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Apple Arcade was introduced at an event in March this year. The new service from Cupertino is set to revolutionize gaming on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV. An early access program has now been launched - unfortunately not accessible to everyone.
Apple Arcade is one of the services that Apple introduced at its "It's show time" keynote in March of this year. This service is the first game subscription for mobile and desktop. Users get access to a select number of paid games in the App Store. The library will initially contain around 100 games - participating developers include Sega, Devolver, Disney and more. Apple supports development and works with the studios. Whether iPhone, iPad, Mac or Apple TV - participating games will have no advertising or in-app purchases. Game progress will be saved in the iCloud and synced with other devices - thus ensuring a seamless transition. Apple Arcade is scheduled to launch this fall in over 150 countries.
Early Access Program
It has now been announced that Apple has started a special test phase - 9to5mac wrote this afternoon. This allows only Apple employees to test the new service. The testers must take out a subscription for Apple Arcade in order to gain full access to the service. The current fee is $0.49 per month - note: this fee is not the final price after the service is released.
A trial month is already included in the beta - this is what Apple employees report. After the subscription has been completed, a new page with the most important games appears in the Apple Arcade section of the App Store. Like any free app, these can be easily downloaded to the device - without much effort. Each of the titles offers a preview with a corresponding description and the most important information. This includes points such as age rating, category and size of the game.
When will Apple Arcade be released?
So far, Apple has remained silent on the launch date of the new gaming service for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV. A specific monthly price has not yet been announced. Since Apple Arcade is tied to the new operating systems, the service will not launch before the official release of iOS 13, iPadOS, tvOS 13 and macOS Catalina. Since at least iOS 13 and iPadOS are expected to be available to all users in mid-September, this period should be the earliest launch date for Apple Arcade. Of course, it is possible that the gaming subscription will go live at a later date. Apple AirPods with wireless charging case on special offer on Amazon
