Support NeoGAF

[ChorusLindarr]

PowerVR 6 scales from 100 GFLOPS ~ 1 TFLOP architecturally, though I imagine the first line of chips will come in much, much closer to the bottom of that range.

That said, at 250 GFLOPS you are talking 360 power, so even if you're poly starved in comparison for wattage reasons, you can do a lot of raw calculation.

It isn't just about the GPU though. I think that's what everyone forgets when they talk about mobile platforms.

CPUs are generally serial processors, and thus don't necessarily scale the same way performance wise as with their power consumption. It will take literally another decade or more for mobile platforms to match the CPU performance of a 360. Which really is the crux of it, as all game code, animation code etc etc runs on the CPU rather than the GPU. Hence mobile games like Infinity Blade end up feeling shallow and lacking entirely the kinds of depth and complexity found in PS360 games.

Notice the EA guy spoke only of graphics?

It will be decades before a phone or tablet will be able to play GTAIV for example.

So most of all these predictions for mobile are just a tad hyperbolic in my eyes.

 

[LukeTim]

It isn't just about the GPU though. I think that's what everyone forgets when they talk about mobile platforms.

CPUs are generally serial processors, and thus don't necessarily scale the same way performance wise as with their power consumption. It will take literally another decade or more for mobile platforms to match the CPU performance of a 360. Which really is the crux of it, as all game code, animation code etc etc runs on the CPU rather than the GPU. Hence mobile games like Infinity Blade end up feeling shallow and lacking entirely the kinds of depth and complexity found in PS360 games.

Notice the EA guy spoke only of graphics?

It will be decades before a phone or tablet will be able to play GTAIV for example.

So most of all these predictions for mobile are just a tad hyperbolic in my eyes.

Decades?

Like the decades it took to port GTA III/Vice City to Phones and Tablets?

That took one decade, and I suspect it was only exactly one because they were 10th anniversary editions, they could have done it sooner.

Also, at the moment there is a move toward more OpenCL support on mobile GPUs... there's no reason that can't be used to supplement processing the CPU can't handle, just like the PS360 couldn't.

 

[KKRT00]

It isn't just about the GPU though. I think that's what everyone forgets when they talk about mobile platforms.

CPUs are generally serial processors, and thus don't necessarily scale the same way performance wise as with their power consumption. It will take literally another decade or more for mobile platforms to match the CPU performance of a 360. Which really is the crux of it, as all game code, animation code etc etc runs on the CPU rather than the GPU. Hence mobile games like Infinity Blade end up feeling shallow and lacking entirely the kinds of depth and complexity found in PS360 games.

Notice the EA guy spoke only of graphics?

It will be decades before a phone or tablet will be able to play GTAIV for example.

So most of all these predictions for mobile are just a tad hyperbolic in my eyes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFENQxAfMrY

There are tablets that play current gen games, they are big and expensive, but they exists.
Razer Edge Pro
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gRNwf7ZuvQ
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-razer-edge-review

 

[Deku Tree]

EA give us Retina graphics.

 

[LukeTim]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFENQxAfMrY

There are tablets that play current gen games, they are big and expensive, but they exists.
Razer Edge Pro
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gRNwf7ZuvQ
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-razer-edge-review

to be fair, the Razer Edge Pro is just a laptop with a touchscreen and no keyboard...

It has an i7 and GeForceM. What I belief EA was talking about is Tablets with mobile technology inside, like the iPad.

 

[Canis lupus]

Let them get PSP graphics first.

 

[SmokyDave]

Let them get PSP graphics first.

I want your PSP. Mine can't produce anything on par with Real Racing 3 or Modern Combat 4.

 

[LukeTim]

Let them get PSP graphics first.

When was the last time you played a mobile/tablet game?

They are far beyond PSP: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VoAuhZSto9w

 

[heringer]

Lots of knee jerk reactions about "no buttons". Guess some people are not aware of iOS7 yet.

 

[GeoGonzo]

Watching a traditional gamer trying to justify why iOS/Android aren't real games is funnier every single year.

2014 will bring pS360 graphics + controller support... but it is still not good enough because "battery will run out in 5 mins lol"? Oh you guys.

And god damn, "decades till we can play GTA4 on a smartphone"? Five years, tops.

 

[RetroStu]

Watching a traditional gamer trying to justify why iOS/Android aren't real games is funnier every single year.

