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Apple Arcade Gains Four New Games, Including Ballistic Baseball and PAC-MAN Party Royale

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Apple Arcade gained a batch of new games today for the iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, and Mac.

pac-man-apple-arcade.jpg

The latest titles available include real-time player-versus-player baseball game "Ballistic Baseball," gravity-based puzzle game "Manifold Garden," the classic "PAC-MAN Party Royale," and horror-themed game "Things That Go Bump." Ballistic Baseball is not yet available on the Mac, but should be soon.

Watch the trailers and gameplay videos below:


Gameloft sent us details about Ballistic Baseball:
Ballistic Baseball is a real-time multiplayer experience allowing to play against friends in Player versus Player online duels. Players see and react to their opponent's actions, all in real time. Further expanding the field of players is robust cross-platform play, allowing players on iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac and Apple TV to play against the other and to track progress as they switch devices. Unique achievements and balanced matchmaking have also been implemented to create a fun and competitive experience.
Click to expand...
Including five new games added last week, Apple Arcade now has 84 games available for iOS and tvOS, and 76 on macOS.

Apple Arcade is Apple's new subscription-based gaming service, providing iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, and Mac users with access to dozens of games with no in-app purchases or ads for $4.99 per month, with a one-month free trial available. The service first launched September 19.

Article Link: Apple Arcade Gains Four New Games, Including Ballistic Baseball and PAC-MAN Party Royale
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2019/10/18/apple-arcade-oct-18-2019-releases/
BWhaler

BWhaler

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Jan 8, 2003
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Apple Arcade is getting better and better.

I wonder what the tipping point will be for people like me who weren’t interested at first to finally subscribe. Doubt it’s a must-play game or the volume of games. I guess this is the problem with subscriptions in general: there are so many entertainment options, it’s hard to be the new thing in replacement of what one has today.
 
4jasontv

4jasontv

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Jul 31, 2011
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Do we know how these game developers are paid? Does Apple track how frequently you play each game or if it’s just installed? Do developers get paid a minimum just for making the game available? What about during the free trial?
 
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opeter

opeter

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I don't understand, what is wrong with you people. The service is called Apple Arcade. You see the word "Arcade"? Do you remember the time when "insert coin" arcade games and machines (pinball/flipper) were on the scene?

Most of these arcade (video) games could be finished in an hour or even half of that, but only if you were good enough at playing or had enough coins if not.

The point of this service is to entertain you in short bursts/intervals. Similar to the old Arcades where you had more arcade machines to choose from. If you got tired of one, you went to the other and tried your luck there.

That is, why I hope, that they will make some games similar to these "insert coin" arcade machines.
Like some brawlers or beat'm ups (similar to Golden Axe, Alien vs. Predator and such).

The about the party games... Apple Arcade was also made for co-op or party gameplay in mind*. And it seems Pac-man Party Royale is following this idea. And for 2 or more people to have some fun for I don't know 30 minutes, this seems great. Look at the comments beneath the Youtube Trailer, how many people are asking for and Android version!

* This is cheaper, than buying an gaming console (not to say about the prices of the games for them). Why? Because most of you have at least one Apple device. Or more.

Apple Arcade is here for entertain people in a casual way. You only have 15-20 minutes? Bam! You find, choose and play something for that long.

Oh, and don't have high hopes for any big AAA titles on this service! At least not in the foreseeable future.

***

I personally really hope, that this service will come in the future to other platforms aswell (Android, Windows OS, maybe Linux OS).
 
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George Dawes

George Dawes

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If only it had games like Strike Force for iOS , the graphics on that are miles ahead of anything on the arcade store - why is that ??

Can't the ATV handle it ?
 
mw360

mw360

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Aug 15, 2010
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4jasontv said:
Do we know how these game developers are paid? Does Apple track how frequently you play each game or if it’s just installed? Do developers get paid a minimum just for making the game available? What about during the free trial?
Click to expand...

Wherever I’ve bothered to check, the credits say Produced by Apple, so it’s likely Apple paid for development.

l’ve noticed a couple of games which are suspiciously keen to get me to play every day (offering achievements, daily challenges, etc.) so maybe there’s bonus payments for good engagement numbers. I hope that doesnt quickly lead to more in-game manipulative shenanigans like countdown timers.
 
Abazigal

Abazigal

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Jul 18, 2011
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4jasontv said:
Do we know how these game developers are paid? Does Apple track how frequently you play each game or if it’s just installed? Do developers get paid a minimum just for making the game available? What about during the free trial?
Click to expand...

My guess is that Apple bankrolls the development of these apps. The developers are essentially salaried employees at this point. I am not sure what their pay is like, but I don’t think it is pegged to metrics such as play time.
 
matrix07

matrix07

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Jun 24, 2010
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opeter said:
I don't understand, what is wrong with you people. The service is called Apple Arcade. You see the word "Arcade"? Do you remember the time when "insert coin" arcade games and machines (pinball/flipper) were on the scene?

Most of these arcade (video) games could be finished in an hour or even half of that, but only if you were good enough at playing or had enough coins if not.

The point of this service is to entertain you in short bursts/intervals. Similar to the old Arcades where you had more arcade machines to choose from. If you got tired of one, you went to the other and tried your luck there.

