Porting Solutions and Strategies

[DevelopmentTeam]

While the mobile market is quickly becoming a real opportunity for existing PC and console game titles, and the revenues are starting to roll in, the porting challenge can easily derail the opportunity to reach this massive market.

Through standardization and reuse of code elements, Sumea has streamlined its internal process to create significant efficiencies in porting. Other publishers such as Gameloft have developed teams on multiple continents to be able to handle local testing and relationships with mobile operators. Tira Wireless has developed an automated porting platform called Tira Jump that supports close to 100 J2ME devices and even can handle translation ports. Tira currently offers the Jump service to mobile game publishers, such as THQ Wireless, and plans to come out with a licensed version of the software for sale in the near future.

Whatever approach is taken, it is clear that game developers and publishers have to consider their porting strategies carefully. The market for mobile games is here and growing rapidly. The demographics of the market for wireless services and for console and PC games are very similar