2014 will bring pS360 graphics + controller support... but it is still not good enough because "battery will run out in 5 mins lol"? Oh you guys.

9 years later. I don't understand why so many people stick up for tablet shit, they are mostly awful and hilariously bad rip off games, Modern Comabt and that awful Gears clone Shadowrun (or whatever its called) are prime examples.

 

[BrainZEROX]

Watching a traditional gamer trying to justify why iOS/Android aren't real games is funnier every single year.

2014 will bring pS360 graphics + controller support... but it is still not good enough because "battery will run out in 5 mins lol"? Oh you guys.

Realistically, only gamers will plug a controller to their tablets. The others will play ports of ps3/360 games with virtual pads... Urgh.

 

[Bgamer90]

9 years later. I don't understand why so many people stick up for tablet shit, they are mostly awful and hilariously bad rip off games, Modern Comabt and that awful Gears clone Shadowrun (or whatever its called) are prime examples.

Have you ever tried any RTS games on tablets?

 

[Cheebo]

see it's funny because the Wii U has 360/PS3 capabilities and a tablet
yet EA won't make games for it

More people own iPads than ever owned PS2's or DS's or any video game system every released. Game system sales are minuscule compared to the tablet market.

Let them get PSP graphics first.

iPad runs laps around PSP. Most major iPad games could never be done on PSP graphically.

 

[solarus]

Pricing expectations for games on these platforms and controls limit the potential of larger games and any direct comparisons that could be made between these smartphones/tablets and 360/PS3.

 

[RetroStu]

Have you ever tried any RTS games on tablets?

Nope but its funny you said that because i have said before how i could see RTS games or 'point and click' adventure games working really well on tablets, everything else a big no.

There is a guy on my course who has this tennis game on his I-Pad and you have to touch where you want the ball to go lol, its just awful.

 

[borghe]

It isn't just about the GPU though. I think that's what everyone forgets when they talk about mobile platforms.

CPUs are generally serial processors, and thus don't necessarily scale the same way performance wise as with their power consumption. It will take literally another decade or more for mobile platforms to match the CPU performance of a 360. Which really is the crux of it, as all game code, animation code etc etc runs on the CPU rather than the GPU. Hence mobile games like Infinity Blade end up feeling shallow and lacking entirely the kinds of depth and complexity found in PS360 games.

Notice the EA guy spoke only of graphics?

It will be decades before a phone or tablet will be able to play GTAIV for example.

So most of all these predictions for mobile are just a tad hyperbolic in my eyes.

Oh god there is so much bad here.

PCs and consoles AND mobile haven't been CPU constrained in forever. They talk about GPUs because that's where the bottlenecks have been for well over a decade. The Saturn for example have a much more powerful RISC processor (two in fact) than PSX, but which system had the better looking games?

This isn't news. We knew this year's iPad is likely going to be within spitting distance of PS360, and next year's iPad is likely going to be more powerful than the PS360 gen. That shouldn't be the worrying part. I mean it was inevitable. The worrying part IMHO is that apple has the game controller API in ios 7. An iPad with a $30 controller and an Apple TV (or even just straight hdmi) could be a very realistic gaming machine. Then when that tech hits iTouch and iPhone the next year....

Pricing expectations for games on these platforms and controls limit the potential of larger games and any direct comparisons that could be made between these smartphones/tablets and 360/PS3.

There is so much truth in this post. Truth and sadness. Apple needs a curated listing of games. Keep the store open, but curate a premium listing where we can ignore the knock offs and Asian f2p's and get down to the meaty gaming goodness of the platform.

 

[RetroStu]

More people own iPads than ever owned PS2's or DS's or any video game system every released. Game system sales are minuscule compared to the tablet market.



iPad runs laps around PSP. Most major iPad games could never be done on PSP graphically.

The problem with that statement (although true) is that you assume that everyone buys tablets to play games where as in reality, hardly anybody will of bought a tablet to play games first, thats why most games are 5 minute long throw away games.

 

[Shiggy]

9 years later. I don't understand why so many people stick up for tablet shit, they are mostly awful and hilariously bad rip off games, Modern Comabt and that awful Gears clone Shadowrun (or whatever its called) are prime examples.

