IPod games

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The iPod is capable of playing many games. The original iPod had the game Brick (originally invented by Apple Computer cofounder Steve Wozniak) included as an easter egg, or a hidden extra feature, and later firmware versions added it as a menu option. Later revisions of the iPod added three more games in addition to Brick: Parachute, Solitaire and Music Quiz.

On September 12, 2006, the iTunes Store began to offer nine additional games for purchase with the launch of iTunes 7, compatible with the 5th generation iPod with iPod software 1.2 or later. Those games included: Bejeweled, Cubis, Mahjong, Mini Golf, Pac-Man, Tetris, Texas Hold 'Em, Vortex, and Zuma. These games were made available for purchase from the iTunes Store for $4.99 each. On December 19, 2006, two more games were released at the same price: Royal Solitaire and Sudoku, bringing the total to 11 games. Then, on February 27th, 2007, iTunes released Ms. Pac-Man raising the total number of games available to 12. All 12 games may be purchased together for $59.88.

The games are in the form of an .ipg file (iPod Game), which is a .zip archive in disguise. When unzipped, it reveals executable files along with common audio and image files, leading to the possibility of third party games. Currently Apple has no publically available SDK for iPod development.^[1]

There are also other ways to play games on your iPod without purchasing them. See iPod Linux and Rockbox for more information.

1 Criticism
2 See also
3 References
4 External links

[edit] Criticism

iTunes has come under much criticism due to the UK price of iPod games, £3.99 (about $7.40). Many people from the UK have given the games 1* ratings, stating that Apple is "ripping off" Britain.

Developers have criticized Apple for not creating an SDK (Software Development Kit) for software developers to create new iPod games. This is likely to keep the DRM scheme of iPod games closed.