Potential market for people willing to shell over $40 for a game?
Potential market for people willing to try on a whim that bird game the whole office has been talking about?
Serious gamers will probably always stick with the most advanced gameplay and technology. But there is a _huge_ market for people who have a few minutes to kill on trips, during commute, in front of the tv etc. As games are increasingly made with cognitive reward cycles in mind, one could argue, that the percentage of people who never play will shrink ever more.
But that (quite rightly) speaks of a new market for people willing to try some bird game on a whim: not a replacement for other gaming experiences that mobile is a long way from challenging.
It's Nintendo's hold of the portable market with this week's 3DS that seems most tenable and vulnerable to the proliferation of gaming on phones and tablets; I think we're a long way off of MSFT being worried about the 360.
"I would separate out the true independent developer vs. the hobbyist," says Fils-Aime. "We are absolutely reaching out to the independent developer."
"Where we've drawn the line is we are not looking to do business today with the garage developer. In our view, that’s not a business we want to pursue."
