Why XBox Live Gaming on iOS Is The Right Thing To Do

Our very own editor-in-chief has both the iPhone 4S and the HTC Titan.  He really likes both phones and would actually go with the Titan as his daily drier a lot more if only he could stay connected to those who matter to him, his family and friends.  You see although he’s not a hardcore gamer in the ilks of MW3 he still likes to get his game on.  Zynga games specifically.  Thanks to the proliferation of such social games on Facebook the games have taken the iOS world by storm. These are games Mr. Smith can’t do without.  Xbox Live is nice but not a consideration at his time because nobody close to him have access to the same games.  Do you see where I’m going with this?

Cross Platform Gaming is Awesome

Xbox Live games on iOS would make cross platform gaming all the better.  There are no losers in this equation.  Hoarding something awesome to yourself never quite works out that well, consider the fail whale of iMessage. No matter who you are you want to be connected and have fun with those close to you.  Imagine playing Full House Poker against friends on their iPhone or iPad; Playing ilomilo with your kids on their iPod Touch; how about The Harvest against friends or Monopoly. If the intent of playing social games is to be, well social, then cross platform gaming isn’t just awesome its necessary. Just check out the most downloaded Windows Phone games of 2011 and tell me it wouldn’t be awesome to smack your iOS loving friends in a battle of skill.

Competition Brings Innovation

For the last couple years Xbox Live has represented the peak of gaming.  Its time that Xbox Live matures from its current form of asynchronous multiplayer gaming to synchronous multiplayer gaming.  Releasing titles for iOS would mean competing against strong titles already of the iOS platform.  To compete effectively they would have to add features like synchronous gaming and that only helps benefit the Windows Phone ecosystem too. Its what we all want, even those of us who is satisfied with turn-based games.  I sometimes have the itch to rage out against someone in an epic game. Many other innovations would result from extending the xbox live reach to iOS devices.

Business is Good

Last but not least business is good in the land of iOS. The more money Microsoft can generate on that platform the more money they have at their disposal to use to invest in more titles and create exclusive agreements with game development companies.  Soon enough the terrain of the mobile gaming arena will reflect the platform wars put on by Son, Nintendo and Microsoft. The first of these platforms to really invest in mindshare will have a significant advantage.  I’m betting big on Microsoft, how about you?