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WSJ: Sony Launches First Title From New Smartphone-Game Unit (Hotshots)

G

ggx2ac

Member
More at the link: https://www.wsj.com/articles/sony-launches-first-title-from-new-smartphone-game-unit-1496372789

The company said users could start signing up for a mobile version of “Everybody’s Golf,” a popular game that has been available since 1997 mainly for PlayStation platforms. It said the phone app would be available soon and free to download for Apple Inc.’s iPhones and handsets running the Android operating system from Google parent Alphabet Inc.

As with many other smartphone games, Sony plans to earn money from small in-app purchases, such as costumes to dress up players’ characters.

The latest mobile effort comes from Sony Interactive Entertainment, the unit responsible for the PlayStation. Sony Interactive Entertainment created a subsidiary called ForwardWorks that is dedicated to mobile gaming.

ForwardWorks plans to release four or five additional smartphone games in Japan by March 2018, company officials said. The company hasn’t released any plans to expand beyond Asia.

Japan’s smartphone-game market is more than twice as big as its console market in revenue, according to Computer Entertainment Supplier’s Association data. Sony hasn’t made major inroads in the market with the exception of a game called “Fate/Grand Order” developed by a different Sony unit.
Click to expand...


Edit:
Sony's "Everybody's Golf" smartphone game is coming soon to Japan. I played it a bit and app is really well-made. https://t.co/nbY2mNkVXZ
Click to expand...

https://twitter.com/mochi_wsj/status/870481166054285314

Edit 2:

GearFourth said:
Crosspost from other thread:

ForwardWorks YouTube channel finally posted gameplay footage of Hot Shots Golf mobile looks lit:

https://youtu.be/ayBu5vaQIG4

Description through Google translate:

" That national golf game appeared in the smartphone!
"Mingol" announcement promotion movie
A national golf game where you can enjoy anytime, anywhere.
Raise your own character, go round the course of the world, aim for the best player! In the case of
Everyone, everyone, easy operation, everyone is scary and exhilarating shot!
▼ Pre-registration is in process! Detail · For further information from here
"Mingol" official website
https://www.mingol.com "

And then more details and images and stuff in the Mingol website including pre-registration etc
Click to expand...
 
BigEmil

BigEmil

Junior Member
Crosspost from other thread:

ForwardWorks YouTube channel finally posted gameplay footage of Hot Shots Golf mobile looks lit:

https://youtu.be/ayBu5vaQIG4

Description through Google translate:

" That national golf game appeared in the smartphone!
"Mingol" announcement promotion movie
A national golf game where you can enjoy anytime, anywhere.
Raise your own character, go round the course of the world, aim for the best player! In the case of
Everyone, everyone, easy operation, everyone is scary and exhilarating shot!
▼ Pre-registration is in process! Detail · For further information from here
"Mingol" official website
https://www.mingol.com "

And then more details and images and stuff in the Mingol website including pre-registration etc
Click to expand...

Edit:
http://gematsu.com/2017/06/everybodys-golf-smartphone-game-pre-registration-opened-japan-new-trailer
 
M

Matty77

Member
I dont usually play mobile games, when using the phone to kill time especially when it's all I have I just browse GAF or Wikipedia.

Might actually give this a shot though. Would be nice to have a decent game, if it's solid and truly money only for cosmetics it may be half decent. Hell if its good enough I might buy one cosmetic just to support the developer.
 
S

stryke

Member
Will be interesting to see how this goes for them. Their LBP and Uncharted efforts were pretty mediocre.
 
A

Arzehn

Member
I wonder what the success or failure of these mobile games means for the IPs on PlayStation.

This one always made sense but Arc the Lad and Wilds Arms are weird picks.
 
Z

zelas

Member
btkadams said:
Hot Shots gameplay would translate extremely well to a touchscreen. I can't wait for this!
Click to expand...
Yeah I'm trying to figure out why I'd bother with the console version. A few holes every now and then, anywhere, I can enjoy that for a long time.
 
