Two examples of game controllers that could work with iOS 7.

(Credit: Apple via Toucharcade)

With one small feature, iOS 7 might introduce the biggest change in iOS gaming since the App Store.

There’s something I’ve wished for on both the iPhone and iPad for years: a true, universal, dedicated game controller. iOS 7 has granted my wish: indeed, one of the small but very significant additions to the next mobile OS announced at WWDC allows for third-party controllers. It’s funny this happened to be announced during E3, because it just might be the trigger to change the mobile gaming industry.

Why it’s big Third-party accessory-makers have tried making game controllers for iOS devices for years. The results have been messy, to be kind. The iCade worked by pretending to be a keyboard; other controllers with analog pads, like the Duo Gamer, only worked with a tiny subset of games.

iCade's 8-bitty: never a real universal controller soluti… [Read more]