The most recent news of Apple co-founder and former CEO Steve Jobs passing away is quite sad and a wake-up call for a lot of people in various fields. The man was such a innovator during his time that it even affected how we gamers play our games. A forced association not withstanding, there is much reason for gamers to celebrate that man’s life and his accomplishments as mobile gaming transformed from being stuck in a little box to becoming more freeform due to his ideas.

Before the advent of the iOS, we had mobile gaming platforms like the Sony PSP and the Nintendo DS already in the market. While these two are quality platforms in themselves, they were limited by the design conventions of mobile gaming at that time. The distribution media, control implements, audio-visual output, and many other things do suit certain genres of games, but a certain level of innovation hasn’t been reached in years. The Nintendo DS has started something with the touchscreen, and perhaps that’s where Apple and other companies got a lightbulb.

Whether it was coincidence or planned, the potential of the touchscreen in mobile gaming was subsequently tapped in the realm of mobile phones. Nokia is notable for attempting to break into the mobile gaming market with the N-Gage, but it died a slow death afterwards. Other mobile phone companies would add games to their products, but none of them get the formula down right. Apple then makes a dynamic entrance into that market with the introduction of the iPhone on 2007. The hardware and software showed tremendous potential for mobile gaming, and developers jumped right in.

The biggest things that can be seen up front with iOS devices are the touchscreen and the lack of buttons other than the ones that matter. The touch interface was introduced by Steve Jobs as a doing away of the limitations that buttons in mobile phones tend to impose upon those who develop applications for the said devices. This concept hit the nail dead on as the touch interface did allow for developers greater freedoms in user interface design, and the same is true with games. In fact, games are usually the best sellers due to this reason as iOS games are unique in this respect.

But what really made the iOS such a big hit in mobile gaming wasn’t just the devices themselves, but also the App Store. Being able to purchase and download games at low prices was the silver bullet that made iOS actually work in the market. Some titles have become major hits over the years, including casual games like Angry Birds, which has made gamers out of people who have never played a video game before. The mobile platform of the iOS is perfect for introducing games to other people due to accessibility and the simple touch interface. The inclusion of Game Center shows that Apple had its eye on mobile gaming and knew its potential in maximizing their already great devices.

The absence of Adobe Flash support is a bit of a blemish for iOS, but there are perfectly good reasons for Apple to ban it from their products, even though Adobe products are one of the biggest reasons for customers to use Apple Mac OS in the first place. What had happened though is that developers would port their Flash games into the iOS and profit from it quite well since being able to play those games on the go is really that big of a deal for some people. The addition of having touch controls and the accelerometer also gave these developers new ways to provide improved experiences to gamers of various demographics.

Even as Apple had gone through the massive change of no longer having Steve Jobs to lead them, the legacy of what he helped start still persists, especially in mobile gaming. Just think of games like Rage, Dead Space, Infinity Blade, and many others for the iOS that are absolutely insane in both visuals and gameplay. We’re no longer dealing with little things here anymore, but serious games oozing great technical and artistic quality. The App Store is set for many more years of selling quality mobile games, and customers pay without much complaint as a result.

Of course, this leads to the subject of Google Android. Competitors are good for the market as it triggers more innovations in an arms race to outdo each other’s technology. The differences are quite obvious though in that iOS devices are all proprietary to Apple, while Android devices have various manufacturers doing what they can to maximize that operating system. These different business models have divided loyalists to two factions like how Moses parted the Red Sea. While Apple fans confide in the quality of iOS devices, Android fans counter with how free and open Android supposedly is to innovation.

The pitch battles waged by these two parties tend to get so heated to the point of civil war, but it must never be forgotten that all of this choice and potential in the mobile market was started by the vision of one man. Whether you like him or not, Steve Jobs has to be respected for what he had done for the tech industry. His innovations have transcended to different fields, including mobile gaming. The fact that this website can continue to feature iOS game reviews is due to what that man had brought to the table.

Despite him no longer being with us here in this mortal realm, we can still appreciate his work by picking up an iPhone or iPad to play a game. Perhaps right now in the afterlife, he’s launching a new product.