“The latest release of iTunes, numbered 7.1, brings clear evidence that the Apple TV will be able to play games as users on the Internet noticed that it makes reference in its resource files to an Apple TV Games syncing feature,” Alexandros Roussos reports for MacScoop.
Roussos reports, “A search for ‘Apple TV’ in the program’s localization strings, which can be accessed from the compiled version of the program, brings us the following result, among many others: ‘Are you sure you want to sync games? All existing games on the Apple TV “^1” will be removed‘ where ‘^1’ is a variable which is replaced by the name given to the Apple TV device.”
More in the full article here.
Related articles:
Apple releases iTunes 7.1 for Mac and Windows – March 05, 2007
Apple prepping renewed attack on game industry with iPod, Apple TV, Mac OS X Leopard? – February 15, 2007
Apple embraces casual gaming; iPhone, Apple TV to join iPod as gaming devices – February 09, 2007
Former GM of Microsoft’s Xbox Live Arcade: Apple TV to become video game console – February 08, 2007
Games on the AppleTV would be nice. I’d like to see some sort of pseudo iPod controller though.
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game, set, match!
wii likey!
The Apple remote could easily function as a pseudo controller for simple iPod games like Pac-Man, Tetris, etc.
@ RC:
No way for the remote to be used. Way too small… There would need to be some actual game pads created to make it to be an actual game console…
Apple TV will be a nice platform for casual games. Much like the Nintendo Wii found a large audience despite lagging technologically behind Sony and Microsoft, Apple could win the family gaming market with beautiful games that do not require a lot of processing power, such as Trivial Pursuit or Scene It? That kind of games make a lot of sense when you consider that the device will be plugged to the main TV in the house (the big flat TV Steve keeps mentioning in his keynotes).
Hello….iPhone? Maybe the iPhone will be updated with an apple tv icon and when you press it, the interface morphs into a game controller? Maybe?
Playstation 3 games are awesome in High Definition.
(although games devs are not using even a small percentage of the Cell processors power because movie type games are extremely expensive to produce)
So what is Apple attempting to do in this space anyway?
Yeah, control with an iPod to play Pong! :-p
What graphic chipset does the Apple TV use? I assume that it has to be halfway decent if it can put out HD content, but hos good for games?
@So what is Apple attempting to do in this space anyway?
Pac-man, Sudoku, Texas hold ’em and Tetris…. he.. he..
I don’t think the iPhone would make a good game controller. You have to look at it to use it. (That’s not a bad thing for most of its features, it just happens to be very important in a controller.)
“Playstation 3 games are awesome in High Definition.
So what is Apple attempting to do in this space anyway?”
The same thing Nintendo is doing with Wii, and last I heard, it was more profitable than the PS3.
Why does everyone assume that if Apple does make the AppleTV a game platform it will be for low-end “simple” games?
It’s not a stretch to imagine that a high-end video card could (either now, or eventually) be incorporated into the device. And if Apple did that, how would the device be any different from Wii, Playstation, or XBox? (besides the DVD slot, which wouldn’t be necessary because of iTunes integration).
GAME CONTROLLER you say? Feh! Let Jon Ivy loose on that project for six months. Apple could have the best game controller in the industry if they wanted one.
At that point, Apple could have ONE DEVICE that could manage TV, Movies, Music, and Games, all connected wirelessly to their iTunes music store.
Why wouldn’t every game developer in the world want a piece of that action?
Correction on something said…”Much like the Nintendo Wii found a large audience despite lagging technologically behind Sony and Microsoft…” The Wii is lagging in the graphics aspect. I wouldn’t say it’s lacking in other technologies.
NeverFade: “No way for the remote to be used. Way too small… There would need to be some actual game pads created to make it to be an actual game console…”
Nonsense. Yes, it’s small, but it would be perfectly fine for casual games, such as the games on the iPod and cell-phones, which are the most likely types of games that the TV will be able to play. I’m not going to discount the possibility, however remote, that the TV might be able to play more advanced games, or that Apple might sell a nice wireless game controller too, but I am not counting on it. I really doubt they will try to compete against the consoles with the TV. At least not initially.
critic: “What graphic chipset does the Apple TV use? I assume that it has to be halfway decent if it can put out HD content, but hos good for games?”
