Everyone has that one particular game in mind when thinking of mobile ports, a dream of slaying foes or building worlds from your favorite franchises all in the palm of your hand. But then reality hits, leaving you with the bitter disappointment of it becoming increasingly unlikely to happen. But that might all change in the future because there might be a new way for developers to test how their games fare on mobiles without actually having to go through the painstaking process of porting it first.
Goddess of Victory: NIKKE recently collaborated with Dave the Diver in a fairly unique way by essentially recreating the diving game in NIKKE’s world. In Aegis the Diver, you could dive, forage, and fish your way through a restaurant simulator in much the same way you would if you were playing Dave the Diver, only with NIKKE characters instead.
Although branded as an LTM minigame, there was a purchasable battle pass and missions to chew through to keep you engaged. With huge console and PC games like Call of Duty finding success on mobile, with plenty of others joining it in our picks for the best FPS games on mobile, this could spur a new wave of porting tests under the guise of LTMs as per a report from GameRefinery.
It’s certainly an interesting way to playtest a game on mobile devices without actually having to commit to it, and it means developers can get an insight into what works and what doesn’t. This could become a brand new way for famous titles to eventually make their way onto mobile, so we can hold out hope for some of our favorites.
Collaborations were rife in the gaming world last month, with Marvel Snap pulling one of its own into the card game fray with the introduction of a Deadpool-themed battle pass during the height of the third movie release. The game enjoyed a 300% increase in revenue partway through the month of July thanks to the merc-with-a-mouth making an appearance, but although it sounds highly impressive, the numbers were actually on par with previous battle pass updates.
This proves that not all collaborations necessarily work, and that was especially the case for A Song of Empire and Puzzles, a puzzle RPG based on the world-renowned and much-loved Game of Thrones IP. Despite launching at the same time as a new season of HBO’s House of the Dragon, the puzzler from Zynga only saw mild success, with it hardly breaking into the top 200 games in the US. And it’s not the genre that’s to blame because Rollic Games found success with several chart-topping puzzle games like Seat Away, Twisted Tangle, and Screw Jam. The gameplay loops are relatively basic and pleasingly simple, and maybe that’s where A Song of Empire and Puzzles fell short.
Where puzzle games thrive on simplicity, Naraka Bladepoint found success with something a little more intricate. Developer Netease launched the battle royale in China, utilizing AI to create NPC dialogue. Artificial intelligence in video games has been a point of contention in the industry and amongst fans for quite some time, but Naraka Bladepoint paved the way last month, holding the number four spot in the top-grossing ranks and number one in downloads in China.
Netease released the game across all platforms, with the PC, console, and mobile versions all interconnecting to create a cohesive community. The use of AI for NPC dialogue is an interesting choice, but it just proves that when it’s used correctly, it can end up being a huge success.
But there you have it. July was an interesting month in the gaming world, with some innovative highs and disappointing lows. Personally, we were just enjoying our time in Deadpool’s Diner, and if you’re after the latest Marvel Snap bundles, we’ve got you covered. Or, if you’re just after some freebies in general, then Roblox codes are always a good shout, and we’ve got plenty of Dress to Impress codes and Anime Defenders codes for you.