So Braque, you're saying the idea "game where you land planes with your finger on airfields" would be worth more $$$ than the actual design, implementation of the game on iPhone? I really don't see that <_<
That's really not what I said at all. I don't think you guys appreciate how much of a rip off this game is. It's a clone. Not similar, but a clone. I'll say it again:
1) They copied the GAME MECHANIC (time & motion management by drawing out splines using touch controls). This is an ORIGINAL idea, which is VERY RARE (more than 99% of games simply copy an existing mechanic and apply it to a new setting). A new FUN mechanic can launch a genre. I can't over emphasise how unusual it is. Developers launching a game based on a new mechanic take a huge risk that reviewers / the public don't "get" the game. Even if your mechanic is fun, if people don't get it (and they won't make an effort to get it) then it'll sink without a trace.
2) They copied the SETTING. Getting a good setting/theme for a new game mechanic is REALLY HARD, and makes a massive difference in how well a game will do commercially. Most facebook games use the same core mechanic (called appointment gameplay) and set it in different themes to appeal to different demographics. Even if your mechanic is good, if the setting doesn't capture the audience then your game will sink into obscurity.
3) They copied the ART STYLE. Sure, the original Flight Control art style isn't exactly unique and exciting, but come on, at least the developers went to the effort of thinking: What art style will suit this game and setting? What will will good on an iPhone handset? Have the developers of Air Traffic added anything new here? No. They just copied.
4) They copied (as far as I can see) the LEVEL DESIGN. I mean. Really. Don't they do ANYTHING themselves?
In some games the programming is key to success. Many PC and console games break new technological ground, and the tech teams bring new value to an existing genre by making the hardware do things no one has done before. Technology can enable innovation, and in that context it brings huge value. But not here. This is basic, trivial, codeing by numbers. Any collage graduate could re-code Flight Control.
Honestly, I remain AGHAST that you guys are honestly defending this kind of cheap rent-a-clone game development.