N-Gage Launch Hardware/Software Probed

Thanks to IGN Wireless for giving hands-on impressions of the hardware and some of the leading software titles for Nokia's N-Gage 'mobile game deck' phone/handheld console, which will be released on October 7th. Games checked out include Sonic-N, which is "...a port of Sonic Advance released on the Game Boy Advance back in January 2002... [and] identical in graphics, gameplay and level structure to the GBA edition", as well as Tomb Raider, which they say has "very impressive visuals", though "navigating the environments takes some finesse", and Super Monkey Ball, of which they claim: "As well as the GBA pulled it off, the N-Gage can do it better" - the lack of brand new, non-converted launch titles does seem a little disappointing, though.

Comments

Not cool at all...

[Tadrith]

I had a chance to play this at E3.

The system is extremely unimpressive. The graphics are squished on a screen that's much too small for the kinds of games they are trying to pull off. Because the system is also a phone, the buttons are not located in any sort of comfortable position for playing games. I asked one of the reps at their booth, and they didn't seem to have many games coming up, either.

This is an idea that could have been big, but there's simply a huge lack of effort, and I think Nokia's inexperience in the gaming market doesn't help either.

also a s60 device..

[gl4ss]

you shouldn't forget that while it is a handheld gaming system it also is a series60 phone running symbian 6.1, so you can use it for other things than gaming too, like web browsing and irc(and other im services) for example.

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