Apple Arcade for Apple TV goes live in tvOS 13 beta GM

Ahead of an official launch slated for the end of September, Apple's new Apple Arcade gaming service went live on Monday for Apple TV units running the company's tvOS 13 beta golden master build.

Apple Arcade is rolling out to developers and beta testers, who reported the development through various social media outlets including Twitter. The gaming product does not appear to be available in all locations at the time of this writing, though Apple is believed to be granting access to all tvOS 13 beta users.

As seen in the screenshot above, Apple Arcade for Apple TV is a completely native app experience with platform-specific media, previews and user interface elements. The current iteration displays a large "Try It Free" button that opens the door to all-you-can-eat access to Apple's selection of gaming content.

Similar to Arcade for iOS, which launched last week in the iOS 13 App Store, Apple highlights a handful of standout titles in the subscription service with breakout categories like "Only on Arcade." For now, tvOS app selections mirror those on iOS and include "The Enchanted World" and "Big Time Sports."

As Arcade's catalog expands over the coming months, so too should the new tvOS section and its curated game selections.

Apple plans to launch Arcade on tvOS and iPadOS on Sept. 30, with a debut on Mac to follow. The subscription service is currently restricted to devices running iOS 13.

Apple Arcade promises subscribers wide access to more than 100 games from over 35 gaming studios for a monthly fee of $4.99. That price covers all compatible platforms — iOS, iPadOS, tvOS and Mac — as well as support for up to six users through Family Sharing.

12 Comments

crowley 10431 comments · 15 Years

About 5 years ago

Is it a rule for Apple Arcade that games must be cross-platform iOS, iPadOS and tvOS? Or are devs allowed to only target the ones they want?

foregoneconclusion 2834 comments · 12 Years

crowley said:

Is it a rule for Apple Arcade that games must be cross-platform iOS, iPadOS and tvOS? Or are devs allowed to only target the ones they want?

Every game will be available on iPhone, iPad, ATV, and Mac. That's one of the primary selling points of the service. You can pick up where you left off with a game on any of those platforms.

foregoneconclusion said:

crowley said:

Is it a rule for Apple Arcade that games must be cross-platform iOS, iPadOS and tvOS? Or are devs allowed to only target the ones they want?

Every game will be available on iPhone, iPad, ATV, and Mac. That's one of the primary selling points of the service. You can pick up where you left off with a game on any of those platforms.

Cool. Though I doubt it's a primary selling point, it's a nice feature that most users will hardly ever use.

I wonder if it's going to be limiting that games have to be coded for a touch screen interface, MFI controllers, and Mac.

jeromec 210 comments · 11 Years

foregoneconclusion said:

crowley said:

Is it a rule for Apple Arcade that games must be cross-platform iOS, iPadOS and tvOS? Or are devs allowed to only target the ones they want?

Every game will be available on iPhone, iPad, ATV, and Mac. That's one of the primary selling points of the service. You can pick up where you left off with a game on any of those platforms.

As of now, "Where Cards Fall" is available on iPhone, iPad, but not on Apple TV. There is no indication of whether it will be available on Apple TV later (that could be even before the official release of Arcade on Apple TV). Some games (such as WCF) might be more difficult to adapt to a non-multitouch control scheme. Some games require a controller on Apple TV, and it is optional for others.

crowley said: Cool. Though I doubt it's a primary selling point, it's a nice feature that most users will hardly ever use.

It's definitely a primary selling point. If you follow the link to the main Apple Arcade web page, you're not going to scroll very far before you see a graphic that has footage of various games running on all the hardware platforms and six points of emphasis that includes the ability to switch platforms while playing games.

https://www.apple.com/apple-arcade/