Joe Belfiore's apps week

[m4tthall]

I hope this 2 year old Temple Run isn't the big app Joe B was touting as Friday's release that was delayed...

Ditto but have a bad feeling it might be

 

[Tomanband]

I hope this 2 year old Temple Run isn't the big app Joe B was touting as Friday's release that was delayed...

it is... https://twitter.com/joebelfiore

 

[Lilleverden]

This is what I will NEVER understand. People said that the platform needed Instagram and Temple Run, above all else. We get Temple Run, and people go into a frenzy of whining. Wake up? From what? Thousands of users asked for the game, and they got it. What's so wrong with fulfilling a hugely-popular request? What did you want them to bring?!

I never asked for temple run, couldn't care less. We need updated working apps. Yes people want instagram, this is an app that evolves, and will be fresh, cause there is new content every day. But for me a proper FB, Skype, twitter and notification app is more important.

 

[Ultimateone]

it is... https://twitter.com/joebelfiore

I'm not 100% sure this was the app

 

[ally42]

I might be a bit too pedantic, but in my mind, Temple Run is a game, not an app. That's why I'm keeping my fingers crossed for an app release in the next few days.

 

[Tomanband]

I might be a bit too pedantic, but in my mind, Temple Run is a game, not an app. That's why I'm keeping my fingers crossed for an app release in the next few days.

last Wednesday's app was the Dark Knight Rises game... Personally I was hoping for a new facebook or facebook messenger being ported. I'm not into gaming either, the only games that yould change my mind would be the gta series or max payne (which are already available on android and iOS)

 

[justop26]

I hope this 2 year old Temple Run isn't the big app Joe B was touting as Friday's release that was delayed...

It was Monday release that was delayed, not Friday's.

 

[ally42]

last Wednesday's app was the Dark Knight Rises game... Personally I was hoping for a new facebook or facebook messenger being ported. I'm not into gaming either, the only games that yould change my mind would be the gta series or max payne (which are already available on android and iOS)

I'm hoping for a facebook update too, I like that facebook is integrated in contact/message/photo hubs but it's not enough. I need a facebook app that is not a shortcut to the mobile site and that will allow me to manage pages properly since hootsuite seems in no hurry to create a wp version of its website. (hoping to be prouven wrong, though)
I'm not much of a mobile gamer, so I don't really care about game releases but I can see the appeal for the wp platform and how important it is to have big names and big games. I wouldn't mind a WoW armoury app though...

 

[Keith Wallace]

I never asked for temple run, couldn't care less. We need updated working apps. Yes people want instagram, this is an app that evolves, and will be fresh, cause there is new content every day. But for me a proper FB, Skype, twitter and notification app is more important.

They already updated Twitter, and people were very pleased with it. Facebook exists in a billion forms. Instagram is LITERALLY Facebook photo sharing on its own site. Skype is there, just needs improved.

In case you missed it, the heat Microsoft gets for Windows Phone is about WHICH apps they have, not so much how good they are. I mean, you say all of those apps, and I say "pass." I don't care about getting Temple Run, but I'd take Temple Run over all of those apps combined. However, that doesn't mean I'm going to insult Microsoft or the platform because apps are being released.

The main thing, though, is why are you jumping down Microsoft's throat? They don't get to pick who makes which apps when. It's not like the fact that Temple Run's devs released their game, it means manpower was taken from any Instagram app that's being worked on. If you want to say "wake up" to someone, say it to the developers responsible for making the applications you want. Getting mad at Microsoft because DEVELOPERS are choosing not to release apps is like getting mad at the waitress because the chef cooked your steak wrong.

 

[jhguth]

It is Microsoft's fault that they made a high barrier to entry to develop apps, requiring new hardware and an SDK without a lot of guidance. It's also Microsoft's fault that getting your app approved is a headache, and creating an Xbox LIve title is damn near impossible. It's also Microsoft's fault that WP8 doesn't support OpenGL, so game developers have to do some work to bring their app to the platform. etc...

and Instagram is not literally facebook sharing, maybe you mean figuratively? if it was literally the same thing, we would have it on WP8.

 

[WavingReds]

and this thread has turned into a sour grape from being high hoped.

