Nokia Reviving N-Gage Gaming Service

Like Han Solo frozen in carbonite, Nokia's troubled N-Gage platform has been on ice since 2005, and chances for a rescue looked slim—until now. According to the New York Times, the Finnish phone giant will announce this week that it's bringing N-Gage back from the dead, and in a big way.

The Times reports that Nokia will announce it's relaunching N-Gage as a platform that will work with existing Series 60 Nokia phones—including, presumably, such handsets as the popular N95 slider. It's a smart, welcome move that'll hopefully sidestep the N-Gage's Achilles heel: namely, the bulky, clunky N-Gage phones that you had to use in the past.

According to the Gray Lady, Nokia has lined up an impressive series of game developers to prop up the new N-Gage service, including Electronic Arts and Digital Chocolate. Word is that we should expect more "casual"-type games such as soccer, fishing, and the perennial Bejeweled. Also, multiplayer looks to be a big part of N-Gage—you'll be able to play against your buddies, compete in mobile tournaments, and share gaming recommendations, the Times reports. You'll also have a chance to sample games before you buy.

All in all, it sounds like a solid plan; if you can, indeed, download the N-Gage app to your Nokia N95 and start playing games rather than buying a dedicated (and poorly designed) N-Gage phone, I don't see any reason that the platform shouldn't take off. And until Apple starts making games for the iPhone, it'll give Nokia's enticing Nseries phones a leg up in the battle for the sexiest phone.

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Play It Again, Nokia. For the 3rd Time. [The New York Times]