Apple Arcade

I guess if Apple is funding development it makes sense for some developers to take part, but if Apple came to my studio and pitch Arcade without paying for development I’d nope the hell out of there. A business model built around splitting revenue based on time spent in game just creates the worst incentives in game design, and I imagine unless you’re one of the top 10 games you will see very little return.

I think that Klei’s Hot Lava is still planned for PC release through Steam, even though it’s in the press release as an Apple Arcade game.

For those of you who have been following us on Steam, rest assured that our launch schedule remains the same, and the core design of Hot Lava remains unchanged.

Put me in the ‘needs a controller’ camp. Touch works great for some games, and is always a nice option, but it really needs a controller. I like to play D3 on my switch but I just keep imagining it on my iPad with a controller. Text is just too dang small on the switch.

Yes, Apple could have had some real impact in gaming if they allowed games to require a controller. It could run every indie game on the Switch.

I don’t understand why Apple is doing Apple Arcade without making a more serious effort to actually support games, not just “provide access to”, and stuff like the controller support has been and still is at the top of the list of the stuff they’re screwing up.

Like, Apple knows better than anyone what will sell on mobile: nothing. Well, almost no real games, just free stuff with IAP, and then maybe a dozen high profile indie games a year that can manage a ~$3 price point.

So if Apple Arcade isn’t going to be the former, how many of the handful of developers in the latter category could they really be working with who wouldn’t be frustrated by the lack of robust controller support/requirement?

It makes more sense for the very little guys.

As an indie dev I think I’d be interested if I had any iOS experience. It sounds like it could be a better gamble to create an apple arcade game than something for the iOS store.

I’m a little worried about what would happen if this type of service really takes off. I remember when Big Fish basically killed the PC casual game industry outside of third world countries.

I can’t see it being any worse than the current F2P stuff in the app store and GAAS AAA. There’s even more incentive to make games stay fun when players could just start up one of their other subscription things.

They phrased it very carefully: Every title in Apple Arcade will be “unavailable on other mobile platforms, and not part of any other subscription service.” So you can still have Steam games, or that one game that is also coming out for the Nintendo Switch.

Apple Arcade looks like a possible solution to the second part, by providing a platform for games that aren’t “high profile indie games” but can’t skate by on a free-to-play version.

Why would it just be a handful of developers in the latter category? And there are tons of games that work great with a touch interface. There’s plenty of room in the gaming ecosystem for all types of games, not just ones that require a controller.

Why does a game need to require a controller to have great controller support? Just put on-screen touch controls on the lower corners for those without one. It’s not a great way to play, but corner gestures have converged on a couple of designs that work okay and allow for just as many inputs. I don’t think supporting touch is holding devs back.

I try to play all the iOS games that properly support the Nimbus (menu controls, etc.) and buy them to support the devs. It’s like a market for a niche console hidden inside the App Store. Just mentioning this in case it’s not clear that I get how much better a controller is than touch on iOS.

Also, why require an Oculus if the game runs on an 8" touchscreen?

Maybe. But if you are a tiny indie studio, why in the world are you designing a premium, for-pay mobile game? There hasn’t been a market for that type of game in 5+ years, outside of big franchises.

But maybe if were two or three guys in a garage and Apple stopped by with a bag of, say $2 million, I’d make a game for them, sure.

I get this is sarcasm, but yes, I’d be totally fine with the same iOS app being playable with a VR accessory, or with just the gloves and cardboard, or with just touch and waving the ipad around. That sounds like more work than controller+touch though.

You’re designing a premium for-pay mobile game because you’re hoping there will be a bigger market for those kind of games with Apple Arcade than on the normal App Store.

You’re kind of making a chicken-and-egg argument here: People are saying that Apple Arcade is for the developers who want to make premium mobile games without in-app purchases, and you’re saying, “But there aren’t more than a handful of those developers, because those games don’t make money on the App Store!” That’s the part that Apple is trying to change.

Switch isn’t a mobile platform?

The way they’re defining it, no. I’m sure they see it as a home console that is also portable, not a true mobile platform.

But then you end up with, “Jack of all gaming devices, master of none.”

You would design it for the Switch, and maybe eventually try to port it to phones. Or maybe not.

So, will the games in this service also be available separately for iOS, or is this the only way to play them?

I checked the website but didn’t find anything definitive either way.

My gut says that the answer is no, based on the fact that you can’t buy individual Netflix shows independent from a subscription.

Agree. This is a positive move from Apple and a self defence one as well. They know as well as anyone that the app store market for games is in trouble. UA costs for F2P games are now so expensive that even big players are struggling to retain players and are only posting high revenues because they are squeezing current payers more than ever. Squeezing more revenue out of a declining user base is never a good moment. That cant last so Mobile needs to change.

Unlike Facebook with social games, Apple maybe taking action before the crash. Which is smart.