If the iPhone 14 Pro has the same power as a PS4 Pro, why do games on the app store still look out of the older days? I really want some PS4 Pro like games on the App store.
Because they’re quite different machines, and they are used in different ways.
The PS4 is plugged into AC power whenever it’s used, and is a bit famous for spinning up its cooling fans to sound like a leaf blower when running some AAA games. The iPhone 14 is pretty much always operating on battery.
The PS4 has a controller designed to be operated entirely by touch, and using it doesn’t detract from the screen in any way. iPhone games operate with on-screen touch controls, which by necessity involve hiding part of the screen under your fingers - you can’t see the bit of the screen that is under your thumb without lifting up your thumb. And you can’t feel whether your fingers are on the proper controls, you have to look, or, at best, guess based on where your hands are in relation to the edges of the phone. (Yes, a game can also do some control using the accelerometers, but that can only substitute for a couple of axes of a controller.)
As well, the PS4 is in a fixed location with dedicated resources around it - using it kind of requires a TV, and an AC power supply, and somewhere to sit and watch the big screen, and you sort of have to make time and arrange to play it. On the other hand, the iPhone can be used and played with just about anywhere. And thus someone on the iPhone is more likely to be interrupted by, say, their bus arriving at its destination, their meeting starting, their food arriving at their table, or any of a thousand other things.
Also, orientation of the device comes into play - the PS4 is aimed at someone who is completely focused on playing games (at least while they’re using it). You don’t buy a PS4 to surf the web or read email. You might be able to sort of make it do something resembling those things, but it won’t be pretty. It’s a purpose-built device for gaming. The iPhone, on the other hand, is more of a universal device - you get one for keeping in touch and staying informed (that covers phone, email, text, social media, web surfing, and a whole bunch of related uses). It can
also play games but that’s not the primary focus. Few people buy a phone
only to play games.
So, the developers for each platform target their perceived audiences differently: developers for the PS4 go for the most eye-popping graphics and immersive environments, with the expectation that you’ll play for hours at a time, while developers for the iPhone largely go for things that can be played for minutes at a time, with the expectation of interruptions by your surroundings.
If a developer were convinced that they could make a ton of money by writing a “AAA” game for an iPhone, they probably would do so. That is mostly not happening. And the reason
isn’t because the iPhone can’t display the graphics, as you've noted - it can. Rather, it’s alm the other factors.
I’m not saying that a PS4 is in any way superior to an iPhone, they’re just aimed at quite different targets. Part of the reason you don’t see much in the way of “AAA” games on the iPhone is technical (power issues, controls, etc.), but a whole lot of it is usage patterns (pushing phones towards casual games) and perceived audience (the very notion that ”phone gamers are casual, console gamers are dedicated”) that affects what developers are willing to invest their time, money, and resources into developing. Unless it’s a “labor of love”, no developer is going to pour a bunch of time an money into developing a game unless they’re pretty confident that they’ll make back substantially more money than it cost to make.
FWIW, I’ve done a fair bit of gaming on the iPhone in the past, and not just “casual” iPhone gaming - I spent quite a while out running around the city as part of highly organized and dedicated groups, playing Ingress and Pokémon Go, while the “hardcore” console gamers sat on their couches - I was hanging out with players who would (
in jest) call each other “filthy casuals” if they weren’t prepared to drop everything and head out the door on a moment’s notice, at midnight, with their phone, their battery pack, and their car keys, to drive 10 or 20 miles to go capture a rare Pokémon or take over a section of town - in fact, the camaraderie in the community was a big reason for playing… But, since the pandemic started, I got a PS5 and now spend most of my gaming time budget on that (in the last year I’ve spent more time than I care to mention running around in the Borderlands franchise).
I think Apple Arcade is a terrific resource for “casual” gaming, but I just don’t have the time/need for it. If I were in a situation where I was spending a lot more time away from home, with lots of bits of downtime, I could imagine subscribing to Apple Arcade.