Apple Arcade Hasn't Received Any New Games in Two Months

[pdoherty]

The entire App Store needs an over haul. When I click Top Paid I don’t want to see Top Free as well on the left side taking up half my iPad screen. And vice versa. They need a search function that can look up apps by date added to the App Store, most stars, most reviews etc to help people refine their searches. The front page needs to be partitioned into nice blocked quadrants of definite app types i.e. Utility, Games, Entertainment etc once clicked a new front page appears and then you can have their garbage: ‘what were playing’, ‘for you page’, ‘get started’, ‘try something new’ etc crap related to THAT CATAGORY. And even then those ‘insert blank’ genre ideas they have like ‘for you’ etc are pure garbage and needs to go out. Just go on your iPad and search the app stores main page yourself and open your eyes. Scroll (forever) downward and see how useless to app discovery the entire home page and AppStore is! Apple Arcade is a joke. I’m sorry. Other than KOTOR 2 and GTA SA plus a dozen others there are absolutely zero AAA games. I’m sick of cutesy tap tap swipe games!! IN 2021!!!!!!!! I go to the Top 100+ games and they are the same games from 2014 basically!! The stagnation is unreal. And the discovery process is infuriating. And the apps being put out are all different takes on the same thing. I swear if I see one more Middle Ages idk whatever! I will freak!!!!!! Oh wait I’m freaking now. UGH!!!!!

Hard agree. The App Store needs to be far better organized.

 

[tranceking26]

I still haven't used the trial, but I hope we get more intense games added soon.

Maybe there'll be a part of the keynote showing off some.

 

[TiggrToo]

I've never met anyone who willingly subscribed to this or ATV+ for that matter...

Well, I did - and still do.

You’ve probably met loads of people who do, but I’m not the sort of person who asks such questions in social settings. Do you?

 

[sublunar]

Apple can fund bigger and better games now. Why wait? Do it now in order to attract more subscribers.

They may well be doing so, they like to do things in secret and the ARM M1 architecture should have been an impetus to get some product out.

WWDC should in theory be especially big for developers with new architecture to write for.

The downer came with the extra mild update to the AppleTV when some people here were expecting something like A12z or A14 whenever Apple got round to it. The A12 is the mildest of possible updates with Apple keeping the prices the same to add even more gloom.

On the upside, the remote control is good for the TV side of things.

While no developer has come right out and talked about how they're being paid, industry analysts and interviews with several game developers when Arcade first launched in 2019 that strongly hinted at this approach, with one saying it was more like "the Netflix model of providing and paying for content," and saying that it wasn't at all based on engagement metrics like Google Play's approach (The Verge).

According to The Financial Times, Apple also reportedly budgeted over $500 million at launch to fund 100 games up front, which works out to spending an average of $5 million per developer.

That said, these are obviously ongoing contracts — in fact Apple even cancelled a few last year — and as part of that Apple must be continuing to pay developers in some way to release updates. However, from everything I've heard, this is still not directly based on engagement or play time.

Presumably, Apple is taking some of these metrics into account internally — it's obviously much more likely to keep paying developers to release updates for more popular titles than ones that aren't drawing in subscribers — but every developer who has commented at all has made it clear that it isn't a revenue-sharing or metrics-based model from their perspective. In fact some have complained that Apple doesn't provide them enough insight into how popular their games are — they get little more than raw download numbers, which of course says nothing about how many people are actually playing their games.

This approach is fair enough, and perhaps even mirrors their AppleTV approach. Paying fixed fees upfront for development to get exclusive platform access to games.

These games are small though and retention could be difficult if the games on offer are super casual and there's no massively multiplayer element or even just simple multi-player pep or co-operative content.

Where is Apple's Roblox? Or Fortnite? Is it going to get announced on Monday?

 

[TiggrToo]

It is becoming ridiculous. Last I looked, for just the game Tetris, it’s offered only on a weekly subscription basis that would cost you $260 a year if you were silly enough to do it.

Tetris Subscription is Highway Robbery | Wayne's Workshop

image

www.waynedixon.com

Not defending the game, but that year old article doesn’t match what I’m seeing on the App Store:

Is it still an expensive game? Heck yes. But if these prices listed are accurate it would “only” cost $18.98 to play ad free for a year.

Still feels expensive, but not $260 a year…

 

[Bobcat32]

I prefer to pay for my games

 

[Osxguy]

Between this and apple fitness i canceled them real quick. Can someone tell head of Apple that I am tired of crap subscriptions..

 

[sidlon]

Where is Apple's Roblox?

It’s called Wonderbox. An 8yr old can actually make and share an adventure from their iPad. Adults are making really amazing things with it. The “Metropolis of the Melted Steel” level blew me away last week.

