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The MacRumors Show: Last-Minute WWDC Rumors – 'iOS 26' and Games App

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On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we talk through Apple's plan to introduce a complete overhaul of the design and naming system for its operating systems at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC).


Despite the ongoing focus in the industry on generative artificial intelligence, Apple is reportedly planning to debut a complete visual redesign of its platforms as "the highlight of the show" at WWDC. The updated design language includes translucent interface elements and menus that echo the visual style of visionOS. While the new design was rumored for iOS 19, iPadOS 19, and macOS 16, it is now expected to extend to tvOS 19 and watchOS 12 too. The changes mark the most comprehensive cross-platform visual update since the introduction of iOS 7 in 2013.

Apple is also apparently shifting its software versioning system from sequential numbers to a year-based format, similar to how car manufacturers label vehicle model years. Instead of releasing iOS 19 and macOS 16, Apple will debut iOS 26 and macOS 26, along with iPadOS 26, tvOS 26, watchOS 26, and visionOS 26. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports that this change is intended to reduce confusion for users and developers by aligning version numbers across platforms and matching them to the upcoming calendar year.

In addition to these design and branding changes, Apple is said to be developing a new standalone gaming app that will be introduced at WWDC. The app is intended to replace Game Center and will offer a unified platform for launching games, tracking achievements, social features, viewing leaderboards, and accessing editorial content. The app is purportedly designed to support both Apple Arcade titles and third-party games currently distributed through the App Store. On macOS, the app will also be able to detect and organize games installed outside the Mac App Store.

The gaming app represents Apple's most overt emphasis on gaming infrastructure since the launch of Apple Arcade in 2019. While Apple has historically treated Game Center as a background service rather than a user-facing platform, this new app appears to be aimed at making game discovery and engagement more prominent across devices. The MacRumors Show has its own YouTube channel, so make sure you're subscribed to keep up with new episodes and clips.



You can also listen to The MacRumors Show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, or your preferred podcasts app. You can also copy our RSS feed directly into your podcast player.

​

If you haven't already listened to the previous episode of The MacRumors Show, catch up to hear our discussion about all of the major announcements from Google's AI-focused I/O conference this week and the mysterious device former Apple design chief Jony Ive is designing at OpenAI.

Subscribe to The MacRumors Show for new episodes every week, where we discuss some of the topical news breaking here on MacRumors, often joined by interesting guests such as John Gruber, Mark Gurman, Kevin Nether, Jon Prosser, Luke Miani, Matthew Cassinelli, Brian Tong, Quinn Nelson, Jared Nelson, Eli Hodapp, Mike Bell, Sara Dietschy, iJustine, Jon Rettinger, Andru Edwards, Arnold Kim, Ben Sullins, Marcus Kane, Christopher Lawley,... Click here to read rest of article

Article Link: The MacRumors Show: Last-Minute WWDC Rumors – 'iOS 26' and Games App
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2025/05/30/the-macrumors-show-last-minute-wwdc-rumors-ios-26/
i have high hopes for the Games app! ✨

hopefully we’ll be able to see how long we’ve played a certain game, like in Steam.

and even more hopefully, game devs will start to take Apple platforms seriously and publish more for them.
 
On the naming... it worked for a bit with Microsoft "Windows 95"

Think they'll bring back "It is now safe to turn off your computer" ??
 
There must be something we're missing. I mean, sure everything 26-27-28. Complete redesign of everything to be more translucent. And ... a standalone gaming app? That can't be all there is.🍸😸
 
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@Hartley: 100°F was defined to match average human body temperature, so around 37°C. (It’s actually a bit higher though at ~37.8°C.)
 
If they jump straight from version 19 to version 26, it will include all the updates from the versions in between. This is definitely the next big thing we’ve been waiting for.
 
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The more I digest the naming change the more it does make a little sense. It's the software for the year, and much like carmakers, this is the software that is going to be around for the majority of 2026.

I also liked that you spent some time on Apple TV. I was a little confused about your arguments about just putting the Apple TV content on the Apple TV app. I would love if they did that but still kept like a main app hub for all the other content and I can make watchlists and keep track of different shows. It's actually one of my favorite features on the Apple TV App and they could just merge the two Itunes apps that are not used anymore and just put the Itunes store and watch lists there. They are keeping those apps for no reason but they should make use of them combined. I don't know if I will watch the Keynote as I use a samsung phone, but I still have most of Apple stuff in use (TV, Mac, Airpods) and I really hope they spend time talking about the TV interface. It really needs updating.
 
Going from iOS 18 to iOS 26, and going from macOS 15 to macOS 26, should be no surprise considering that Tim Cook is too clueless to know how to count. That’s why there was never an iPhone 9.

[sarcasm]
Hey, Tim, while you’re at it, even though the latest Apple Silicon CPU is called M4, why not call the next one M26?
[/sarcasm]

Cook is too mediocre to see the value in using a logical number sequence. He doesn’t know how to count, unless it’s money. The only counting Cook knows how to do is bean counting.
 
