iTunes App Store to get premium games section?

Posted by Al Warmington on Thu 29 Jan 2009

Apple honing in on handheld consoles

Apple is getting ready to launch a premium games section of the iTunes App store, say inside sources. A range of new $19.99 titles will be sold for iPhone and iPod Touch – a move which may bring Apple’s handheld devices into closer competition with the Sony PSP and Nintendo DS.

Current games available from iTunes App Store range from free up to £4.99, so this plan would be a major step up for the service. However, it is believed that the premium priced section will only be open to large mobile games publishers, likely including EA and Gameloft. Sorry, indie devs.

This would in turn help lure those big publishers into putting more budget into their iPhone games ventures and (hopefully) improve their quality. With an ever increasing number of iPhones and iPod Touches around, it would also be edging further into traditional handheld gaming territory and the company has already talked about the iPhone as a potential DS and PSP killer.

Apple has yet to make an official announcement and is keeping its lips sealed, but there seems to be little reason not to give the idea a shot. Convergence between mobile phones and handheld consoles seems certain, sooner or later. It will be down to consumers to determine whether they’re happy to cough up more than a fiver for bigger budget iPhone gaming.

Link: Apple (via PocketGamer)

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