a more sociable device

Playing board games on a computer screen is bad enough when two or more people are leaning over your shoulder, vying for your chair. And on an iPod touch too much passing goes on between players. On a flat surface, iPad will combine the best of both worlds. A more sophisticated user interface in a device that more people can get their hands on without having to constantly pass it backwards and forwards.

Yes, this format can apply to the aforementioned board games, but we’re hoping developers have some multitouch enabled party games up their sleeves. With games like 2360: Battle for Cydonia showing us ideal control schemes for the iPhone, we’re sure that new ways of interacting with games will be uncovered in this new device.

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