Can Android Games Compete with iPhone?

Stage Select has come up with a very interesting article on the future of games on Android phones.

Gaming on Google Android Phones - Can It Compete With iPhone?

There's a war on: iPhone versus everyone else.

This war against the iPhone has largely been by necessity.  Since the iPhone is exclusive to AT&T in the States, other carriers have watched helplessly as more than 17 million customers switched for the sole purpose of owning the iPhone. When you combine that 17 million with the iPod Touch's sales, there are more than 30 million of these devices in the hands of the public. 

These past six months have seen an explosion of phones and other devices intended to take on the iPhone, feature by feature. Competing with the iPhone would have been difficult, were it not for Google Android.  Like Microsoft's Windows Mobile, Google has developed an operating system that can be used (mostly) on phones, but other devices as well.  Unlike the iPhone, the Android OS is open to all comers; any phone carrier or laptop manufacturer can use Android in their own devices.  Unlike Windows Mobile, Android has been stable and crash-free since its first release, and frequent updates are making Windows Mobile devices look positively antique in comparison.

Android is making headlines, especially this weekend.  Have you seen Verizon's new "teaser" commercial for The Droid?  Verizon is about to take on the iPhone head to head, much like T Mobile, Sprint, and other carriers have.

I recently picked up a myTouch 3G (T Mobile).  I also had the chance to evaluate several other Android devices.  Given Apple's recent push to position the iPhone and iTouch as gaming devices, how does Android stack up for gaming?  What's the furture of gaming on Android?  Will Android serve to unify the mobile gaming market, or bring additional confusion?

Cell phone users on non-AT&T networks will have a lot to cheer about when they get an Android phone.  Android, at least in its current form (called Cupcake), could be described as a "geeky" iPhone.  This is apparent in how most of the current Android phones are laid out (multiple home screens, kind of like Linux), the developers its attracting, and the policies of Apple versus Google (in regards to the Android Market).  Most of the features of the iPhone/iTouch are available on the myTouch:

*Custom apps, both free and purchased, are available in droves for Android
*Google runs the Android Market, their equivalent of the iPhone/iTouch app store (more on this later)
*Music playback (paused when getting a call) is very good, and features album art, shuffle, etc
*voice dialing
*a touchscreen interface (although my device isn't multitouch, Verizon's "The Droid" should be)
*Accelerometer (tilt controls / sensitivity)
*Multi-megapixel camera / video camera
*An "underground" application development scene (more on this later as well)

Here's where they are notably different:

*Really good voice powered search on Android
*Openness of the Android Marketplace
*Better graphics on the iPhone
*A larger variety of games on the iPhone
*Different mindsets in each respective development community
*Total screen customization on Android
*Android works on different service providers
*Android doesn't suspend apps - it uses true multitasking

Here's a video of a 3D game on Android, to wheat your appetite:



To read more, go to the Stage Select article.