LIMITED GAMES DEFLATE LAUNCH OF NGAGE
Copyright 2003 www.miami.com

[ October 9th 2003 ]

The N-Gage has obvious game potential, but it's likely to be obscured by a lackluster launch. The six games are largely just old titles - including a remix of PlayStation-era Tomb Raider games - tailored to Nokia's new device. Demonstration versions didn't play smoothly, though the retail ones may be better. Nokia is pointing to some of the games as good introductions to the mobile, wireless multiplayer and networked functions billed as the N-Gage's signature features.

Three of the launch titles, including the Tetris-like PuyoPop, will use Bluetooth technology that allows N-Gage owners with the same game to play against each other over a short-range wireless connection. And two of the titles, including Tomb Raider, are supposed to take advantage of the N-Gage Arena network that offers a variety of enhancements.

Those network attractions, according to N-Gage game manager Jonathan Sharp, include downloading other players' top performances for a shadow-racing challenge, as well as downloading clips of game segments that give you a strategy guide. There's also supposed to be access to high-score lists and cheat codes. Problem is, those capabilities, plus eye-pleasing 32-bit graphics, are what Nokia appears to be banking on for initial excitement, and that's an uncertain proposition at best. The games themselves are neither fresh nor "classic."

At this point, the N-Gage looks most appealing as a powerful combination device - phone, radio, music player, personal organizer and game machine. That flies in the face of Nokia positioning the device primarily as a ''game deck,'' but it also creates a consumer perspective that puts the emphasis on the gaming potential instead of immediate hits. If you're temporarily satisfied with the N-Gage as a versatile gadget, you may regard the wireless connections and the high quality of the graphics as a bonus, even if the games strike you as dated.

Nokia says it's developing original games for release in 2004. In the meantime, the post-launch titles that will be the quickest to arrive offer a mixed outlook. The company is talking up MotoGP (cycle racing) and Tony Hawk (skateboarding) games. They defied evaluation in unfinished form, but the Hawk graphics were extremely sharp. A shooter, Red Faction, is arguably the most eagerly awaited N-Gage title scheduled this year.