Game over for N-Gage?

Various online gaming websites have reported that Nokia is to make a strategic withdrawal from the gaming market, after failing to win decent market share with its N-Gage phone/gaming device. Reports suggest that Nokia will leave it a couple of years before even considering re-entering the market, and in the meantime will not release any new versions of its device. Apparently, it will steadily offload its inventory and produce limited quantities of the current N-Gage for certain overseas markets. Nokia, however, is somewhat silent on the matter.

The N-Gage was always a curious hybrid, but hats off to Nokia for even attempting it. Version one was regarded as over-priced and under-speced, and featured some bizarre design gaffs (such as having to removing the battery in order to change the game module). Version two, the N-Gage QD, fared a little better, but was always struggling to gain a market when up against the heavy-hitters of Nintendo and Sony PlayStation - whose portable gaming consoles are everything the N-gage isn't.

According to analysts, the N-Gage only achieved a third of the sales that Nokia had hoped for, despite a huge marketing blitz. Hence, no more N-Gage. Still, Nokia - and indeed, the whole handset industry - will have learned a lot from this expensive exercise. Having said that, a rival vendor will no doubt try and fill the void left by Nokia, with the same disastrous results.

Oddly, UK TV last night showed an episode of the Simpsons, set a few years in the future, which featured that essential of converged devices, a combo handgun/mobile phone (you can guess what happened). If any Nokia boffins are reading this, please don't even think about it. Just drop the idea and walk away...

30.11.05
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