ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Evolution of 3D mobile games development
Fadi Chehimi Æ Paul Coulton Æ Reuben Edwards
Received: 1 July 2006 / Accepted: 1 September 2006 / Published online: 8 November 2006
Springer-Verlag London Limited 2006
Abstract 3D computer graphics have been an
important feature in games development since it was
first introduced in the early 80s and there is no doubt
that 3D based content is often viewed as more attrac-
tive in games than the more abstract 2D graphics.
Many games publishers are keen to leverage their
success in the console market into the mobile phone
platform. However, the resource constraints of mobile
phones and the fragmented nature of the environment
present considerable challenges for games developers.
In this paper we consider some of the current con-
straints together with current and, probable, future
developments both in the software and hardware of
mobile phones. As part of this process we benchmark
some of the latest and most prevalent software and
hardware devices to ascertain both the quality of the
graphics produced and the effects upon battery life.
Whilst our test results highlight that the current market
does indeed present challenges, our research into the
future developments highlights the fact we are
approaching greater standardization, which will be an
important factor for the successful development of 3D
mobile games.
1 Introduction
Mobile games are seen as an important service for
many mobile phone users by both the network opera-
tors and the games industry. Operators are currently
trying to drive up the average revenue per user
(ARPU) by encouraging greater use of data services
and games are seen as a means in which this can be
achieved. The games industry also sees the enormous
opportunity for increasing sales and its customer base.
Indeed, mobile games already represent 14% of $43
billion total world gaming revenue [1] and many cur-
rent predictions would suggest that the mobile plat-
form would become the dominant force in the games
industry. However, current evidence shows that growth
in downloaded games is relatively slow [2] and many
traditional games publishers are sighting poor quality
of production and too many developers distributing in
the market as the primary cause. However, this does
not explain why the so-called casual games, such as
Tetris, dominate the market. Many mobile games
developers cite the fact that there is a general lack of
innovation in the market and many traditional console
games developers are failing to grasp the innovative
opportunities for the social interaction, already a sig-
nificant element of mobile phone usage, in the design
of their games. For example, in June 2006, while
speaking about casual games to the Hollywood
Reporter, the Digital Chocolate CEO, and founder of
EA, Trip Hawkins said:
‘‘companies are treating the cell phone like it was a
second-rate game console and I don’t think that’s
really doing it justice’’
Part of the problem could be that the games industry
has adopted the popular profiles of hardcore and casual
F. Chehimi (&) P. Coulton R. Edwards
Informatics Group, Infolab21, Lancaster University,
Lancaster LA1 4WA, UK
e-mail: f.chehimi@lancaster.ac.uk
P. Coulton
e-mail: p.coulton@lancaster.ac.uk
R. Edwards
e-mail: r.edwards@lancaster.ac.uk
123
Pers Ubiquit Comput (2008) 12:19–25
DOI 10.1007/s00779-006-0129-9