Ian Bogost - Water Cooler Games - Apple iPhone: Another Closed Platform

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Water Cooler Games served as the web's primary forum for "videogames with an agenda" — coverage of the uses of video games in advertising, politics, education, and other everyday activities, outside the sphere of entertainment.

The site was maintained at watercoolergames.org from 2003-2009, where it was edited by myself and Gonzalo Frasca. It is now archived here in full.

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Apple iPhone: Another Closed Platform

by Ian Bogost January 12, 2007

categories: Casual Games

If you saw Apple's new iPhone earlier this week, you might have thought, "Wow, it runs OS X and has a 3.5" multitouch screen and an accelerometer... it would be cool to make games for it." Well, too bad for you. Just as Apple previously closed access to games on the new iPod Video, so it continues with the iPhone. From The Joel on Software Discussion Group:

According to MacInTouch, Apple representatives called iPhone a "closed platform", and indicated that there would be no public SDK, though interested parties could call Apple developer relations for more information. I take this to mean that iPhone can run third-party software, but only from selected Apple partners. Bummer.

Bummer indeed. What's more, Engadget confirms that iPhone is "first party software ONLY" -- that is, nobody can install apps on it, games or otherwise.

Why Apple hasn't realized that the open nature of audio, video, internet radio, and podcasts is part of what makes iTunes so successful -- and that the same could be true for games if only they'd let it -- is beyond me. Even if Apple allows third party development by "trusted partners," that just makes the iPhone another walled garden.

(thanks to Nico for the link)

Comments (5)

This is incredible and shocking! I thought for sure they would open this thing up and let game designers run with it.... would have worked out well for them. Oh, well.

kellee on January 11, 2007 4:23 AM

Thats a shame, but I wouldn't mind becoming one of those trusted partners. What are they really afraid of though, too much content selection for the user? I wonder what Trip Hawkins would say about that.

Patrick Dugan on January 11, 2007 5:34 PM

Ok ci siamo tutti esaltati per la presentazione del nuovo gioiello di Apple: iPhone ha colpito per il design curato e le dimensioni. Ovviamente prima ancora di averlo fisicamente tra le mani sono arrivate le prime stroncature. I difetti principali risc...

GuidaGadget.com - I difetti principali del nuovo Apple iPhone on January 12, 2007 1:35 AM

Apparently the version of Safari on the iPhone also doesn't support Flash or Java. Read more here: http://blogs.zdnet.com/Apple/?p=387

Ian Bogost on January 22, 2007 2:45 PM

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