You should try
Anomaly Warzone Earth: Mobile Campaign
Beat Hazard Ultra
Broken Sword
Cogs
Dynamite Jack
Plants vs. Zombies
Stealth Bastard Deluxe
The Room
World of Goo
Zen Bound 2

Just some examples of great Android titles...


And yes, I will play Broken Sword 5 on my Galaxy S3 and not on my PC. Much more convenient.

 

[mocoworm]

So they will put their games on phones and tablets, but not Vita or Wii U? Why?

... because the mobile phone / tablet install base is in the billions ?

 

[SmokyDave]

Pricing expectations for games on these platforms and controls limit the potential of larger games and any direct comparisons that could be made between these smartphones/tablets and 360/PS3.

These 'pricing expectations' are shifting and will continue to shift as time goes on.

The problem with that statement (although true) is that you assume that everyone buys tablets to play games where as in reality, hardly anybody will of bought a tablet to play games first, thats why most games are 5 minute long throw away games.

Regardless of why people buy tablets, most people end up gaming on them.

 

[borghe]

These 'pricing expectations' are shifting and will continue to shift as time goes on.


Regardless of why people buy tablets, most people end up gaming on them.

You are right (pricing). You are seeing lots of indie games now above $2.99 for iPad. Lots in the $4.99-6.99 range which is great. But it is still the vast minority, and usually only indie games already established on the PC. The majority is still the race to the bottom $1.99 or lower with "free with IAP" still dominating listings.

Hopefully things continue in the direction though where content priced at what it's worth will be viable.. And $6.99+ games have no problem selling at those price point.

 

[Mokubba]

I fucking love the relentless march of technology. With the Vita flopping, phones and tablets are my only hope for high-end portable gaming.


That's the stuff I want to hear. Get these games out so I can buy them.

I'm all for technology increasing but looking at all the games I've played on vita recently it'll be hard to replicate that same level of control on a tablet.

Marvel 3 and SFxT are a joy to play on the vita and I can't imagine using only a touchscreen for Guacamelee or Rayman Origins.

Without the tight controls it won'e be high end for me.

 

[PuppetMaster]

"will have nearly 360/PS3 capabilities in terms of graphics"

is the new

"will look like Toy Story graphics"

 

[Curufinwe]

Watching a traditional gamer trying to justify why iOS/Android aren't real games is funnier every single year.

2014 will bring pS360 graphics + controller support... but it is still not good enough because "battery will run out in 5 mins lol"? Oh you guys.

And god damn, "decades till we can play GTA4 on a smartphone"? Five years, tops.

So you can play a 2008 console game on a tablet in 2018? Hooray.

iPads will still be pushing against the 10 watt power envelope inherent to a half inch thick device five years from now. There is no magical solution for battery life and heat dissipation in a handheld device.

 

[Donnie]

It's almost as if they're looking to make money or something.

The massive majority of mobile phone games make an absolute pitance even compared to low selling third party WiiU titles. Even the most successful mobile phone game of all time made a small fraction of good selling console titles.

These 'pricing expectations' are shifting and will continue to shift as time goes on..

The number of people buying those games will also shift accordingly. Its easy to sell 10m copies at $2 each, but try selling 10m of the same game at $50. People simply don't want to play proper games on their phone, they've got no problem throwing away the same they'd spend on a packet of sweets, but make it a console price and it becomes a question of worth and value and the fact is 99% of mobile phone games are worth fuck all, nothing more than a quick play on the bus or a "look at this" to a friend before being forgotten. What they're going to need to do if prices are going to increase and be accepted is spend console like development costs on these games AND provide players with good controls to play them. Then the whole ROI craze certain developers have with mobile phone game at the moment disapears completely. Because most phones aren't going to have those controls, so the huge userbase is cut to console levels and the games cost the same to develop.

 

[reKon]

Let them get PSP graphics first.

So much ignorance ugh...

Modern combat 4 + moga pro has provided a pretty good mobile gaming experience for me

 

[Easy_D]

Will they come with their own power-supplies?

 

[SmokyDave]

The massive majority of mobile phone games make an absolute pitance even compared to low selling third party WiiU titles. Even the most successful mobile phone game of all time made a small fraction of good selling console titles.

'The massive majority' aren't relevant. I'd bet that Real Racing 3 and Simpsons: Tapped Out have made more money for EA than any of their Wii-U titles, if not all of 'em combined.

