Electronic Arts Shifts Toward iPad

Kris Erickson • Apr 11, 2010 • Comments ()

We've already argued that the iPad has some serious gaming potential, as long as third party developers get on board and create some killer apps for the new tablet device. Well, Electronic Arts is one publisher that didn't need any prodding before getting on board the iPad development train. They've announced that a version of Need For Speed: Shift is already available for download on the machine.

One thing we were worried about before the launch of the iPad was that developers would take the easy route and simply rely on upscaling the graphics from iPhone to the more powerful iPad. EA has definitely not gone that route with NFS: Shift. The publishers tells us that this isn't just Shift for the iPhone on a larger screen - the new iPad version has been improved significantly, with 18 total tracks, 28 cars, improved 3D graphics optimized for the iPad, and stronger physics-based driving controls, with manual acceleration.

Should Sony be worried about competition for its own portable gaming system (which also hosts versions of Need for Speed), or is the iPad still a Jack-of-all-trades, master of none? Judging from the screenshot below, the iPad's graphics have finally matched and perhaps exceeded those on the PSP. The touch controls are still not perfect, meaning that dedicated gamers will probably prefer a dedicated handheld machine. Still, the technical prowess of the iPad is impressive, and if developers can get the input sorted out, it could definitely compete with handheld offerings from Sony and Nintendo.

One problem with the iPad is definitely software pricing. Need for Speed Shift on iPad is priced at $14.99 USD, making it too expensive to tempt casual users but too cheap to be taken seriously as a fully featured game.