People complaining about the lack of originality in games aren't paying enough attention to the handheld sector, particularly the iPhone and (I assume) Android platforms. Original gameplay with good production values are plentiful. Oddly, the biggest "fail" moments for those platforms are when they try to emulate a traditional controller instead of embracing the control methods inherent to the hardware (touch, tilt, etc.).
Speaking of which, when will NPD start including game sales from the various App Stores? It's getting to be like music; tracking CD sales is not going to give anything like a realistic picture.
What games are innovative on the iPhone platforms? People love to say how innovative and awesome cellphone games are, but the examples they usually point to me are either copycats of Flash games or console/handheld style games with gimped controls.
As far as I'm concerned, Dance Dance Revolution
is a controller game with a gimped control scheme by insisting people stamp on a mat instead of pressing buttons. But it does make things more challenging.
I think Flight Control, Angry Birds, Cut the Rope and that ilk are original, professionally done, and polished.
