Are Smartphone Apps Needed For Current Game Prosperity?

jeff37923 · March 19, 2015, 04:01:54 PM

In a moment of boredom at work, I ended up looking at the App Store of my smartphone. There are SRD reference Apps supporting D&D and Pathfinder, there is an App for FFG Star Wars for their gimmick dice, and I'm sure a few more. So is having a smartphone App that supports playing your preferred tabletop RPG now considered as vital as core rulebooks, splatbooks, and adventures? Does it actually help sales and visibility of your product?

Anciliary question: Could a tabletop RPG linked with a meeting App be a way for smartphone users to engage in the hobby?

Ladybird · March 19, 2015, 04:16:26 PM

I think very few of those apps are actually "official" apps, as opposed to people thinking "hey, we can make an app that will make us money from someone else's FREE content", like the SRD apps.

I've heard of a couple of games that have made tentative steps towards using the smartdevice as an integral part of it, and I'm sure there is potential there in the concept, but I don't think they ever made it to market.

re: your other question, isn't that basically google hangouts?

woodsmoke · March 19, 2015, 04:16:31 PM

I don't know about vital, but it can certainly make things more convenient and accessible. It's entirely possible to run Pathfinder without any physical materials at all thanks to rules, character sheet and dice roller apps. Which isn't to say I would necessarily want to - I have the former two apps on my tablet but I still prefer to roll physical dice. It's nice to not have to bother with passing books around when I need to look up an ability description or something, though.

Of course, the flip side of that is folks might be tempted to tool around on their devices instead of paying attention to the game, but that's a different discussion we've already had (and will probably have again at some point).

Ladybird · March 19, 2015, 04:22:32 PM

Now I think about it, I've actually done this; I made a die roller program for The One Ring (Because we all had our laptops open when working on it), more just because I was bored than any other reason. It was a nice program, it worked well, we used it.

Before anyone asks, I can't distribute it, as I don't even have the code any more.

Simlasa · March 19, 2015, 04:27:00 PM

Quote from: woodsmoke;821026It's entirely possible to run Pathfinder without any physical materials at all thanks to rules, character sheet and dice roller apps.

Our Pathfinder GM cannot run the game without his Hero Labs stuff on his laptop. There was a glitch one night and the game came to a pathetic halt.
He's also made it known he's waiting to see if there is a version for 5e before he'll run it, despite having the physical books.

woodsmoke · March 19, 2015, 05:02:59 PM

I'm hopeful we'll get some digital tools for 5e (I'd prefer a rules compendium and character sheet app, similar to what Paizo's released), but I'm not holding my breath. I've no idea who the metaphorical luddite at WotC or Hasbro is who simply refuses to accept the internet is a thing that exists, but they've successfully prevented the development of any functional virtual utilities since 3e, and according to Mearls' response to a question about that in the AMA he did last year they don't seem to have any intention of changing course.

languagegeek · March 19, 2015, 09:51:04 PM

I remember a failed Kickstarter attempt that was something like this – where the mechanics was performed automatically by the app.

Here it is...
storyscape

danskmacabre · March 19, 2015, 11:57:16 PM

Yeah I would love a 5E character gen program with pdf export support, so I can quickly generate or level up a character and print it out.

It's a pain there isn't one yet for 5E. grrr..

Snowman0147 · March 20, 2015, 12:31:17 AM

I don't mind the dice roller, but for table top games I try to go on without devices as much as I can. Mainly because I shouldn't need electronic devices to run a paper and pen role playing game.

Omega · March 20, 2015, 01:14:44 AM

Quote from: Simlasa;821028Our Pathfinder GM cannot run the game without his Hero Labs stuff on his laptop. There was a glitch one night and the game came to a pathetic halt.
He's also made it known he's waiting to see if there is a version for 5e before he'll run it, despite having the physical books.

Considering how brutally easy 5e is to DM. I would strongly consider finding a new DM if one was like that.

Glitch! Game cancelled!
Forgot to charge it! Game Cancelled!
I breathed too hard and the screen is foggy! Game cancelled!

ahem.

I assume that other than that failing the DM is pretty good. But I'd never play with someone that dependent.

rawma · March 20, 2015, 05:41:36 PM

I wonder if smartphone apps are more protective of IP than web or PC apps; is it easier to keep the content from undercutting the sale of rule books than on another platform? That might favor smartphone apps over other forms (and certainly seems currently to favor no apps over apps, given the shutting down of somebody's character generator that was discussed recently).

soltakss · March 21, 2015, 05:44:08 AM

We have dice rollers on our smartphones that we do not use, as we always have dice available.

A character sheet on a phone would be really useful, but it would have to be designed for RQ/Legend to be any good for us.

We use Skype to dial into games, if someone is working away or on holiday, which works fairly well.

Apart from that, maybe a way of sharing images of maps/NPC/etc might be useful.

RPGPundit · March 23, 2015, 12:25:41 AM

I certainly don't think its vital. It's useful in at least one case, with DCC. I don't use apps for any other game, though.

danskmacabre · March 23, 2015, 12:52:31 AM

I have a nice Android app here that generates characters.
It supports leveling up too.
too bad there's no export to PDF though, otherwise it'd be pretty much perfect.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.wgkammerer.testgui.basiccharactersheet.app&hl=en

I just got today a very nice spell list app that lists all the 5E spells with a filter by class and level and gives the full descriptions.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=dnd.android&hl=en
I'm going to find this one particularly useful as less flipping through the PHB to find a spell.

Neither of these are absolutely necessary of course, but they're handy.