A respected Japanese game publisher called Konami has announced four new games for the iPhone and iPod touch, and each one is part of a well-established gaming console franchise. Apple's App Store is a thriving market for games, and Apple has run TV ads to convince would-be customers that gaming is a big part of the iPhone / iPod touch experience. If you're really into video games, though, you're not likely to purchase an iPod touch instead of a Nintendo DS or a Sony PSP, right? Well, Apple is hoping that won't be the case, and the support of a heavyweight like Konami might help.

Three of the games will begin hitting the App Store this month. Konami wasn't more specific than that. Traditional video game fanatics are rarely pleased with the simplified versions of their favorite games released for cell phones, but Konami's titles could (if successful) make the iPhone appear valid to that niche crowd. And if you're starved for more games that aren't just puzzles or tilt-control gimmicks, these are among your best hopes for now.

The games themselves: Silent Hill: The Escape is a 3D shooting game based on the revered horror series, which has been running since 1999. Dance Dance Revolution S Lite is a music / rhythm game from a popular series, and of course Frogger is a classic arcade game. Metal Gear Solid Touch will arrive in the Spring. The Metal Gear franchise has been going on since the 80s, but it achieved massive popularity several years later on the Sony PlayStation with the story-driven Metal Gear Solid.

 And don't forget, if you have an iPhone and are interested in gaming on it, enter for a chance to win one of the Obsessable-engraved iPhone cases.

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