The company had previously made feature phone games long before smartphones took off and is now coming back.
Nippon Ichi Software (NIS) had been involved in mobile gaming for quite some time, having had a great deal of luck back when feature phones were the big thing in Japan – the step in technology between the old flip-phones and the current smartphone – but their popularity rapidly fizzled out as mobile tech changed and brought a tidal wave of game developers into the mix.
The company has now announced their return into smartphone games, with a specific goal in mind.
NIS will now be stepping back into providing mobile gaming products, but will be doing so for PlayStation TV and Vita. It will be recreating some of its most popular games so that consumers will be able to play them over these channels. The time of the feature phone trend in Japan wasn’t very long, but when it happened, many consumers owned these devices and NIS saw a tremendous market in mobile games, as the competition in that market wasn’t nearly as large as is currently the case for smartphones.
The company now sees an opportunity to take advantage of mobile gaming nostalgia from its most popular titles.
Though the feature phone wasn’t nearly as technologically advanced as a smartphone, it did offer a number of interesting and unique advancements over what had been available to old cell phone and flip phone owning consumers. Mobile games were certainly among the most beloved features on those devices.
One of the most popular games that NIS had put out for those mobile devices was called “Duologue”. That will now be among the titles that will be released in Japan for PlayStation Vita and PlayStation TV as a part of its “App Archives” service. That service is being launched within that country and Duologue will be the first title released under its brand. It is expected to cost 556 yen.
This mobile gaming experience was first launched in 2006, and the new launch will allow gamers to be able to return to the adventures of its protagonist, Alius, on the continent of La Zik, with more than 1,000 different objectives to be reached.
Japan surpasses US in mobile games spending
It is no secret that mobile games have become very popular throughout the world. These games also happen to be a very lucrative sector for the worldwide game industry. People playing mobile games tend to spend money frequently in order to unlock additional content or purchase in-game items and digital currency. Spending in the mobile games sector has been on the rise over the past few years and now Japan has surpassed the U.S. in terms of spending, according to a new report from NewZoo, a game industry market research firm.
iPhone proves popular among consumers, but Google Play is gaining momentum
According to NewZoo, the iPhone is one of the most popular platforms for mobile games in Japan, followed by Android devices. Since 2007, the U.S. had been the top grossing market for the iPhone when it comes to mobile games. Now, however, Japanese consumers are collectively spending massive amounts of money on mobile games for their iOS devices and are also showing a great deal of enthusiasm for games on Android devices. NewZoo expects that spending for iPhone games in Japan will exceed $1 billion this year, but spending for Android games will surpass that milestone.
Google Play is outpacing Apple
Google Play has become very popular in Japan. While many consumers favor the iOS platform, many more are spending money on Google Play. South Korea is the only other large country where Google Play outshines the Apple App Store in terms of mobile games revenues. Germany and Spain are close behind South Korea and Japan. Google Play is gaining significant momentum among mobile consumers throughout the world, except in China, where Apple has focused the majority of its efforts in the Asian market.
China proves to be important for mobile gaming
China is considered a valuable market, especially where mobile games are concerned. Mobile gaming has become one of the most popular pastimes in the country, which has sparked strong growth in the game industry. Japan, however, remains the top market for games in general. The country is home to a wide variety of mobile games, as well as those for consoles and the PC. Spending on mobile games in Japan is expected to continue growing at a fast pace for the foreseeable future.
