Tech Blog

[#1]

There have been a lot of titles released for the iOS platforms that, you know, should make us feel like it's a "serious" games platform. Something that's absolutely on the level with the DS, the PSP... maybe even the 3DS and the upcoming Vita. Titles like Infinity Blade, let's say. But for some reason I can't ever quite buy the narrative, and you know, I play tons of games on my iPod touch! Maybe it's that lack of buttons thing. I just can't see it. But... you know... Capcom releasing Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective, really not that long after it was released on Nintendo DS, well, there's something to be said for that.

Well, admittedly, it's been out in the Japanese app store for ages, but to be honest I really didn't think it would ever make it out over here (but in retrospect, I'm not sure why.) They've previously released the first Phoenix Wright title for iOS but it was a pretty shonky port and so it didn't really register--of course, with Ghost Trick out now, Capcom has gone on to announce they will be giving the Phoenix Wright series a "HD remaster" with all three of the first Phoenix Wright titles making it to iOS (still with the weird Nintendo DS-style aspect ratio though--why?)

I suppose, in general, the reason this seems important to me is that it shows that more Japanese publishers--outside of Square Enix--are taking the platform seriously, by which I mean "not just chucking any old rubbish up, even if it doesn't work with touch-screen controls."

Ghost Trick is a perfect candidate for pure touch screen, and in fact, Capcom themselves seem to claim the iOS version might be definitive, with higher-res graphics and "a wider viewing area for more immersive puzzle solving."

If you're not familiar with why you should care, well Ghost Trick is created by Shu Takumi (creator of the Phoenix Wright series, as mentioned above) and in it players take on the role of Sissel, the ghost of a murder victim who has lost his memory and must solve the mystery of his demise. You guide his blue-flamed soul through dynamic environments, possessing and manipulating inanimate objects found in the world to solve the puzzles he encounters, all animated in absolutely gorgeous style.

If you haven't picked up Ghost Trick yet, there's actually a bit of a dilemma in front of you. Do you pick it up for Nintendo DS after all (and get the physical item) or pick it up for iOS, where the first two chapters (a mere taster) are free, and to buy the entire rest of the game it's a mere $9.99?

I have to say I'd struggle with that decision, personally. I still love the Nintendo DS, but maybe it's time to take my iPod touch seriously as a game system? What do you think?