Nokia, the Finnish handset maker, re-introduced their N-Gage gaming service called N-Gage First Access this Tuesday. Nokia invited current users of their N81 phone to download a pre-release version of the N-Gage application and to start buying and using games on their phones.
Nokia spokeswoman Camilla Pagliaroli said “A handful of games and applications are now available to them. She also added that ‘Nokia hopes that the users will offer feedback so that the company can refine the software and begin offering it for more devices. The company expects to add more games in the coming weeks and will add support for more devices as the software evolves.”
The N-Gage originally included a stand-alone handheld gaming device developed by Nokia. But it didn’t fare too well on account of poor design and was therefore discontinued. The company however did assure to launch a new platform for N-Gage that would work on regular Nokia phones. The launch was delayed due to software issues until now.
Also, at the same time, Nokia rebranded Twango, a photo- and video-sharing site aimed at mobile users and is calling it Share on Ovi. This service was developed by company Twango which Nokia bought in July 2007.
On this subject Camilla Pagliaroli stated that Share on Ovi becomes the first Ovi-branded service and that although the service will still be in beta, anyone can use it.
Ovi is a Nokia site formed to be a central site where phone users can visit to access a variety of mobile services. The site currently includes Nokia’s music download service, available in the U.K. as well as Nokia’s mapping offerings; and the N-Gage gaming service.
Nokia further plans to launch a service which lets users sync their mobile calendar and contacts information online.
The mobile market is watchful of Nokia’s Ovi offerings because the services may compete with those offered by the customers of phone maker’s operator. The service will also contend with those offered by big names in the computer-based Internet world, such as Google and Yahoo who are increasingly expanding their services for access by mobile customers.