The number of people buying those games will also shift accordingly. Its easy to sell 10m copies at $2 each, but try selling 10m of the same game at $50. People simply don't want to play proper games on their phone, they've got no problem throwing away the same they'd spend on a packet of sweets, but make it a console price and it becomes a question of worth and value and the fact is 99% of mobile phone games are worth fuck all, nothing more than a quick play on the bus or a "look at this" to a friend before being forgotten. What they're going to need to do if prices are going to increase and be accepted is spend console like development costs on these games AND provide players with good controls to play them. Then the whole ROI craze certain developers have with mobile phone game at the moment disapears completely. Because most phones aren't going to have those controls, so the huge userbase is cut to console levels and the games cost the same to develop.

I respect your speculation but I feel it is rather short-sighted and is probably based on an outdated perception of the mobile marketplace and the content available therein.

You also seem to be basing your speculation on the idea that all mobile games will shift to console prices and that all mobile gamers need to support them. Neither is true. A small fraction can be console-priced and a small fraction of mobile gamers can probably still make that a profitable enterprise.

 

[twobear]

I see the bu-bu-bu-bu-controlz! Crowd are already out in force.

Warhammer Quest on my iPhone and Baldur's Gate on my iPad clearly demonstrate that touchscreen gaming can be as challenging and complex as console games with an entirely touch interface, and unless Firaxis screw it up XCOM has the potential to play better on iPad than it does on 360 or PS3.

 

[Donnie]

When was the last time you played a mobile/tablet game?

They are far beyond PSP: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VoAuhZSto9w

Far beyond?, beyond in texture detail and resolution definitely, but behind in geometry complexity, lighting and shadowing until very recently. Maybe the newest chipsets have finally gotten their in those area's. See mobile phone games seem to have fooled a lot of people for years graphically. I remember when there would be constant talk of how amazing infinity blade looked, when in reality it looked like a 2000 console game with suped up resolution and textures.

 

[Donnie]

Watching a traditional gamer trying to justify why iOS/Android aren't real games is funnier every single year.

2014 will bring pS360 graphics + controller support... but it is still not good enough because "battery will run out in 5 mins lol"? Oh you guys.

And god damn, "decades till we can play GTA4 on a smartphone"? Five years, tops.

But the thing is you're totally wrong, 2014 won't bring those kind of graphics. The newest chipsets for phones which aren't even announced yet as far as real products might have half the shader performance of XBox 360 at best. Maybe in the best tablet we might see 360 graphics as early as 2015, but we'll have to wait longer for phones.

 

[Robin64]

Battery life and heat are valid concerns, people dismissing this are merely blindly defending and I'm not sure why. If we see a massive technology leap in both those areas, then great, but right now we're reaching the threshold for battery life to physical area ratio.

 

[littlebirdtoldme]

to this is worthless until someone releases an powerful pad with good controls.

I personally dont understand why we havent seen an android pad that looks somewhat like the wiiu pad.

 

[Chrisness]

Well, here's PowerVR5:

We're talking about PowerVR6 for what EA is referring to.

There will obviously be a difference, but how many mobile gamers will notice (at least from a visual quality perspective, since obviously the game design will be way different) I feel is an open question.

PSP visuals are better than regular Android / iOS visuals because you can code to the metal.

 

[Chrisness]

Apple's GPU in the iPad 4 is capable of 76.8 GFLOPS. If the A8X processor in the iPad 6 has 4x the capability (possible), that gives us 153.6 GLOPS. The PS3's RSX GPU can do 172 GLOPS.

 

[Donnie]

'The massive majority' aren't relevant. I'd bet that Real Racing 3 and Simpsons: Tapped Out have made more money for EA than any of their Wii-U titles, if not all of 'em combined.

How much does Real Racing 3 cost and do you have any info on sales figures?

I respect your speculation but I feel it is rather short-sighted and is probably based on an outdated perception of the mobile marketplace and the content available therein.

You also seem to be basing your speculation on the idea that all mobile games will shift to console prices and that all mobile gamers need to support them. Neither is true. A small fraction can be console-priced and a small fraction of mobile gamers can probably still make that a profitable enterprise.

