Hold On Just One More Game
Lets face it; iPhone games so far have not exactly been the most engaging or fun games made to day. Other then the many fart apps and terrible rip offs of popular online games of the time. The few titles that have been engaging and good tend to appeal to the causal and are simple to the point of boredom. Game Dev Story breaks the mold and makes a really addicting, compelling and really complex game make it one of the best game for iPhone.
As the title suggest you are the CEO of a newly formed game company that is trying to break through and become remember as one of the best. At its core the Game Dev Story is a simulation game similar to Rollercoaster Tycoon. You start out with two staff members some startup money and from there the rest is in your hands. What makes Game Dev Story so unique and unlike most other games you find on iPhone is the amount of complexity within the game. For instance you can start out by simply attempting to create your first game or take contract work to build your capital.
The gameplay from there breaks down into a cycle of developing and releasing games. You hire/fire staff, outsource elements of your development, and advertise your company. When you finally ship you also get the much dreaded review scores, which can dictate how your game sells. You also much contend with training your staff to become greater overall developers which is key to increasing your studio’s notoriety and fame.
From there the game continues on through twenty years as you try to become one of the great. The game does great as a look back on twenty years of gaming in a rather comical and lighthearted way. Modern day companies such as Nintendo, Sega, Microsoft and Sony are parodied along with their line of products. It helps to have some background in the history of gaming to know where you should invest and where you should past (hint pass on the Virtual Boy). The game also parodies such industry events such as E3 and what I can only presume is the DICE awards.
One of the other brilliant choices in Game Dev Story is the art style choice used within the game. A very simple and clean design (something that a lot of iPhone games could learn from) makes the game easy and quick to understand. The interface itself is simple with just a tap of the screen to pull up your options menu and quickly select actions. Its simplicity and efficiency is what truly makes Game Dev so addicting.
Overall I love Game Dev Story, its fun, simple, and just flatout addicting to play. It is truly one of the best iPhone games I have ever played and liked.
