The recent release of iOS 11 has been arguably the most turbulent time for mobile gaming since the introduction of the App Store back in 2008. For starters, iTunes 12.7 for Mac actually removed the iOS App Store in its entirety, making it harder to actually browse for the latest games outside of the mobile device itself. Furthermore, iOS 11 introduced a whole new interface to the App Store – while not necessarily a bad thing in itself, the larger features could lead to less visibility for smaller titles, and at the very least represents the first major overhaul for the store front in years. The most impactful change, however, is undoubtedly the demise of 32-bit applications, which will now be incompatible with iOS 11 to prioritise more modern 64-bit equivalents. We’ve written about what we’ve dubbed the 32-bit Appocalypse extensively over the past few weeks, but for those of you who may just be learning about these developments, here is a list of the best games that will now be incompatible for devices running iOS 11.
Before I get into the raw data of games that are currently not compatible with iOS 11’s 64-bit requirements, I’d strongly recommend everyone to have a read of our thorough guide to the 32-bit Appocalyspe, which provides a more in-depth look at what, when and why many older iOS classics will be disappearing from the App Store. It also goes without saying that, while links have been provided for the titles on the list, none of them will currently work with iOS 11. The forthcoming catalogue of 32-bit titles should serve as nothing more than a warning for those who have not yet updated to the latest firmware, or possibly as a database for anyone with an older device that wants to try out some of the App Store’s landmark releases.
Finally, this list is by no means exhaustive – we’ve chosen what we perceive as the best 32-bit games that will cease to function after updating to iOS 11, but that may mean some of your favorite titles are not present. Some of the games may even receive a belated update to become 64-bit compatible, which we’ll try to highlight upon release. Until then, here is a list of all the games that will not work in iOS 11, to the best of the TouchArcade staff and mobile gaming community’s collective knowledge:
- 7 Cities ($2.99)
- Activision Anthology (Free)
- Age of Zombies (Free)
- Anomaly Warzone Earth HD ($3.99)
- Another World ($3.99)
- Arkanoid ($4.99)
- Battle for Wesnoth (Free)
- Blazing Star ($0.99)
- bit Dungeon II ($0.99)
- Bit Pilot ($1.99)
- Bug Princess ($4.99)
- Bug Princess 2 ($4.99)
- Call of Duty: Zombies ($4.99)
- Castle Doombad ($2.99)
- Crash Nitro Kart 2 ($2.99)
- Cops & Robbers ($4.99)
- Costume Quest (Free)
- CounterSpy ($4.99)
- Death Rally (Free)
- Deathsmiles ($5.99)
- Deep Deep Dungeon ($0.99)
- Dodo Master ($0.99)
- Dodonpachi Blissful Death ($2.99)
- Dodonpachi Maximum ($3.99)
- Dodonpachi Resurrection ($4.99)
- DOFUS Battles 2 ($2.99)
- DOOM Classic ($4.99)
- DOOM Resurrection ($0.99)
- Dracula Twins ($1.99)
- Dream of Pixels ($2.99)
- Dungeon Raid ($0.99)
- Espgaluda II ($13.99)
- Finding Teddy ($0.99)
- Flockers (Free)
- Forget-Me-Not (Free)
- geoDefense ($1.99)
- geoDefense Swarm ($1.99)
- Girls Like Robots ($2.99)
- Great Little War Game HD ($1.99)
- Groove Coaster ($2.99)
- Gunman Clive ($1.99)
- Halcyon (Free)
- Hero Academy (Free)
- HodappyBird (Free)
- Hoggy (Free)
- Hook Champ (Free)
- Hook Worlds (Free)
- Isotope: A Space Shooter ($1.99)
- Joe Danger ($1.99)
- Kid Tripp ($0.99)
- LEGO Batman: DC Super Heroes ($4.99)
- LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 ($4.99)
- LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 ($4.99)
- LEGO Marvel Super Heroes: Universe in Peril ($4.99)
- LEGO The Lord of the Rings ($4.99)
- Liquid Sketch (Free)
- Mage Gauntlet (Free)
- Meteor Blitz ($2.99)
- Midway Arcade ($0.99)
- Mikey Boots ($1.99)
- Mikey Hooks ($1.99)
- Mikey Shorts ($1.99)
- Minigore (Free)
- Mushihimesama Bug Panic ($6.99)
- N.Y.Zombies 2 ($0.99)
- Neon Shadow (Free)
- Nimble Quest (Free)
- Particle Mace ($2.99)
- Peggle Classic ($0.99)
- Phantom Rift ($0.99)
- Pinball Dreams HD ($3.99)
- Pinball Fantasies HD ($3.99)
- Plunderland (Free)
- Pocket RPG (Free)
- Puzzle Craft (Free)
- QatQi (Free)
- QuestLord ($5.99)
- Ragdoll Blaster 3: Deluxe (Free)
- Record of Agarest War ($5.99)
- Rescue City (Free)
- Re-Volt Classic ($5.99)
- Rimelands: Hammer of Thor ($4.99)
- Robot Wants Kitty (Free)
- Rope’n’Fly 2 ($0.99)
- Savant – Ascent ($1.99)
- Sentinel 2: Earth Defense ($0.99)
- Sentinel 3: Homeworld ($1.99)
- Sid Meier’s Ace Patrol: Pacific Skies ($4.99)
- Sid Meier’s Pirates! for iPad ($2.99)
- Sid Meier’s Starships ($2.99)
- Shadowgun ($4.99)
- Shantae: Risky’s Revenge ($2.99)
- Shin Megami Tensei ($7.99)
- Shuffle Puck Cantina (Free)
- Slingshot Racing ($0.99)
- Space Invaders Infinity Gene ($4.99)
- Spectral Souls ($4.99)
- Speedball 2 Evolution ($0.99)
- Spell Sword ($0.99)
- Spider: Hornet Smash (Free)
- Starborn Anarkist (Free)
- Stealth Inc. ($4.99)
- Steambirds ($0.99)
- Sunburn! ($2.99)
- Super Crate Box (Free)
- Super Monster Ate My Condo (Free)
- Super Quickhook (Free)
- Sway Lite (Free)
- Sword of Fargoal (Free)
- Techno Kitten (Free)
- Tiny Heroes (Free)
- Thomas Was Alone ($4.99)
- TouchArcade App (Free)
- Trainyard ($0.99)
- Wide Sky (Free)
- Wind-up Knight (Free)
- Wind-up Knight 2 (Free)
- Wurdle ($1.99)
- XCOM Enemy Within ($4.99)
- Zen Bound ($2.99)
That certainly is a long list of games, and it will be extremely sad to part with many of them. However, this index was significantly longer a few months ago, and it’s to the credit of so many developers that have been proactively updating archaic apps – many of which are generating virtually zero revenue — that many of the App Store’s legendary titles are still playable today. If one of your favorite games receives an update for 64-bit compatibility, or an iconic release you may have not purchased at the time gets modernised for iOS 11, please do support such developers with as much time and money as you can spare. Until then, keep an eye on our coverage of 64-bit updates, visit forum member FuZion’s catalogue of more obscure 32-bit titles, and let us know your views on the rewards and repercussions of iOS 11 on our Discord Server and forum thread.