Hey “hos,”
1: Until it ships in a week or so and someone opens it up and looks inside, what graphics the TV has is effectively a secret.
2: I think you are confusing 3D games with most casual games. Think about the games on cel-phones, the iPod and running in Flash or Java in web pages… None of them require some powerful GPU. Intel’s typically weak embedded graphics chips are more than capable for them.
Bilbo baggins: “iPhone”
Seriously, you’re kidding right? Sony gets torn a new one for their $600 game machine, and you propose that people buy a $400 extension for iTunes PLUS a $500 phone/PDA/Communicator? It’s likely that people who buy one will likely buy the other, but it’s insane to assume that.
I see the future for Apple…..
The iOmega…
It starts your car, is your phone, organizer, mobile computer, iPod, camera, deactivates your home alarm, live video/audio feeds of home security, controls your Apple TV, slingbox type video from your iTunes/Apple TV, play games on it or control games on Apple TV, et cetera…
One life, one device…
I would LOVE to see old Atari 2600 games available!!!!
isn’t there a mystery USB port on the apple tv?
perhaps for a joystick?
shame there’s only one though
AP: “Why does everyone assume that if Apple does make the AppleTV a game platform it will be for low-end “simple” games?”
Try to put yourself into Steve Jobs shoes… Then look at the PS3 and XBox 360. It’s been five years now, and so far, the XBox division has done nothing but lost tons of money. Yes, the Xbox is VERY popular, but it is NOT profitable yet. It may not be profitable for a few more years, if ever. If the XBox division were a stand alone company, it would be able to survive due to lack of sufficient revenue to support itself… Remember Sega? Remember Neo-Geo? etc. However, Microsoft’s strategy is not to make money off the XBox division… It was a ploy (well played, actually – no pun intended) by Microsoft to crystallise game developers around ActiveX, and thus help ensure the position of Windows as the preferred game platform, and thus, in MS logic, the best platform for a home PC. It’s been so effective that game developers have not gotten on board with the PS3, which is a technically superior machine, but as Sony is not willing to sell them at a per-unit loss, is too expensive to be attractive. Sony doesn’t have a related market that the PS3 can bolster, so they can’t afford to give PS3s away at a loss, as the whole point of the PS3 is to sell it for a profit. Which is likewise why Apple could eventually go after the hard-core gamer market. I don’t think it’s the TV, but that’s just my opinion.
Also, because the casual gamer market is actually considerably larger and thus potentially much more profitable than the hardcore gamer market, though at markedly lower per unit profits. This is due to the fact that casual games cost considerably less to develop, so there is a higher margin of profit, and Apple is well known for their requirement to have high margins on all their products.
Make sense? Who agrees/disagrees, and why?
I think that starting a higher-end console and game development team at Apple would be a very costly and R&D-heavy project of questionable profitability. Adding games to the iPod, however, and putting games of the same caliber on the AppleTV isn’t much of an investment, and it’s sure to pay off.
When the first rumors of Apple’s job postings for game developers came out, many were quick to conclude that an iConsole is in the works. Take it easy – this is one venture we know they’ll be going into very, very slowly. Pac Man and Tetris on AppleTV, then maybe – maybe – more involved games in the future, depending on how the market responds and how Steve feels. I think he’s not personally devoted to gaming, and you can’t downplay the importance of Steve’s passion for an Apple product.
I’m sure the games will still be fun, though. Back when my C64 played simple, pick-up-the-joystick-and-go games, my parents actually wanted to play. Nowadays they look at my younger brother’s 360 and go, huh? Bring on the simple.
Sony does sell the PS3 at a loss.
Man: Sony loses nearly $250 on every PS3 they sell. The problem is that even with a subsidy, it is still way too expensive for most families. If you figure cables, an extra controller, and a couple of games, it costs around $900 when you walk out of the store. THAT is the problem with the PS3.
Despite it’s respectable market share in North America (although it’s still a distant second to the PlayStation), the Xbox has been a huge dud in Asia so far, and that’s the largest gaming market out there. That’s a big reason why Microsoft has literally lost over $1 Billion on the Xbox since it was first introduced.
I agree with those who are thinking casual games are the likely aim. Casual and simpler games are a big deal now. All three major consoles offer downloads of small games.
Are there any numbers on how well the iPod games are selling?