What makes a good app?

Seeing how I just created the first app, this is a question that I have given quite a bit of thought to.  What does make a good app?  What makes people keep playing, keep coming back and keep downloading your games?  It's a good question - and one that can decide the success or failure of your app.

So, when it comes to games, this is the question - what makes a good app?  Here are some thoughts:

1)  Graphics:  This one probably goes without saying - but a game has to have good graphics and be visually attractive.  If it isn't, people won't download.  This sort of folds into item #2 below, but iPhone Apps are all about being attractive.  Now, that's easier said than done.  How do you get good graphics?  The answer may lie outside of your capabilities - I know I can barely draw a stick figure.  Go with the professionals.  Find a local company that builds Apps (I used Enter.Net) or hire a freelancer.

2)  Shiny!:  SHINY!  I like to refer to what I call the "ohh, shiny!" factor in life.  Our attention spans are shrinking as the demands on our time is growing.  So, based on that - make your app "Ohh, shiny!" friendly.  An app has to be constantly stimulating, constantly changing, and most important, have opportunities for non-stop interaction.  It seems simple, right?  But in practice, its harder than it seems.  I have seen way too many apps that have long cut-scenes and not enough of a chance to interact.  That's what apps need to be all about.

3)  Competition:  Regardless of how - an app should have an opportunity to compete.  Two-player apps are sometimes difficult to design and its not always feasible.  So, give your app an opportunity to have competition in another way - create a leader-board, have medals for completion or have a high score that can be beat.  One of my favorite apps is Finger Physics - its a free app that requires thought and coordination.  You get medals for finishing a level with speed - and this leaves you constantly wanting to beat your own record!

4)  Achievements:  If you've ever played an xBox game, you know that you are constantly trying to get achievements - chances for you to complete something specific to the game and get an award for it.  Achievements can be set up within a game without much programming difficulty - just hook your game into Open Feint.


5)  Content:  If a game isn't interesting, it ain't selling.  How can you make your content unique - based on who your target audience is? 

Hello, world!!

Hello world!  This is Mike Schlossberg, writing on behalf of all of us at Pocket Protector Games.  All of us would be me, and Mr. Pocket to my left.  Mr. Pocket isn't a real person though.  That would be creepy and make me sort of derranged.

Anyway, this is the blog of Pocket Protector Games, a new iPhone App development company.  Pocket Protector Games has two apps on the market so far:  One for US History and one for US Presidents.  They are trivia games based on teh topics that they are named after.

Now, that being said, I know enough about Social Media to know that no one really cares all that much about Pocket Protector Games that they are going to keep coming back to read about us, so this blog will be dedicated towards useful topics - things like Social Media news and tips, mobile technology, the occasional app review, app development and the like, as well as the occasional update on Mr. Pocket and all of his latest adventures. 

So, we'll be back in a few days, but thanks for checking us out, and we'll see you soon!!