Well we were talking about prices shifting. I'm merely saying that as prices shift for any particular game you'll also see a very similar change in sales. I also don't believe you can justify console prices for games with only touch screen controls and without making them deeper. Therefore your userbase for those games drops massively to only those people with controller accessories and development costs fly up towards console levels. Its just that some people seem to believe that the incredible sounding sales numbers and ROI for mobile games can carry over if you then look to sell those games at console prices, meaning insane revenues that console games can't match, I think its a fundamentally flawed idea.

 

[fred]

I hope this does not mean that publishers are about to bring their excesses and failures to mobile gaming: the long dev cycles and costs, lack of innovation, and the risks to game development studios can stay on consoles.

Nope. Most publishers, including EA, started to scale down their smartphone gaming divisions several years ago. And for one simple and important reason - there's bugger all money to be made in smart

 

[bee]

i believe them, phones will be 2.3ghz quad core soon so there's gotta be some real power there. android is now my second gaming platform, i've had more playtime/enjoyment out of sentinel 3 that i bought for £0.10 on the play store than pretty much any other game last year

 

[kswiston]

doesn't matter. if 5 percent of the total user base buys a game, it's still wildly more successful than a Wii or vita title that appeals to 90 percent of the platform. and 90 percent is a fantasy. even the best selling games are rarely bought by more than 10 or 15 percent.

5% attach rate for an iOS/Android game that isn't free or $1 is also a fantasy. And even then, only a small handful of titles (like Angry Birds) reach those numbers. A lot of smart phone owners don't even play games. Most of those that do have their gaming needs satisfied by F2P and extremely cheap software. If you look at the most successful titles on those platforms they are all heavily based on IAP. I have a hard time seeing how AAA level smartphone/tablet games will be successful without investing heavily into an IAP scheme. Most smart phone users are unwilling to pay a large up front cost that ensures they won't make any additional purchases once they own the app.

Also, there's the question of whether it's even worth investing a large budget into amazing looking tablet software. Most users are clearly content with games that could have been done in Flash or Java. The people who need fancy visuals are the same people they are already reaching on PC/Consoles. The difference being that those people are willing to pay $50/60 for their console and PC games, but bitch if an iOS game is more than $5-10.

I think mobile gaming will continue down the path it has been travelling. We'll see a lot of smaller indie titles and some ports/scaled down versions of retail games. We'll also see a lot of Gatchapon type of titles fishing for whales.

 

[Donnie]

i believe them, phones will be 2.3ghz quad core soon so there's gotta be some real power there. android is now my second gaming platform, i've had more playtime/enjoyment out of sentinel 3 that i bought for £0.10 on the play store than pretty much any other game last year

They could be 4Ghz and it wouldn't necessarily mean a thing. Eventually mobile phones will be level with XBox 360, but not the next wave (Galaxy S5, Iphone 6) and probably not even the one after that. For Tablets it'll come slightly quicker obviously.

 

[SmokyDave]

How much does Real Racing 3 cost and do you have any info on sales figures?

I said 'I bet'. It was an admission that I wasn't using any concrete numbers. You'll notice I didn't ask you to produce any sources, because I know you don't have them. We're both guessing.

It's actually Simpsons: Tapped Out that I suspect is the real money-spinner. That app has been in the top 3 highest grossing since pussy was a cat.

Well we were talking about prices shifting. I'm merely saying that as prices shift for any particular game you'll also see a very similar change in sales. I also don't believe you can justify console prices for games with only touch screen controls and without making them deeper. Therefore your userbase for those games drops massively to only those people with controller accessories and development costs fly up towards console levels. Its just that some people seem to believe that the incredible sounding sales numbers and ROI for mobile games can carry over if you then look to sell those games at console prices, meaning insane revenues that console games can't match, I think its a fundamentally flawed idea.

All I know is that prices have been gradually creeping upwards, games have been getting deeper and more polished, and I can't see that reversing or plateauing any time soon.

The touch controls might be a moot point in 6-12 months with the introduction of standardised controllers through iOS7.

 

[fred]

I hope this does not mean that publishers are about to bring their excesses and failures to mobile gaming: the long dev cycles and costs, lack of innovation, and the risks to game development studios can stay on consoles.

Nope. Most publishers, including EA, started to scale down their smartphone gaming divisions several years ago. And for one simple and important reason - there's bugger all money to be made in smartphone gaming unless a publisher manages to stumble upon the next Angry Birds, Cut The Rope, Draw Something etc etc.

