Zeemote and N-Gage
How Nokia Support for Zeemote Affects N-Gage Gaming
There could be a new way to play your favorite N-Gage games in the near future. That’s because Nokia has lined up behind a company called Zeemote, promising to pre-install the Zeekey application in future N-Gage compatible devices.
Zeekey is a software application that that allows the company’s Zeemote wireless controller to control S60 devices using a wireless collection. Using the controller, the user can control applications on the device that normally would require button presses. This includes operating the music player, triggering the camera, and even playing games.
From the official press release:
“Nokia will be the first organisation to launch its Zeemote Zeekey™ application. This new application enables the Zeemote JS1 Controller to work with N-Gage games and other S60 applications. The Zeemote Zeekey application will come pre-loaded on featured handsets as special gaming bundles and is also available for download on the Nokia website.”
There’s more details in this Pocket Gamer interview — the Zeekey app is a standalone application separate from the N-Gage application, so as long as you have the Zeekey application installed, you own a Zeemote controller, you should be able to play N-Gage games with it.
Since the application runs outside of the N-Gage environment, interfacing the phone’s hardware, no change is needed to the N-Gage SDK or existing N-Gage games.
“We can claim 100 per cent game compatibility from the start,” Zeemote’s Jim Adams tells the site. “Also, one thing we’re doing is letting users customize the profiles, so if different games or applications call for different types of button mapping, you can pull down an options menu and change that.”
What do you think? Would you be interested in playing your N-Gage games with a remote? I imagine it could be quite interesting if combined with a TV out: a truly portable game console! 
August 22nd, 2008 at 9:29 am
The Zeemote looks uncomfortable for me, at least for longer gaming sessions with the TV-out. And it’s not something I would bring with me to play a game on the train or bus stop either. So I don’t really have any interest in it.
However, if some “classic” two hand controller like the Super Nintendo controller (or something) was released, the I would probably buy it. Would be good with TV-out. Maybe even two if any good 2-player games were released and would suit TV-out well. Would be quite nice as a “real” gaming console.
It would be neat if Nokia released some official two hand N-Gage bluetooth controller.
August 22nd, 2008 at 10:09 am
This should be great! AAN has been calling for this for a very long time now, great move Nokia.
If you’re wondering what this is like in real life, AAN did a video and feature a while ago about controlling games wirelessly on a TV using a Bluetooth keyboard, take a look:
http://www.allaboutngage.com/features/item/N-Gage__TV_Out__Home_Games_Console.php
Now imagine that video but with a dedicated gaming controller instead of a keyboard.
August 22nd, 2008 at 11:26 am
Excellent. Exactly what I have suggested on the N-Gage feedback site (and I was pretty sure Nokia was working on something like this even at the time of my suggestion).
August 22nd, 2008 at 2:06 pm
Pff… What next? Portable monitor?? Or joystick maybe?
August 22nd, 2008 at 2:12 pm
U better work on 3D acceleration…
August 22nd, 2008 at 4:20 pm
“Pff… What next? Portable monitor??”
It’s not actually as crazy as it sounds!
You can already plug many N-Gage phones into television sets with TV Out, and having a wireless controller suits that setup pretty well.
August 23rd, 2008 at 10:53 am
Looks small enough from the video on the manufacturer’s website. But cost and availability? Where to buy from? There’s no info. The manufacturers could also consider the use of this device on PC’s for gaming purposes.
Certainly interesting as a device. Not sure i’d buy it for ‘just’ my N-Gage activities.
August 23rd, 2008 at 4:09 pm
[...] : Blog Ngage Partager et découvrir : Ces icônes sont des liens vers des sites de partage de signet sociaux [...]
August 24th, 2008 at 6:45 am
Хороши
Это чё, терь ПК, а не гага? 
August 24th, 2008 at 12:52 pm
[...] (Blog N-Gage via AAS) [...]
August 25th, 2008 at 3:41 am
[...] lang rekken. De Zeemote JS1 is een draadloze joystick (Bluetooth) waarmee je binnenkort je N-Gage spellen kan [...]
August 25th, 2008 at 8:19 am
[...] est un joystick sans fil (Bluetooth) dont vous pourrez très bientôt tester l’efficacité sur N-Gage [...]
August 26th, 2008 at 1:26 am
I even thought about programming a driver for the Nintendo Wii Remote to use for N-Gage. Just think about sitting on a train “casting” with the Wii Remote on “Creatures of the Deep”. Now that would turn heads. Hehe. But I havent jet because of other projects and the fact that Symbian 3rd is gimped due to signing, and I don’t even want to begin exploring how difficult it would be to get the access to program a Wii Remote “driver”…
, Espen
August 26th, 2008 at 2:05 am
Awesome awesome awesome! Wow I honestly never expected this to happen, especially not so soon! Truly great news, can’t wait for it to appear in retail stores
August 26th, 2008 at 2:35 am
[...] Fonte: Zeemote and N-Gage @ N-Gage Blog. [...]
August 26th, 2008 at 9:19 am
Well that certainly is an interesting accessory. You could play games on portrait with one thumb on the number pad, and the other on the zeemote.
I see theres a button below the joystick of the zeemote. Thats a stupid place IMO. Rather have 2 buttons behind the joystick like “trigger” buttons on the PlayStation controller.
Anyways, this thing only seems somehwat useful if you play with TV-out a lot. I usually play at school/college, on the move etc. so it isn’t much use to me.
August 28th, 2008 at 2:47 am
I don t speak english but its cool
September 3rd, 2008 at 1:20 pm
Looks like the Zeemote people have been hitting the blog trying to steer the conversation. Pretty negative reviews overall. I must agree…not interested in playing casual games on my cell phone. Nokia and Moto are desperate to differentiate themselves and will try anything
September 28th, 2008 at 7:56 am
[...] something All About N-Gage has been calling for for a while now, and finally it’s happened: Nokia has teamed up with Zeemote to produce a wireless gaming controller compatible with all existin…. The controller’s application can be installed on any S60 3rd Edition handset and lets you [...]
September 28th, 2008 at 8:04 am
[...] something All About N-Gage has been calling for for a while now, and finally it’s happened: Nokia has teamed up with Zeemote to produce a wireless gaming controller compatible with all existin…. The controller’s application can be installed on any S60 3rd Edition handset and lets you [...]