Over the past decade, mobile devices became gaming platforms on par with dedicated consoles. The fact that so many people already need a phone arguably makes mobile gaming more popular than “traditional” gaming. Do you guys not have phones? The sheer power of modern phones and tablets also means they’re more than capable of delivering beautiful, complex gaming experiences.
Unfortunately, the mobile gaming market has slowly but surely devolved to the point where now only exploitative free-to-play games that extract your cash with psychological traps and microtransactions can thrive. Maybe it’s because audiences don’t want to pay money upfront. Maybe publishers realize this model allows them to earn more profit with less work. Whatever the reason, we’re now at the sad point where you can spend more money on the mediocre Mario Kart Tour than the proper (portable!) Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.
That’s why, as someone who believes in the potential of mobile gaming, last year’s launch of Apple Arcade was so exciting. For $5 per month, Apple gives you access to a fast-growing library of premium games to enjoy on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and even Apple TV with a real controller connected. None of these games compromise their design with garbage F2P mechanics, and that’s so refreshing to see in this space. It harkens back to the promising and exciting early days of mobile gaming. For the same price, Apple Arcade arguably offers more exclusive high-quality original content to gamers than Apple TV+ offers to movie and TV fans. That streaming service’s best show (Mythic Quest: Raven’s Banquet) happens to be about video games anyway.
Here are the Apple Arcade titles worth playing right now. At WWDC we won’t be surprised if Apple convinces more developers to join the service. Some of the games below received updates alongside Apple’s big event. Note that while you won't find these games on other mobile devices, or available for purchase on the App Store outside of the Apple Arcade, some are available on other dedicated gaming consoles and PC stores. But Apple Arcade is the only place you can play them all in one convenient, affordable bundle.
ChuChu Rocket! Universe
ChuChu Rocket! Universe puts a new spin on the clever 3D spatial puzzles of the original game on Sega Dreamcast. It doesn’t change my lukewarm opinions of Sega’s final home console all the way back from 1999, but I’m glad this series at least made a comeback.
Grindstone
Grindstone is already cool enough as a block-matching puzzle game where you sometimes worry about the blocks biting back. But it’s the satisfying carnage of your beefy fantasy hero just chopping through those monsters that put this one over the top. If you’ve heard of any Apple Arcade game, it’s probably this one, for good reason.