Of course, one of the big issues with N-Gage was that only a small handful of its devices were pre-installed with the application, putting the burden on consumers to go find it and download it themselves. The other problem—and perhaps an even bigger reason as to why Apple’s iPhone is more successful with gaming—is that Nokia hasn’t been as flexible or open with developers and publishers submitting games to the service. Developers have long complained that Apple’s approval process to sell on the App Store lacks transparency and is somewhat random but EA Mobile exec Peter Parameter famously said at Nokia’s gaming conference in Rome last fall that it was “easier to get an audience with the Pope than it is to get a game through certification at Nokia.” Nokia, too, appears to take a bigger cut from the sales of games, with compensation levels more comparable to what carriers give out. Finally, the same exact games are sometimes more expensive on N-Gage than they are through the App Store. Vivendi’s Crash Bandicoot sells for $13.49 for an N-Gage version, and $5.99 for an iPhone version.

Nokia said that “most devices” coming later this year will include an accelerometer. Currently, the Nokia N79, Nokia N82, Nokia N85, Nokia N95, Nokia N95 8GB, Nokia N96 and the Nokia 6210 Navigator can all support motion control.