Instead of trying to revamp the N-Gage again, the Nokia will focus all its attention on Ovi Store, which houses games like Pac-Man and The Sims-3, and will try to shift its customers to Ovi Store too. It will keep on selling games but through its Ovi app store.
The Ovi Store gaming section will be Nokia’s exclusive channel to sell and promote games for Nokia devices.
What went wrong with N-Gage?
For years Nokia has sold its games through N-Gage services. The original N-Gage was launched in 2003 to the mixed reviews by the analysts, followed immediately by cut in its price. The device was widely criticized from the start for its limited game library.
The device required users to do things like removing battery to install game cards etc, which ultimately took a toll on the user’s patience. The Nokia re-launched the device in 2008 but this time with a plan to develop phones supporting N-Gage platform on numerous Nokia phones, rather than fixed single hardware platform.
The library has grown roughly up to 50 games since then. Still things did not turn out the way Nokia expected.
Only the most dedicated N-Gage gamers followed the service online, and it has never been a hit among mainstream users from the beginning.
This failure, coupled with the app store gold rush on new devices like iPhone and iPod Touch in the market, spelled doom for N-gage, much to the disappointment of its followers.
What the shut down means for current N-Gage users?
The Company has made it crystal clear in its Web blog that N-Gage games can be purchased till the end of September 2010.
High scores can also be posted on the N-Gage Arena community site throughout 2010. All N-Gage games will continue to work, although after 2010 the community features will be disabled.
But the Ovi Store will be the new centre for all the mobile games that Nokia and other publishers will offer from that point forward. No new games will be published for the N-Gage platform.
Nokia spokesman also stated that they will continue to sell devices with N-Gage application for some time; however, it will no longer ship new devices with pre-installed applications.
Nokia thanked the N-Gage gaming community for their participation over the years. The company said, ”It is important we share this information with you first as we know how much the N-Gage Community means to you, and that being up to date on the latest gaming information is of importance.”
The company sources also added in its blog post that they are trying to move Nokia’s services under the Ovi umbrella. The Ovi Store is supported by 100 Nokia models and will be pre-installed on new Nokia devices, including the Symbian S60 and Series 40 phones, beginning in fourth quarter of 2009.
Ovi Store will be the one-stop shop for all the mobile content needed. It will be available in more than 180 countries, content is for everyone, and users can start downloading today.
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