14 DAY TRIAL // Apple is reportedly working on a physical controller for its iOS devices targeting the video games industry. The device would connect to an iPad or even an Apple TV to leverage iOS apps and games that can offer much more value via traditional button presses, rather than touch.
In reviewing the third-generation iPad, Anandtech throws in a particularly interesting item of gossip claiming that Apple is working on a physical controller internally.
The device would facilitate real gaming on Apple’s iDevices, and that should also include the Apple TV. The excerpt in question (emphasis ours):
Although many casual Android/iOS games do just fine with touch, some are certainly better suited for some sort of a controller. While controller support in Android in its infancy at best, it’s more than iOS currently offers. I know of an internal Apple project to bring a physical controller to market, but whether or not it will ever see the light of day remains to be seen. As smartphones and tablets come close to equalling the performance of current game consoles, I feel like the controller problem must be addressed.
Apple is known to have patented at least one type of gaming controller with cameras and various touch input methods. The device would accommodate anything in the Apple ecosystem, from Macs to iPods, from the Apple TV to the iPad and iPhone.
AirPlay may well be the future of gaming on the Apple TV, should this secret project ever come to fruition. Still labeled as a hobby, the puck-sized black box is the perfect platform to deploy video games that make sense on the big screen in your living room.
Imagine Apple’s $99 set-top box connected to its own App Store filled with video games tailored exclusively for TV play.
You’d be able to download them wirelessly in a few minutes and start playing immediately. Now, think of how much PlayStation 4 will cost. Apple could take a huge chunk of Sony’s user base in a heartbeat.