That is, why I hope, that they will make some games similar to these "insert coin" arcade machines.
Like some brawlers or beat'm ups (similar to Golden Axe, Alien vs. Predator and such).

The about the party games... Apple Arcade was also made for co-op or party gameplay in mind*. And it seems Pac-man Party Royale is following this idea. And for 2 or more people to have some fun for I don't know 30 minutes, this seems great. Look at the comments beneath the Youtube Trailer, how many people are asking for and Android version!

* This is cheaper, than buying an gaming console (not to say about the prices of the games for them). Why? Because most of you have at least one Apple device. Or more.

Apple Arcade is here for entertain people in a casual way. You only have 15-20 minutes? Bam! You find, choose and play something for that long.

Oh, and don't have high hopes for any big AAA titles on this service! At least not in the foreseeable future.

***

I personally really hope, that this service will come in the future to other platforms aswell (Android, Windows OS, maybe Linux OS).
Click to expand...

Read somewhere that 4-5 Arcade games released on Switch will already cost you about 9-10 months of ‘paid’ Arcade subscription so for first free months if you play all these game then you already profit.
There might be award winning games in Arcade soon who know? Many in game community already throw praises at Sayonara, and there’re still a few big games coming (not AAA but big anyway ).
 
S

seadragon

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Mar 10, 2009
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I had the trial but didn’t subscribe. I don’t care for the graphics which look all the same to me. There aren’t (yet) any games that really grabbed or kept my attention. I love old classic arcade games though which is what I grew up with.
 
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AxiomaticRubric

AxiomaticRubric

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Sep 24, 2010
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StellarVixen said:
These games are actually only kind of games that you can play on macOS.

For anything serious, you need Windoze.
Click to expand...


To be fair we also have a bit of love on Steam (some titles fully taking advantage of high-end graphics cards), and GoG has a good selection of titles that work in macOS.

I'm a die-hard Mac gamer going all the way back to the original Mac Plus. Lemon juice is poured into my metaphorical paper-cut wounds by game developers on a continual basis.

Wait until the Mac product line switches to ARM. It will be just like the good old days of Mac gaming all over again.
 
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I

ipponrg

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Abazigal said:
My guess is that Apple bankrolls the development of these apps. The developers are essentially salaried employees at this point. I am not sure what their pay is like, but I don’t think it is pegged to metrics such as play time.
Click to expand...

If it’s anything like News, it will certainly be pegged to metrics. I highly doubt Apple went the salaried approach. I would think of this more like Apple paying a contractual price.
 
Abazigal

Abazigal

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ipponrg said:
If it’s anything like News, it will certainly be pegged to metrics. I highly doubt Apple went the salaried approach. I would think of this more like Apple paying a contractual price.
Click to expand...

The closest I could find was this article from Theverge.

www.theverge.com

Apple Arcade is a home for premium games that lost their place on mobile

‘It’s creating a space where you can take risks.’
www.theverge.com www.theverge.com

Apple Arcade — and in particular the funding from Apple — has given mobile developers the freedom to think big without having to worry about how they’re going to make that money back. With the premium market all but untenable for everyone but the biggest games, Arcade has now become a home for mobile games that otherwise might not have existed on the platform. “It’s creating a space where you can take risks,” says Andrew Schimmel, producer at Alto developer Snowman. “You don’t have to think about the monetization model as you’re designing.”
Click to expand...

And this.

There have been a lot of questions about how Apple is paying developers on Arcade, particularly in the wake of Google Play Pass, Google’s subscription service that explicitly pays developers based on user engagement. For games, this can be a tricky thing. A short, artful experience like Assemble With Care — an Arcade launch title from Monument Valley developer Ustwo — wouldn’t be feasible if its creators were paid based on how long or how often people played it. And while no developers have yet said explicitly how or how much Apple is paying them, it sounds like it definitely isn’t based on time spent in the game.

“THE DEAL I TOOK WITH APPLE WAS VERY GOOD FOR THE GAME AND VERY GOOD FOR ME.”

“The Netflix model of providing and paying for content is a lot more in line with what this is, versus, say, Google Play Pass which they’re clearly stating is based on engagement metrics,” explains Ryan Holowaty, from Noodlecake Studios, which published three Apple Arcade launch titles, including the beautiful puzzle / adventure The Enchanted World. Gage echoes those thoughts, adding that, “I know that the deal I took with Apple was very good for the game and very good for me, and it’s one that I was happy with when I signed it and I’m still happy with it now.”
Click to expand...

This sounds more like TV+ where Apple is commissioning developers to create certain games for iOS.
 
mixel

mixel

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Anyone who thinks the graphic style of the games is too cartoony etc.. or Samey.

Huh? How the heck is that even remotely the case, we’ve got a pretty wide range of graphical styles. Only thing underrepresented is gritty “realism” that dates horribly and low powered devices aren’t really suited for.. saying that, compare Pac-Man here, Stela, Sayonara, Redout, Overland, Shinsekai.. These are VERY visually different games. There is no overarching style here.. They don’t look even slightly the same.

it’s like people get confused between the AppStore branding and the content of the games themselves.

What are people actually asking for?
 
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