English for Cultural and Creative Industries

Do you remember Snake? Installed on Nokia phones from 1997, it was the first ever game application, or app. The idea – to move a “snake” around the screen, collecting food – was simple but popular, and several versions of the game are still available in app stores today.

It is hard to believe how quickly we have progressed from Snake to the current global app market. Recent estimates suggest that 50,000 apps are downloaded to handheld devices every minute, while Angry Birds, the most successful mobile game of all time, has been downloaded by over two billion people and is one of the most recognizable brands in the world.

The majority of games are downloaded from either the Apple App Store or Google Play, both of which were launched in The former makes an astonishing five million dollars a day, although technically, the latter sells more apps. The two stores have strict quality tests for new game apps, and take 30% of any revenue the developers make. So how do developers make money, when the average price tag for a paid game in the Apple store is just $0.99?astonishing revenue

These days, many of the biggest games do not charge a one- time download fee. Both Angry Birds and Candy Crush Saga (with 500 million downloads) are examples of “freemium” games, which are free in their basic forms but can be upgraded with in-app purchases. Other developers might feature advertisements in their games, or ask users to pay a subscription on a monthly basis.

The freemium concept is just one innovation in the app market; another is the introduction of interactive games. Some of these multiplayer, online games happen in real time and are competitive, like Streetfighter IV, whilst others are co-operative, like the award-winning Minecraft. This building simulation, which is available on a range of platforms, has been widely praised for its original gameplay – there are no instructions, levels or goals, just the freedom to create your own virtual environment.innovation

Game apps can be educational, as well as entertaining. They can help users to learn new skills, improve their general knowledge, or study for an exam. In the early days of cell phones, students would be punished for using them in class; in the modern classroom, teachers are more likely to encourage the use of smartphones to support learning. South Korea is leading the way with handhelds in schools, aiming to trade all its textbooks for tablets by iBooks:

What next for game apps? The future of technology is famously difficult to predict, but experts believe that we will start to combine some of our present addictions – games, movies and TV shows, and social media. Can you imagine downloading an app that allows you to virtually walk into your favourite show, interact with the characters to create a new story, broadcast it to your friends online and invite them to join in? To the first players of Snake it would seem like an impossible dream, but it looks set to become a reality within a few years. BBC`s panorama - videogame addiction ? - part 1 / 2 BBC`s panorama - videogame addiction ? - part 2/ 2

Exercise What apps are on your phone? What type of apps are they? Describe two of your favorite apps and how you make use of the apps every day.

Dialogue 1 Two students are talking about a new popular game app, but the app is not free for download. It is a paid app from an online store. Ken:Is everything OK? You look exhausted. Wendy:I’m pretty tired. I didn’t go to sleep until 3 a.m. Ken:Were you at a party? Wendy:No … I’m kind of embarrassed to admit this, but I was playing Star Island. Ken:Oh, my sister has that game. She can’t stop playing it. Wendy:I have the same problem. Last night I got stuck on this one level, and I just had to stay awake to complete it. Ken:That’s crazy. We have a test today. Wendy:I guess you don’t have the game, then! If you did, you’d know how addictive it is. Ken:Well, I was going to download it, but then I saw the price. I never pay for apps. Wendy:Come on! Star Island is only $0.99. It’s the same price as a candy bar. You should try it, seriously. Ken:I lose enough sleep already, worrying about school. I don’t need another reason.

Dialogue 2 Two game developers are brainstorming about the concepts of next-gen game apps. Ellie:OK. Our last app had poor sales, so we need to think of a really special game for our next release. Any ideas? Duncan:Maybe we shouldn’t make any more puzzles. There are so many already, and they all feel similar. Ellie:But we’re famous for making puzzle games. The problem is not the type of game. We just need to create something that’s fresh and different. Duncan:How about a multiplayer word game? Ellie:It’s been done before. What would make our app different from our competitors’? Duncan:I don’t know … maybe people could play in pairs … all right, it’s a bad idea. Ellie:What if we combined elements of an action game with elements of a puzzle game? Duncan:Go on … Ellie:I think we need to design a recognizable character that’s associated with our brand. A cute animal or monster or something. Duncan:That could work – but the most important thing is still the gameplay. What would the character actually do?

The Apple App Store offers more than a quarter of a million games – so why did two, Angry Birds and Candy Crush Saga, become so much more popular than the others? First, they are very simple. They can be learned in seconds and even played with one hand, so it is possible to do something else at the same time. Second, psychologists believe that they relieve stress, because they have childishly satisfying rewards – knocking something to the ground, or getting candy. And third, they both offer an almost endless supply of new levels and in-app purchases; you can never really complete them. Angry Birds and Candy Crush Saga have made a fortune for their creators, but what about the developers of less well-known games? According to a 2013 survey, the average app takes 18 weeks to design but is only likely to make around $4,000 in revenue. As in many industries, there is a huge gap between those at the top of the tree and those at the bottom.