Tap Tap Revolution began what became one of the first big gaming franchises on the iPhone. Created by Nate True, Tap Tap Revolution was developed over the course of two days, and released on September 11, 2007, not even 3 months after the original iPhone launched, and roughly a month before Steve Jobs' open letter announcing an official SDK would be coming in 2008. True wrote on cre.ations.net at the time:
Download songs from my online collection (contact me to get your own music on there) and tap to the beat when the lights hit the bottom line.TTR has an online update feature (under "New Tracks") where new tracks will be added (by indie artists). You can download and play them over your Wi-fi connection (downloading not recommended over EDGE but it will work).
In 2008 True sold it to Tapulous. True also joined Tapulous to continue development of TTR, writing on cre.ations.net:
Suffice it to say, their push for more features definitely works out better for you guys. [...] We're pushing to get into the App Store at launch. It will be free, at least to begin with. So get yours as soon as you can!
TTR's acronym would change, and it's influence would grow even larger. Tap Tap Revenge became such a hit it was featured on iPod touch art, including a banner inside Apple's Cupertino headquarters. True posed in front of it, and shared the image on cre.ations.net
Tapulous was acquired by Disney in July 2010, in no small part thanks to the strength of the brand that began with True's work in 2007. True moved on to Monster Costume, where he's now a partner and chief engineer. According to the Monster Costume site, some of his work there includes:
ABC News for iPad, Nick Chase HD, the Bartleby children's book series, and more.
Tap Tap Dance launched in 2008, and Tap Tap Revolution 2 in March of 2009. It was followed by Tap Tap Revenge 3 in October of 2009, and Tap Tap Revenge 4 in December of 2010. TTR also branched out, offering versions of the hit game centered around specific artists, like Cold Play, Katie Perry, Nine Inch Nails, the TV show Glee, and many, many more. , Riddim Ribbon for iPhone, as well as Tap Tap Radiation for the original iPad, in 2010, and Tap Tap Revenge Tour.
Bringing popular music gameplay to the iPhone in a time before any official gaming existed, figuring out how to translate the play mechanics to multitouch and implement them absent any public-facing frameworks, and ultimately bringing it to Tapulous where it would find a new name and new place on the App Store, True helped show a generation of developers the potential of the iPhone as a mainstream gaming platform, and as a place where new, hugely successful franchises could be born.
That's why, as part of the inaugural iMore hall of fame, we're honoring Nate True, and the musical masterpiece that started as Tap Tap Revolution.
