"Hi, I'm a PC gamer, and I play on an Apple."

PC gamers know, if you wanna game on a PC, you have to do it on Windows OS. Yes, there are notable exceptions. The different Linux flavors have a number of games that really aren’t half bad, and Apple is starting to come around to some serious games. But there are always exceptions to the rule. Because of the iPhone, Apple is rewriting those rules.

The iPhone is a great phone, media player, and mobile web browser. Now, with a deliberate effort from Apple, the iPhone is becoming a substantial portable gaming device. It unsurprisingly has the most advanced technology of any of the current gen portable systems, the DS and the PSP. (Considering it’s the newest, it better be the best. BAM!)

The iPhone’s visual rendering is by far the most capable, and, being an iPod, it better sound good, too. For portable games, it offers plenty. Touch screen, accelerometer, and a diminutive size are all advantages over its other portable competitors. If you take into account the 3G network/wifi access and the hard drive, the iPhone is ultimate in the market for portability.

Perhaps the best feature for Apple gamers is that the iPhone runs a derivative of OS X. With Apple muscling its way into the portable gaming market, it will also get a foothold in PC gaming for the first time. Think about it: with all those independent game developers making games for the iPhone, it wouldn’t be such a big step for them to start making decent games for all those Apple laptops.

Apple has some hurdles it has to overcome first. Without physical buttons, many hardcore gamers are going to be hesitant to sign on. What’s worse, the iPhone has to run on AT&T’s network. I’m not a personal fan of AT&T, but it’s simply a bigger leap than just buying an iPhone for gaming. It’s not nearly as easy as buying a PSP; you have to change service providers. If they can work around these difficulties, however, Apple is poised to forever change its reputation as a gameless PC system.