The mobile gaming market is overrun by low-quality, exploitative, free-to-play titles. However, gamers deserve to play better titles on their phones and tablets. Apple Arcade delivers on the category's potential by offering a curated catalog of premium iOS games that include megapopular titles and niche darlings. Despite the service being a solution to a problem Apple let happen, Apple Arcade still flies high as an excellent, fun-filled subscription gaming platform and an Editors' Choice winner alongside Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.
Price and Platforms
An Apple Arcade subscription costs $6.99 per month. That's a good deal, considering many iPhone games charge that much for a single pack of in-game currency. That fee gives you all the content in the included games; there are absolutely no microtransactions or advertisements. In addition, the titles are playable offline, and you can share save data and Game Center leaderboard scores across devices.
Apple Arcade is also available as part of the Apple One bundle, which packages several enticing Apple subscriptions. For $19.95 per month, the Individual tier includes Apple Arcade, Apple Music, Apple TV+, and 50GB of iCloud storage. For $37.95 per month, the Premier tier adds Apple Fitness+, Apple News+, 2TB of iCloud storage, and the ability to share your subscription with five other people. An Apple One bundle may serve all your entertainment needs, not only gaming.
Apple Arcade is available on all Apple gaming devices, including Apple TV, Apple Vision Pro, iPad, iPhone, and Mac. That said, some games are better suited for certain platforms than others. Casual players may be used to interacting with iPhone games using a touch screen, but people who want more precision should check out a controller (Apple Arcade supports wireless gamepads).
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What Can You Play on Apple Arcade?
Titles come and go, but Apple Arcade has nearly 200 games clearly labeled in the App Store. It even has its own tab for easy discovery and navigation.
The library features an eclectic mix of high-quality mobile games in all genres. The best Apple Arcade games include everything from huge RPGs from legendary creators (Fantasian), to experimental indies (What the Golf?), to mobile versions of huge console hits (NBA 2K Arcade Edition). Apple Arcade even has versions of app store classics, such as Balatro and Threes, with all the in-app purchases removed.
Previously exclusive Apple Arcade games have found new audiences after leaping to more traditional gaming platforms like the Nintendo Switch. In addition, many Apple Arcade games, though well-crafted, are relatively small in scope. You won't find heavy hitters like Assassin’s Creed Shadows and Resident Evil 4 on Apple Arcade, despite them appearing on iPhones, iPads, and Macs. That's a strike against the service.
However, Apple Arcade has many great, underappreciated releases you won’t find anywhere else if you aren't needlessly obsessed with mainstream gaming.
Apple Arcade vs. the Competition
Apple Arcade is just one example of the growing gaming subscription trend. Companies are eager to become the Netflix of video games, including Netflix itself, which is arguably Apple Arcade’s biggest competitor. Starting at $6.99 per month, a Netflix subscription gives you access to a library of mobile games. Netflix gaming is a nice add-on with surprisingly strong titles (Hades, Immortality), but Apple Arcade has cooler original titles (Cypher 007, Sneaky Sasquatch).
For $4.99 per month, GameClub doubles down on the mobile gaming preservation angle that Apple Arcade only dabbles in. This subscription lets you revisit classic, forgotten mobile games (Hook Champ, Spider, Sword and Soldiers) without in-app purchases. Its library is just less prestigious than Apple's.
Of course, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is the premium pick with the premium price, starting at $19.99 per month. This opens the door to the biggest blockbuster video games the same day they are released, including first-party Microsoft titles like Forza, Halo, and Starfield. It’s primarily targeted to console and PC players, but Game Pass also includes cloud streaming to mobile devices, similar to Nvidia GeForce Now.
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Verdict: Apple Gaming at Its Best
Apple Arcade feels like it's from a gaming parallel universe, a world where mobile gaming doesn't exist to sap your money via relentless microtransactions. These days, the service's big releases come less often than its exciting early years, but it’s still the best way to play real games on your Apple phone or tablet. Thanks to its low cost and high entertainment value, Apple Arcade earns our Editors' Choice award for mobile game subscription platforms.
Apple Arcade’s highly entertaining, curated catalog of premium mobile games is the perfect antidote for an ecosystem typically plagued by microtransaction money grabs.
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