Hardcore on iOS

The expected shooter N.O.V.A. 3, despite the high price and a relatively small target audience for this platform, turned out to be at the top of the world charts the very next day after the release.  

However, given the success on iOS of such titles as Max Payne, GTA III and Marvel vs. Capcom 2, good performance of hardcore projects is becoming a regular feature in the mobile industry. However, in this case there is a small nuance: N.O.V.A. is initially a mobile IP. 

Anyway, during the day, the technological shooter N.O.V.A. 3 from the French from Gameloft managed not only to earn an average rating of 4.5 points out of 5 (so far based on 350 votes), but also to become the best paid application in nine regions. And this is at a price of $6.99. So it’s not surprising that the project entered the top five highest-grossing applications in as many as 18 countries (in the US it is still in 25th place in the iPhone version and 24th in the iPad version). 

And although it’s too early to talk about success – preliminary results can be carried out no earlier than in a week or two, when it becomes approximately clear whether the project is going down or continues to gain points, something in the project already raises questions, despite the favorable reviews of most users. 

Firstly, the lucky owners of the new iPad were a little unlucky. According to some players, the project slows down on their devices, especially in cases when a large number of opponents accumulate on the screen. In this regard, a version was born that the really unoptimized ragdoll physics is to blame for the brakes. 

Secondly, there are those who claim that the iPad 2 version has more various complex effects and minor details, despite the fact that the picture itself, due to the higher resolution on the new iPad, of course, looks much better.

Both the first and second points refer us to the old thread about the performance of the third generation iPad.

Some, by the way, have complaints about the graphics as a whole. According to these few users, the project visually remained at the level of Modern Combat 3. However, most reviewers insist that at this stage the project is one of the most beautiful and technologically advanced mobile applications. 

However, if you compare with Infinity Blade II, then you should not hope for a qualitatively new level of graphics. For comparison, on the PS Vita, the Uncharted game looks much more beautiful than N.O.V.A. 3. So far everything is at the project level for the previous generation of home consoles, adjusted, of course, for modern design. 

In any case, Gameloft once again demonstrates (and the company does it perfectly) that the mobile platform market is not only open to hardcore projects, but also decently hungry for them.