Apple just announced Apple Arcade which is a game subscription service set to launch this Fall in more than 150 countries. The service will be available on iOS, macOS, and tvOS bringing more than 100 new and exclusive titles. Before moving further, I’ve seen people imply that all the games are exclusive to Apple Arcade here. When Apple revealed 100 new and exclusive games, every game isn’t exclusive to just the Apple Arcade or Apple’s own platforms. Many will likely be on other platforms like consoles the same day they launch on Apple Arcade. One thing to note is Apple said these games will not be on any other mobile platform or in any other subscription service.
That includes some of my favourite developers and publishers not just on mobile but in general. I don’t think I’ll ever say no to playing something from Simogo, Noodlecake, Annapurna Interactive, Devolver Digital, Mountains, and more. Alongside the announcement of the Apple Arcade aspect of the App Store, Apple also revealed a lot of games that will be available through the service. Here are the games revealed for Apple Arcade so far from the official website:
- ATONE: Heart of the Elder Tree
- Beyond a Steel Sky
- Box Project
- Cardpocalypse
- Doomsday Vault
- Down in Bermuda
- Enter The Construct
- Frogger in Toy Town
- HitchHiker
- Hot Lava
- Kings of the Castle
- LEGO Arthouse
- LEGO Brawls
- Lifelike
- Little Orpheus
- Monomals
- Mr. Turtle
- No Way Home
- Oceanhorn 2: Knights of the Lost Realm
- Overland
- Projection: First Light
- Repair
- Sayonara Wild Hearts
- Shantae 5
- Sneaky Sasquatch
- Sonic Racing
- Spidersaurs
- The Bradwell Conspiracy
- The Pathless
- UFO on Tape: First Contact
- Where Cards Fall
- Winding Worlds
- Yaga
The big questions right now aside from pricing and which regions this is available in, are about game ownership. We need to know if these games will still be purchaseable through the usual App Store or will they be subscription service only. My biggest takeaway in terms of the games and developers announced is that Simogo’s newest release that is one of my most anticipated games of the year will also be on my iPad. What do you think of the games announced so far and how things will end up for Google Play premium gaming?
Update: Fixed and added games.
It is LEGO Arthouse, not Lega Arthouse. And Cardpocalypse is a different game, I assume
So, previously we were begging for some good premium titles after so many awful f2p games and now that the developers will eventually start doing these, we will have to pay every single month! It's like a curse! Niiice.... Thank God we have also a Nintendo Switch!
...and I won’t be surprised if it’s USA only....or expensive....meaning prepaid cards users......you just lost a massive amount of games....oh well will check if there is a way to get the games I want without having to pay monthly.
the switch has the same service except every game on it is 30 years old :)
Hope they also release them as normal non subscription release because there’s a high chance that like nearly everything it’s not available in Canada.
no thanks, i will stick with android
Leave it to Apple to come up with a complex solution to a simple problem - that doesn’t actually solve anything. If Apple really cares about supporting premium games, stop approving f2p for the App Store. See? Problem solved.
So your solution is to restrict choice?
Didn’t say that. Just said that if it’s apple’s goal to support premium titles, there are better ways than building a subscription service. Let’s be honest - this isn’t some altruistic endeavor on apple’s part. It’s another way for them to make money. Which is fine and totally their right. I only object that they try to dress it up as some kind of public service.
The real problem here is, if apple is successful putting very desirable games on their service exclusively, that’s only going to drive more customers to Android (I’m assuming no major game developer is going to ignore another major platform to be part of Arcade.)
Guess we’ll just have to wait and see.
You said "stop approving f2p for the app store" how is that not restricting choice?
How would this drive more customers to android if the "very desirable games" are exclusive to iOS/MacOS? Also several major developers are a part of the program including Sega, PlatinumGames, and Konami,
Although I do think this is a plan for Apple to make more money, I think it is also a win-win for customers as the goal is to bring better exclusive games to the platform by supporting developers through a different business model. It isn't just about getting money from the subs but also keeping and growing the overall iOS/MacOS user base through exclusive software. It is clear that the current business models available on the app store basically optimize for f2p type games with less than desirable monetization strategies.
This doesn't really change anything for developers that want to be on multiple platforms and android is an even worse platform for premium titles (interviews from the group that made the alto games said they basically had to have f2p with ads when they went to the play store as even fewer people buy games there).
I have no idea if this is going to be successful but the mobile gaming market is clearly in need of a change if we want it to thrive with a variety of games and not just lowest common denominator f2p titles.
Hmmm... going to have to go through the credit card statements and figure out how much I already pay per month for games (curse you toucharcade for tempting me!). Then, factor in how many of these I'll actually want to play, versus what they charge per month.
I count 4 that I would already be buying so assuming the cost isn't too much (I'm betting $9.99) then this will probably be a good deal for me.
tbh, back when we were in a golden age of mobile gaming 2009-2016, ive spent almost 100-200 dollars per month just to buy games that some of them ive never play. this subscription method is just another way for us, a die hard premium gamers to support our favorite developers to brings more games to our favorite mobile platform. i suggest 9.99 bucks is a fair price to start and apple should start developing their own gaming studios so they can make an exclusive games on their own.
I actually think this is a good idea. I spend WAY more each month on games (including IAP) than 10 USD....Or 20 USD.. :-)
How come neither Mikhaïl nor Shaun wrote a preview article about “Sayonara Wild Hearts” yet?
The only downside I see to this is if there is exclusivity to this platform (and it's a downside for devs). For game players though, overall, this is not a bad thing. The sweet spot everyone mentioned of $9.99 seems about right. Both of my kids can get in on the action too via Family Sharing? Great. If this helps developers bring out great games that aren't decimated with ads and timers and all the F2P trimmings then what is there to complain about? If it takes something like this to bring experiences like XCOM, Bioshock, new premium content etc to the platform then it's a beautiful thing. This has me considering picking up a newer Apple TV... I get that people don't like subscriptions, but think about this - you never really OWNED these apps anyway. Apple at any time can (and has) just yank these things off the App Store. We haven't "owned" anything since compact discs.... everything is streamed anyway so really, this is no different than subscribing to Netflix or Hulu or whatever.
Let's see how things pan out before we cast judgement on it, eh?
If they bundle it with the Apple Music subscription I’m all in. Sadly, if I have to choose, the wife will win out with her wanting AM (which I don’t even use).
There's also Fantasian by Mistwalker.