The fact that Apple CEO Tim Cook didn't actually visit game developer Valve doesn't really change my predictions about Apple's role in the gaming industry or rumors about a possible Apple video game console.
In the narrow case of Apple and Valve, I think we still will see more collaboration between the two now that Valve is releasing all its titles across platforms.
On the other hand, rumors of hardware collaboration strike me as a longshot at best, and dreamy-Utopian at worst. So do rumors about an Apple console.
I mentioned previously that not running on Windows creates a barrier to entry for Apple computers into the serious gaming market, a claim which many commenters scoffed at. "Dual-booting isn't that much of a hoop to jump through!" they reminded me. Sure, for people who want to dual-boot it's a very simple process.
Still, I think they're missing the larger point. It may not be a huge hoop for some people, but when you take into account the broader market it really is: how many gamers simply choose PC to avoid the added hassle and added expense of dual-booting?
That's without even considering how gamers enjoy tinkering with their PCs, upgrading parts, etc. Things you can't do with an Apple product to nearly the same degree.
Real barriers to a flourishing gaming platform exist for Apple, and it's unlikely Apple will choose to pursue either consoles or PC gaming in a very big way, though they will be happy enough to work with developers like Valve or Blizzard who release cross-platform titles.
The Revolution Will Be Mobile
Apple is a threat to consoles, but not in the way some people are talking about it. Apple isn't coming out with an Xbox killer - at least not directly. Mobile games are already cutting into the traditional gaming market, and it will only get worse. Even as game hardware and software sales drop off a cliff, mobile gaming is only getting bigger.
So don't count on Apple making a concerted push into the console market.
Rather than deal with new console hardware, it's far more likely that Apple will continue to pursue app gaming across its Mac, iPhone, iPad, and television products. We'll see gaming apps take off in earnest when Apple finally breaks into the television market. Many casual gamers will have no need for a console if their TV sports a large catalog of gaming apps already.
Add to this the fact that graphics chip manufacturer nVidia is predicting that mobile graphics processors will be as powerful as the Xbox 360 chip by 2014, and you can see how gaming apps are going to be a very big deal in a couple of years.
Since mobile devices will see a perpetual upgrade cycle while consoles only get upgrades every few years (or longer) mobile gaming will have a distinct technological edge, at least in evolutionary terms, similar to the edge PC gaming has, but with a much broader consumer base.
We'll see a much more mainstream gaming market opening up to mobile and Apple television gamers, while more serious titles remain on consoles and especially PC. It will be more difficult than ever to produce serious titles at a profit, however, and the trend will be toward the "online universes" that EA has talked about.
Games will be connected across multiple platforms - a notion that can be both good, when it's purely optional, and bad when it's done by forcing players to play on multiple platforms just to complete a game. Think Mass Effect 3.
Mix in the growing free-to-play model and the future of gaming begins to emerge, as does Apple's role in all of it as king of the hill in a very, very different industry than the one we have now.
I admit, it's not a vision that particularly excites or delights me.
I'm suspicious of free-to-play and I'm uninspired by most mobile games. Angry Birds does nothing for me. Hopefully the market stays vibrant enough to continue pumping out serious titles and doesn't continue loping toward the lowest common denominator. Hopefully we see increasingly ambitious games on PC and on consoles.
And maybe gaming apps will see their own transformation for the better.
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