With Arcade, Apple announced a subscription service for games that can be played on iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV. This follows a current trend: gaming as a flat rate.
What is Apple Arcade? The new service offers customers the option to download and play all games on Apple devices for $10 a month.
This is not a streaming service like Google’s Stadia. Rather, Apple Arcade is comparable to the Xbox Game Pass.
That’s the significant advantage of Apple Arcade: However, Apple wants to be family-friendly and therefore avoids microtransactions in the games.
Known Developers and Interesting Games
Who is on board? Apple announced a number of developers working on games for Arcade. These include:
- Sega
- Platinum Games
- Devolver Digital
- Annapurna
- Konami
Which titles have already been announced? Apple aims to offer high-quality games that are on par with current console titles but can be played on mobile devices.
Among those announced are:
- Fantasian – An action-adventure from Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi, where the world is handcrafted and brought to life with a 3D scanner.
- The Pathless – An action-adventure from Annapurna in which you explore a vast forest.
- Team Sonic Racing – A racing game from Sega featuring the beloved blue hedgehog Sonic.
- Where Cards Fall – An adventure from The Game Band.
- Beyond a Steel Sky – The sequel to the cult adventure Beneath a Steel Sky from 1994.
- Overland – A post-apocalyptic strategy game from Finji.
- Oceanhorn 2: Knights Of The Lost Realm – The sequel to the Zelda-like action-adventure.
- Yaga – An action RPG from Versus Evil.
Are Subscription Services on the Rise?
How does Apple Arcade compare? The subscription service is somewhat comparable to the Xbox Game Pass. You get the games as part of the subscription, don’t have to buy them separately, but just download them when they appear in the library.
Origin Access Premier from Electronic Arts offers a similar system. Customers also get selected games that are included in the subscription. New games, such as Anthem, are even playable there before they hit the market.
Apart from the lack of streaming, Arcade is also comparable to PlayStation Now. Sony also offers a library of titles that subscribers can access to play.
What makes it special: As mentioned earlier, there will be no microtransactions with Apple Arcade. While with the games you get through the Xbox Game Pass or Origin Access Premier you can still buy in-game items, skins, and so on for money, this will not be the case for the titles from Apple Arcade.
There will also be no advertising. Apple wants the service to be family-friendly. So you only pay the $10 a month, and there will be no additional costs – not even optionally.
And unlike the others, the subscription service is designed to work across multiple devices. Both on smartphones and on laptops.
Is a new trend becoming apparent here? As Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Spotify show, subscription services for media like movies, series, and music have already become popular and are widely used. With games, that is still different at the moment.
But the Xbox Game Pass and Origin Access Premier also demonstrate that a subscription for games can work. It seems that a real trend is emerging. You pay a monthly fee and get access to a library of games.
How well such a service will be accepted largely depends on the price and the selection of titles.
When does the service start? The launch of Arcade is planned for this fall. An exact date will be announced by Apple later.
What do you think? Do you already use subscription services for games or would you use them? What conditions would have to be met for you to become a customer?