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ThomasJL said:
Going from iOS 18 to iOS 26, and going from macOS 15 to macOS 26, should be no surprise considering that Tim Cook is too clueless to know how to count. That’s why there was never an iPhone 9.

Hey, Tim, while you’re at it, even though the latest Apple Silicon CPU is called M4, why not call the next one M26?

Cook is too mediocre to see the value in using a logical number sequence. He doesn’t know how to count, unless it’s money. The only counting Cook knows how to do is bean counting.
Click to expand...

I guess we need your brain for the Apple CEO position, thou mighty oracle.
 
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MacRumors said:


On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we talk through Apple's plan to introduce a complete overhaul of the design and naming system for its operating systems at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC).


Despite the ongoing focus in the industry on generative artificial intelligence, Apple is reportedly planning to debut a complete visual redesign of its platforms as "the highlight of the show" at WWDC. The updated design language includes translucent interface elements and menus that echo the visual style of visionOS. While the new design was rumored for iOS 19, iPadOS 19, and macOS 16, it is now expected to extend to tvOS 19 and watchOS 12 too. The changes mark the most comprehensive cross-platform visual update since the introduction of iOS 7 in 2013.

Apple is also apparently shifting its software versioning system from sequential numbers to a year-based format, similar to how car manufacturers label vehicle model years. Instead of releasing iOS 19 and macOS 16, Apple will debut iOS 26 and macOS 26, along with iPadOS 26, tvOS 26, watchOS 26, and visionOS 26. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports that this change is intended to reduce confusion for users and developers by aligning version numbers across platforms and matching them to the upcoming calendar year.

In addition to these design and branding changes, Apple is said to be developing a new standalone gaming app that will be introduced at WWDC. The app is intended to replace Game Center and will offer a unified platform for launching games, tracking achievements, social features, viewing leaderboards, and accessing editorial content. The app is purportedly designed to support both Apple Arcade titles and third-party games currently distributed through the App Store. On macOS, the app will also be able to detect and organize games installed outside the Mac App Store.

The gaming app represents Apple's most overt emphasis on gaming infrastructure since the launch of Apple Arcade in 2019. While Apple has historically treated Game Center as a background service rather than a user-facing platform, this new app appears to be aimed at making game discovery and engagement more prominent across devices. The MacRumors Show has its own YouTube channel, so make sure you're subscribed to keep up with new episodes and clips.



You can also listen to The MacRumors Show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, or your preferred podcasts app. You can also copy our RSS feed directly into your podcast player.

​

If you haven't already listened to the previous episode of The MacRumors Show, catch up to hear our discussion about all of the major announcements from Google's AI-focused I/O conference this week and the mysterious device former Apple design chief Jony Ive is designing at OpenAI.

Subscribe to The MacRumors Show for new episodes every week, where we discuss some of the topical news breaking here on MacRumors, often joined by interesting guests such as John Gruber, Mark Gurman, Kevin Nether, Jon Prosser, Luke Miani, Matthew Cassinelli, Brian Tong, Quinn Nelson, Jared Nelson, Eli Hodapp, Mike Bell, Sara Dietschy, iJustine, Jon Rettinger, Andru Edwards, Arnold Kim, Ben Sullins, Marcus Kane, Christopher Lawley,... Click here to read rest of article

Article Link: The MacRumors Show: Last-Minute WWDC Rumors – 'iOS 26' and Games App
Click to expand...
9/5ths +32. that's C°->F° FYI. :) (30 X 9) /5 +32. (270) /5 + 32. (54) + 32. = 86 degrees
 
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I love watching your show! I like the back-and-forth between the two of you, and I like the intelligent conversation as well, almost anticipating what I’m thinking after you say something. It’s pretty cool. Keep up the good work!
 
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Adobe has been doing it with their softwares, Adobe Photoshop 2025 is the current version, Adobe illustrator 2025 and so forth.
 
Your talking temperatures—one "issue" in Western Europe is 30ºC for us, while equivalent to 86℉ in number, would feel hotter than many places in the US at 86℉, due to our more humid climate.
 
Mac Fly (film) said:
Your talking temperatures—one "issue" in Western Europe is 30ºC for us, while equivalent to 86℉ in number, would feel hotter than many places in the US at 86℉, due to our more humid climate.
Click to expand...
You don’t know what humid and 86 feel like until you’ve been to the southeastern United States.
 
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dburkhanaev said:
You don’t know what humid and 86 feel like until you’ve been to the southeastern United States.
Click to expand...
Humidity in Ireland is 10% higher than south-eastern United States, averaging yearly at 80-90%. Combine that with the fact that we're not a country of AC, you get the picture. Hot times are infrequent here, but when they happen, they happen.
 
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klasma said:
Maybe Siri will be upgraded to Clippy.
Click to expand...
I still have high hope that with the acquisition, Microsoft will let Blizzard make a Clippy battle pet for WoW
 

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