What I like to call 'enthusiast gamers', those that frequent gaming forums such as this one for example, prefer games with 1) More depth 2) A decent playthrough time for a single player experience 3) A decent multiplayer experience and, most importantly 4) Being able to use proper buttons, analog sticks, triggers etc.

We spend a great deal more money on games, a great deal more time in individual gaming sessions and care a great deal more about eye candy than your average smartphone gamer.

 

[1st Course]

But the thing is you're totally wrong, 2014 won't bring those kind of graphics. The newest chipsets for phones which aren't even announced yet as far as real products might have half the shader performance of XBox 360 at best.

Isn't Nvidia's Logan is supposed to be out in 2014? We still don't know what Intel or AMD can bring to the table too, just yesterday we had reports of 1GHz Bay Trail chip completely destroying the competition in benchmarks, Bay Trail T is supposed to be clocked at over 2 GHz if Intel is to be belived.

Advancements in mobile socs is made really quickly, just in 2010 we were talking about the og IPad and it's "mighty" 2 Gflops A4 chip and looks where we are today.

 

[RibbedHero]

tablets and phone are not suited for gaming

People say the same about consoles.

 

[SmokyDave]

Nope. Most publishers, including EA, started to scale down their smartphone gaming divisions several years ago.

Did EA even have a smartphone division 'several years ago'?

Aren't Ubisoft and Square stepping up their mobile development?

 

[Donnie]

doesn't matter. if 5 percent of the total user base buys a game, it's still wildly more successful than a Wii or vita title that appeals to 90 percent of the platform. and 90 percent is a fantasy. even the best selling games are rarely bought by more than 10 or 15 percent.

90% of Wii's userbase would be 90 million people, at $50 per game that would mean $4.5 billion in revenue. Now if we quite generously assume that all 7.5 billion people on earth have a smartphone capable of playing games and are prepared to do so then 5% of those buying any one game for $1 each gives a revenue of $375 million.

So in short your claims are wildly inaccurate.

 

[Dunlop]

I fucking love the relentless march of technology. With the Vita flopping, phones and tablets are my only hope for high-end portable gaming.

There is no evidence yet that console market will not be flopping as well.

I for one welcome our new crappy controls overlords

 

[Manmademan]

90% of Wii's userbase would be 90m people, at $50 per game that would mean $4.5 billion in revenue. Now if we quite generously assume that all 7.5 billion people on earth have a smartphone capable of playing games and are prepared to do so then 5% of those buying any one game for $1 each gives a revenue of $375 million.

So in short your numbers are wildly inaccurate.

notice I was talking about the wiiu, not the wii. the wiiu doesn't have anywhere near 90 million, nor will it.

but let's assume we WERE talking about the Wii. that platform is dead.neglected for years. owners have moved on. a fraction of that 90 million are still buying games. the ps1 sold 100 million units, should EA assume the user base for it is still 100 million?

your example also displays ignorance of how the mobile market works. games may be sold for a dollar or even free, but the majority of revenue is gained not through the purchase price, but microtransactions. Games like Smurf village make FAR more money than the average AAA game with next to no investment. microtransactions work SO well that EA is trying to shoehorn them into their console games now.... take a look at dead space 3 for a good (or bad) example of pay to win becoming more common.

in short: your example is off base and wildly inaccurate

 

[Donnie]

Isn't Nvidia's Logan is supposed to be out in 2014? We still don't know what Intel or AMD can bring to the table too, just yesterday we had reports of 1GHz Bay Trail chip completely destroying the competition in benchmarks, Bay Trail T is supposed to be clocked at over 2 GHz if Intel is to be belived.

Advancements in mobile socs is made really quickly, just in 2010 we were talking about the og IPad and it's "mighty" 2 Gflops A4 chip and looks where we are today.

None of these chips are "out" until they're in a smart phone. They may all be out as in available to license for a product, but it takes time before they start showing their faces on retail shelves.

Also mobile chips have been getting faster at such a rate because for so many years its was an area left behind. Companies would focus on PC's and consoles and only a few would spend any time on mobile GPU's. With handheld devices exploding in popularity more and more companies started spending development money and time on mobile parts. ARM/PowerVR being one of the main companies to start pushing things forward. However there will come a time when mobile parts really start to catch up a bit and people expecting the rate of improvement to continue will find to their suprise that it'll slow down to the kind of rate we see in the desktop space.