What is the potential of a watch as a new platform?

Absrtact: After the release of Apple Watch, we discussed the potential of many watches as a new platform. Whether the watch can be the next tech product to occupy people's daily lives, and whether Apple Watch, the industry leader, can lead another new revolution is still unknown.

After Apple Watch released, we discussed the potential of many watches as a new platform. Whether the watch can be the next tech product to occupy people's daily lives and whether Apple Watch, the industry leader, can lead another new revolution is still unknown.

But there are always a group of people who like to gamble before they get to the bottom. Historical experience tells us that the first success is often the group of people.

This time, a Finnish start-up company, Everywear Games, decided to put all bets on the watch game.

In a corner of Helsinki, the capital of Finland, this new studio is dedicated to developing games for watches. A group of game veterans from remedy, Digital chocolate and Rovio created the studio, they also received HT lifeline from Ventures Petteri, Koponen, Sunstone Capital Partner.

Everywear's CEO, Aki Järvilehto, thinks wearable equipment is the most exciting new platform in the 2015. Because of the emergence of this new platform, developers are facing a new market. Especially after the release of Apple Watch, the watch became a compelling wearable device representative.

But are you serious about developing a game on a watch?

Everywear have only one problem: the watch platform is so fresh that no one knows exactly how to develop a suitable game for the watch. There is no reference to the law summary, there is no need to comply with the design rules, and Angry birds and things like the total inability to fit into the blood of the watch. This is a new industry waiting to be reconstructed.

However, Everywear know that the game on the watch must not be a simple and brutal transplant from the mobile game. Of course, this is basically a nonsense.

"We are currently seeing, the existing adaptive smart watch game, no one is a typical watch game, not a representative." Järvilehto said to Gamesbeat. Android Wear now has a few simple puzzle games, but obviously everywear not want this petty thing. "We have a very big ambition for the games we want to create," Järvilehto says. "We want to make watch games a hobby for people, something that people feel passionate about." Of course this will be a new design challenge. ”

In the field of gaming, jumping from a mobile phone to a watch is a bit like jumping from a handle to a cell phone. Mobile phone game just started, some people are accustomed to the host game big screen impressions, that the game is not in the hands of the rectangular screen to survive. But later, Angry Birds remind people that there are more games for mobile phones in the world. Mobile phone relative to PC, originally has its own unique game form and game rules. What about the watch?

I think the problem that the developer encounters is more difficult. Do not say that the watch can have a mobile phone so powerful platform capabilities, just from the handle to the mobile phone, the game is actually still around the fingers. It is the use of fewer fingers, while the way the finger movement has undergone some changes. But on the watch, this may change. We all know that the watch screen is always a thick finger pain.

From the handle to the mobile phone, if you only need to force the developer to take a step, that from the mobile phone to watch, perhaps need: run-up, take-off, the body leaped.

This is a long jump, not a stride.

It takes a long time for a watch to be fixed on one of the user's wrists, the frequency of it being taken off, and the phone from the trouser pocket is not an order of magnitude at all. This means that for users, watches are more intimate than mobile phones. The psychology of the game obviously will also be different; On the other hand, a watch fixed on the wrist also determines that it is uncomfortable to use the right hand to point to the left wrist.

Everywear's idea is that the game for watches, time should be controlled in 5-15 seconds to complete, save a checkpoint.

I quite agree with that. The reason for this is this: as game devices and people become more intimate, the time for people to play will become more fragmented.

From PCs to mobile phones, games are distributed from fixed hosts to more portable devices. Host games on PCs are usually several hours, and mobile phones are more time spent around people than PCs, and people are more accustomed to taking out their mobile phones for a few minutes in the gap time.

The watch will be fixed for a long time on the user's wrist, and this sporadic game time will be beaten even more broken.

"Watch games must find a balance between simplicity, complexity and depth," said the three. This balance must also be seamlessly connected with the user's daily life, Järvilehto said, "Watch games must be able to start at any time, pause, end, and then continue to pick up and play." ”

Everywear that they are the first developers to focus on watch games, which will give them a lot of first-place advantages. Although no specific game design has been revealed, Everywear said: They will release a variety of watch games this year and look forward to receiving feedback from users.

"The original game on wearable equipment, can imagine space is infinite." ”

Finally, it is recommended that you take a look at the watch game on the seven watch Apple, click here.