It (and Fantasian) should have gotten all the spotlight after they launched 4/1, but for some reason Apple dropped 30 more games on 4/2. 🤷‍♂️

 

[SegNerd]

I don’t know why Apple even wanted to refocus on services. No one is going to pay for news or fitness content (they will just use free content), TV+ and Arcade are flops, and Apple Card is impractical.

Yeah it’s a cool-looking card, but it only makes sense to get a card with the highest cashback rates for the things you spend the most money on, and even diehard Apple fans don’t spend as much on Apple as they do on other categories (like food).

 

[mpetrides]

I don’t know why Apple even wanted to refocus on services. No one is going to pay for news or fitness content (they will just use free content), TV+ and Arcade are flops, and Apple Card is impractical.

Yeah it’s a cool-looking card, but it only makes sense to get a card with the highest cashback rates for the things you spend the most money on, and even diehard Apple fans don’t spend as much on Apple as they do on other categories (like food).

Speak for yourself. News + is one of my favorite services in Apple One--I like it because of the magazines it includes, not so much for the news per se. And I rather like Apple TV+. While I admit the NUMBER of choices for shows remains slim, the ones that are on Apple TV+ are mostly excellent.

Apple Arcade OTOH, snooze me to tears! I've had it since day one and have found a whopping one or two games I enjoy playing; most aren't even worth the effort to download. Likewise with Fitness+. I'll stick with iFit--I prefer to have my workouts take place on cool biking trails or hiking paths, not watching some trainer on a static bike or treadmill in a boring gym.

 

[greenvomit8]

As of today, Apple has failed to add any new games to Apple Arcade for two months. Prior to April 2, the company added new games to Apple Arcade intermittently on Fridays, similar to how Apple TV+ content is released, but since the launch of new categories of games two months ago, the service has seemingly taken a backseat.

On April 2, Apple announced that 30 new games would immediately arrive on the service, bringing the total number of games to over 180. Some of these games came under the new categories of "Timeless Classics" and "App Store Greats," which added existing games to the service. The additions indicated a change in strategy for Apple Arcade, which was until then reliant on exclusive "Arcade Originals" only.

Despite the significant news for Apple's mobile gaming subscription service, more than eight weeks have now passed with no new games being added to the platform. Even so, Apple is promoting a number of new games as "coming soon," including the narrative-focused card game "Solitaire Stories," fast-paced puzzler "Frenzic Overtime," and turn-by-turn RPG "Legends of Kingdom Rush."

Starting on Friday, June 4, Apple Arcade is expected to resume weekly additions to the service after this hiatus period.

Apple Arcade‌ launched in September of 2019 as an ad-free mobile game subscription service with no in-app purchases. ‌Apple Arcade‌ is available across the iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Apple TV, and Mac for $4.99 per month, or as part of the Apple One bundle.

Article Link: Apple Arcade Hasn't Received Any New Games in Two Months

Signed up for 3 month free trial after iphone nagged me to do it with cheers from the kids. Maybe got used for the first week by them checking out what was there. Cut the 3 months trial before it ended. Not a wimper from the kids. They went back to the nintendo, roblox and minecraft ages ago.

 

[lupinglade]

Apple Arcade feels like a bunch of kids games, not an arcade. If they keep this up, I am sure the service will be discontinued soon.

 

[Unregistered 4U]

The entire App Store needs an over haul. When I click Top Paid I don’t want to see Top Free as well on the left side taking up half my iPad screen.

When you click Top Paid, are you planning on buying one? Immediately? With NO other input whatsoever? Just from what you see on the App Store? Are you NOT aware that google or duckduckgo provides FAR more information about any app you’d be interested in?

 

[Unregistered 4U]

Apple Arcade feels like a bunch of kids games, not an arcade.

Because…. because arcades are well known for… being a happening spot for adults? Hm

Those hard hitting adults only games like Donkey Kong, Bubble Bobble, Bomberman, Hard Drivin’, and Dragon’s Lair?

 

[sidlon]

These games are small though and retention could be difficult if the games on offer are super casual and there's no massively multiplayer element or even just simple multi-player pep or co-operative content.

A few of the multiplayer Arcade games to check out:
* Star Trek Legends: an alliance-based turn-based strategy competition
* Butter Royale: a 2D twin-stick Royale game that encourages playing w/ a regular squad
* Wonderbox: share levels you create and play through them with easy co-op matchmaking
* Crossy Castle: solid platforming. best played w/ online co-op, either random or friends
* Super Mega Mini Party: casual collection of party games, but w/ easy matchmaking via a 3D world w/ disco floors
* Hogwash: a nice asymmetric online game pitting 1 guy w/ a hose vs the group of dirty pigs

There's plenty of other online games worth playing. The /r/AppleArcade discord has a channel for matchmaking and has hosted a few online gaming events to get a group playing one game after another. (vs & co-op)

 

[Isengardtom]

Legends of kingdom rush is coming June 11

YouTube trailer