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Rockstar Games Develops Connection Between Flash Gaming, Nintendo DS

Posted by Soulskill on from the sweet-when-can-i-play-wow-on-my-pager dept.

An anonymous reader writes "It's been a long-talked-about but never fully realized aim of developers, publishers and format holders to create a game that runs on multiple platforms, but connects and exchanges assets between them — e.g. you play a game as an FPS on a console/PC but control it as an RTS on mobile devices. Now, Rockstar Games seems to have cracked it, on a small scale, with news that a new Flash game will allow PC gamers to generate in-game cash — true to form for GTA-creator Rockstar, it's through 'money laundering' — that is then transferred to its new Nintendo DS title, Chinatown Wars. GameSpy's online technology seems to be responsible for this latest gimmick, but most interesting is the idea that this could allow an interface between platforms like the iPhone and consoles as well. How long until an indie developer creates an MMO that has different interfaces for PC and mobile?"

5 of 61 comments (clear)

  1. Fable 2 anyone? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    I seem to recall a game called Fable 2 where you could earn cash on a PC playing a flash game...

  2. Multiple platforms... by Bert64 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Games that don't interoperate cross platform are actually a step backwards...
    You used to be able to play Quake across different platforms, i played it on an SGI against a mix of linux mac and windows users...
    It seems pretty stupid to me that i can't play the same games against someone who has a different type of console.

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    1. Re:Multiple platforms... by Hurricane78 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      If the interfaces are the same, this is indeed an artificial problem.
      But playing a shooter on a PC against a console, or even a handheld game device, is a big no-no.
      Because you can't possibly balance such a game, and still make it fair.
      Final Fantasy XI could be played on a console and on a PC, because the differences in the interface did not matter for that game.
      But Quake on a Nintendo DSi against a full PC user... There would always someone complaining on the autotargeting and how the weaker interface has some assistance that makes them win just as often. (Because if those would not have the same chance, there would be no reason to play it.)

      --
      Any sufficiently advanced intelligence is indistinguishable from stupidity.
  3. Re:Sounds familiar by slyn · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Or any of the Fable 2 minigames that came out before the games release.

  4. Re:Rockstar is like Vegas by fbjon · · Score: 2, Insightful

    The difference is whether you create value or not, and how much.

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