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iPhone gaming on par with DS and PSP

When Apple announced SEGA's sublime Super Monkey Ball foriPhone recently, it marked a major shift forward in mobile phonegaming. The producer of the game has now gone on record to state thathe feels the iPhone is on a par with Nintendo's DS andSony's PSP.

"From a technical standpoint, the iPhoneis competitive with dedicated handheld gaming devices [like the DS andPSP]," Ethan Einhorn, producer of Sega's Super Monkey Balltold Next-Gen.

"The delivery system for software will bedigital and easy to use. And the ability to have all of your portableelectronics needs catered to with one device is irresistible. Given allof that, the potential for the iPhone as a games platform ismassive."

AnalystMichael Pachter with Wedbush Morgan is not so sold on the idea of theiPhone, claiming that: "I don't see it as a viable gaming platform, dueto the cost of owning one... the addressable market doesn't reallyfit the core gamer demographic.

"To the extent that hip,rich people are an interesting gaming audience, iPhone games will work.My guess is that this group is only interested in the most rudimentarygames, and that the market will be small."

SEGA, EA,Gameloft, THQ, Namco Bandai and a number of others have alreadycommitted to bringing both classic and news games to the iPhone.