G

ggx2ac

Member
Arzehn said:
I wonder what the success or failure of these mobile games means for the IPs on PlayStation.

This one always made sense but Arc the Lad and Wilds Arms are weird picks.
Click to expand...

It's hard to gauge success in the first place when these games are only planned for Asia and that Sony announcing mobile games doesn't really get that much attention here compared to Nintendo announcing smartphone games.
 
BigEmil

BigEmil

Junior Member
stryke said:
Will be interesting to see how this goes for them. Their LBP and Uncharted efforts were pretty mediocre.
Click to expand...
That was before they were serious about mobile gaming. Sony taking a new approach to mobile gaming since last year and taking it more seriously now they got a bunch of big games coming for it working with and formed new studios like ForwardWorks and more focusing on high quality games

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1322850&page=1
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1200246&page=1
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1273867&page=1
 
N

Nightengale

Member
jiggle said:
No waifu?
That's an interesting strategy
Click to expand...

That's on the way.

Arc The Lad & Wild Arms have potential to be waifu-ed, even if they don't have that big of a waifu legacy pool to draw from.

Also, FW has a game in development right now from the creators of Sakura Wars, titled "Space between Sky & Sea", which is totally a waifu game.
 
I

Iacobellis

Junior Member
Will definitely have to try this out once it's available. The song in the trailer sounds so familiar though and I can't figure it out. >_<
 
S

samar11

Member
Why are they limiting to just Asia? I mean what harm would it do them to release it everywhere? Mobile is big WW not just Asia Sony!
 
G

ggx2ac

Member
samar11 said:
Why are they limiting to just Asia? I mean what harm would it do them to release it everywhere? Mobile is big WW not just Asia Sony!
Click to expand...

Mainly that's where they are failing with regards to PlayStation.

The mobile market is pretty big there so that's why they are capitalising on it where PS4 can't.

It could also be seen as a similar strategy to Nintendo to get those people to buy a PS4 to play Sony 1st party PS4 games there which would be interesting regarding Wild Arms and Arc the Lad.

Why they can't do simultaneous worldwide releases? Maybe they are literally dipping their toes to see the reception since their past mobile game initiatives didn't pan out.
 
S

samar11

Member
ggx2ac said:
Mainly that's where they are failing with regards to PlayStation.

The mobile market is pretty big there so that's why they are capitalising on it where PS4 can't.

It could also be seen as a similar strategy to Nintendo to get those people to buy a PS4 to play Sony 1st party PS4 games there which would be interesting regarding Wild Arms and Arc the Lad.

Why they can't do simultaneous worldwide releases? Maybe they are literally dipping their toes to see the reception since their past mobile game initiatives didn't pan out.
Click to expand...

Yeh fair enough..hopefully they bring them to the west though.
 
T

Tratorn

Member
Do we know how many people are working at ForwardWorks? Would be interesting to know how much manpower they use for 5-6 games within one financial year.
 
S

Sizzel

Member
Smart move if pivoting to mobile from portable/vita style development. Maybe not a popular one here, but that is probably a very sound financial one.
 
AudioEppa

AudioEppa

Member
NGL... I was just going to post in here saying that I'm not into mobile games anymore, but I hope this is a real success for them so they can make big bank off it.

Well, that actually looks fun. So I wanna play it now lol

I personally feel like it's a smart business play on Sony's part to focus on Asia first. If people elsewhere become thirsty, I mean legit thirsty. Let the hype build itself and then launch worldwide.
 
S

Steiner

Banned
This is my dream.

A colleague and I had so much fun playing World Invitational on the Vita because you could play a game in turns. Take your shot, the game updates, and you can walk away. You friend can pick it up right away and take his shot, or wait a few hours or days and then take his turn.

Single games can play out in minutes or over the course of a week as you guys take your turns at your convenience. We played through so many joyful games that way, and lamented with each other that a HSG game and system like this wasn't on mobile.
 
Falchion

Falchion

Member
Hopefully they did a good job with Hotshots and they decide to bring over some of their other IP's too.
 
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