Sigh, people are just never happy

 

[Keith Wallace]

It is Microsoft's fault that they made a high barrier to entry to develop apps, requiring new hardware and an SDK without a lot of guidance. It's also Microsoft's fault that getting your app approved is a headache, and creating an Xbox LIve title is damn near impossible. It's also Microsoft's fault that WP8 doesn't support OpenGL, so game developers have to do some work to bring their app to the platform. etc...

and Instagram is not literally facebook sharing, maybe you mean figuratively? if it was literally the same thing, we would have it on WP8.

Its function is the same. The coding is not the same, but what it does is essentially photo sharing that Facebook already handles.

As for the REST of your whining, the barrier isn't high for app development. For Xbox LIVE certification, definitely. However, the fact that single-person groups are able to handle the task to make solid games shows that it's apparently not THAT high of a barrier. Complain about OpenGL all you want, but DirectX has survived numerous iterations somehow, so it can't be THAT bad.

Also, it's been stated numerous times than it's considerably easier to port to WP8 than it was to WP7. They're getting Unity 4 engine support shortly (it sounds like), so they're clearly working to improve the tools that developers can work with. Like I said, I hate that Microsoft is working to improve the situation with Windows Phone, and they're reacting so negatively because a third party hasn't done what a specific person wants.

I mean, I really want MLB.TV this season. There isn't an app available. You know who I'm blaming? MLB. I'm not going to give them my money if they aren't going to support the platform. I'm not going to turn my back on Microsoft because MLB chose to not make an app. The things I pin on Microsoft are those such as not having great Skype integration (as they own the company) and the lack of Microsoft-published games (such as Halo and Forza). I'm not holding them responsible for things that they do not control.

Is it Microsoft's fault that Pok?mon isn't on the Xbox? No, that's Nintendo's.

 

[Al_2]

I wonder if Temple Run wasn't the big app he was referring to...

If the app was originally supposed to be out last week, and then on Monday...it doesn't make sense that he wrote:

Tile fix coming... this one came through quickly to try to time it with other games.

If it was supposed to come out last week or on Monday it wouldn't be timed with the other games.

Unless they decided since it was delayed just to wait and time it with the other games...

I really hope he's got some actual apps for us...apps aren't really games (even the Windows Phone Store differentiates between apps and games!).

 

[JMBasquiat]

Its function is the same. The coding is not the same, but what it does is essentially photo sharing that Facebook already handles.

No that's not what it does at all. In fact, Instagram is popular for the same reason Flickr was once very popular; it allows people to post their photos for others to see, but requires no management of contacts, no "friends", there is a way to find photos that others across the globe have posted by using hashtags, etc. In that respect, it's closer to Twitter than to Facebook.

If every social media application that made it possible to share photos was "just like Facebook", there wouldn't be a need for Tumblr, Instagram, Flickr. Yet here they are.

 

[jhguth]

Complain about OpenGL all you want, but DirectX has survived numerous iterations somehow, so it can't be THAT bad.

you completely missed the point

is has nothing do do with if DirectX is good or bad, the point is that mobile games are already written using OpenGL (for iOS and Android) and since that is not supported it requires developers to rewrite the app to use DirectX (which is not an insignificant amount of work). I don't care if OpenGL is terrible and DirectX is a lot better, Microsoft should be doing everything they can to encourage developers to bring apps to WP8. Not supporting OpenGL is not doing that.

 

[Ultimateone]

I wonder if Temple Run wasn't the big app he was referring to...

If the app was originally supposed to be out last week, and then on Monday...it doesn't make sense that he wrote:

Tile fix coming... this one came through quickly to try to time it with other games.

If it was supposed to come out last week or on Monday it wouldn't be timed with the other games.

Unless they decided since it was delayed just to wait and time it with the other games...

I really hope he's got some actual apps for us...apps aren't really games (even the Windows Phone Store differentiates between apps and games!).

The tile fix is for Temple Run, it is a white square now

 

[Al_2]

The tile fix is for Temple Run, it is a white square now

Yup, my post was referring to Temple Run.

 

[odoggyfresh]

Hoping this extends into this week, although Joe hasn't mentioned anything. But according the front page of this website, we could be getting some instagram access tomorrow?

 

[jhguth]

no we aren't

 

[halamadridkimi]

https://twitter.com/joebelfiore/status/319096672477147138

joe twitted just: "Whew... April 1 is over. It's safe for me to tweet again. "

plz bring viber voip calls today plz today plz today