In Skate City: New York, you take your skateboarding game to the iconic streets of the Big Apple, where you can master hundreds of tricks in real-world locations. The game hit Apple Arcade on Friday, and is playable on iPhone, Mac and more.
Several other titles also joined Apple’s gaming service, including a remodeled version of the original Final Fantasy.
Apple unveiled its annual roundups of top apps and games — that is, those most downloaded titles — across iPhone, iPad and Apple Arcade platforms Monday. The comprehensive year-end lists are featured on the App Store’s Today tab. They offer insights into user preferences across more than 30 countries and regions. And once again, free app and games dominate, overlapping with recent App Store Award winners.
Looking forward to some holiday downtime, maybe hunched over your Apple device with a glass of eggnog by the fire? Apple is set to expand its gaming catalog of over 200 titles with 15 new Apple Arcade games this holiday season. They include highly anticipated releases and reimagined classics. That sounds like hours of holly jolly fun.
NBA preseason games start this weekend. If you didn’t make the draft this year, you can still get in on the basketball action with NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition, which launched Thursday. This is the definitive basketball game for Apple devices, and each new annual upgrade adds even more features.
The feature-packed offering is now on Apple Arcade for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV.
As a Mac user, you’re no stranger to cutting-edge technology, like the hottest new mechanical keyboards. But have you heard about Hall effect keyboards, which are gaining popularity, especially among gamers? Let’s dive into why people turn to these specialized magnetic mechanical keyboards and what they could mean for your Mac gaming setup. They’re not actually new, but more of them have hit the market lately. And a lot of people think they offer big advantages.
Football season starts Thursday, and basketball season is only a few weeks away. Get in the game now with NFL Retro Bowl ’25, and NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition launches in a few weeks.
Both are part of Apple Arcade, Apple’s gaming service.
The new Vagabond Mobile Gaming Controller transforms iPhone, iPad mini and Android devices into full-fledged gaming consoles, Elo Gaming Limited said Tuesday. It called the device suitable for casual and pro gamers alike.
Apple is set to bolster Apple Arcade gaming with three exciting new titles in September. NFL Retro Bowl ’25 headlines the additions. It’s an exclusive collaboration between the National Football League and the creators of the popular App Store game Retro Bowl.
Frustrated game developers continue to vent about working on Apple Arcade titles, in a new report citing anonymous sources. In the story, a follow-up to one from earlier this year that noted “the smell of death around the service,” devs complain about poor communication with Apple, slow payouts, and big problems working on Vision Pro games.
The opinions expressed in the new story aren’t entirely negative, but they paint a pretty ugly portrait of Apple Arcade from some developers’ perspectives.
The Apple One subscription bundle lets users save money on Apple’s subscription services like Apple Music, Apple TV+ and iCloud+ storage. The company offers three Apple One configurations. Check pricing on Apple One’s three tiers — Individual, Family and Premier — and find out what you get for your money (and, most importantly, how much you can save).
Apple Arcade is set to welcome three exciting game titles in August, further expanding its diverse catalog of over 200 ad-free games. The new titles are Temple Run: Legends, Vampire Survivors+ and, for Vision Pro, a spatial version of Castle Crumble, the iPhone giant said Tuesday.
Outlanders 2: Second Nature, a town-building strategy game, offers new players new tropical and wintery environments to build in, much more resources to work with, and more challenges.
It’s one of three games to launch on Apple Arcade on Wednesday, along with Punch Kick Duck+ and Zen Koi Pro+.
Rabbids: Legends of the Multiverse from Ubisoft is a deck building game featuring a crazy collection of characters exploring five outlandish universes. It just launched for iPhone, Mac and more.
It is joined by three classic games that are all now playable via Apple Arcade.
Apple held talks with China Mobile in 2023 to bring Apple TV+ and Apple Arcade to China. If the two parties agree, Apple will gain access to over 200 million of China Mobile’s broadband and TV customers.
It is unclear whether Apple and China Mobile are still in talks and have reached an agreement.
Coming soon to Apple Arcade are five exciting new games, the iPhone giant said Monday. You can look forward to Rabbids: Legends of the Multiverse, Return to Monkey Island+, Tomb of the Mask+, Fabulous – Wedding Disaster+ and Vision Pro spatial title Where Cards Fall.
It starts on May 30 with the arrival of 3D puzzle game Where Cards Fall. The other four titles follow on June 6.
Sega’s newest action puzzle game Puyo Puyo Puzzle Pop is a falling-object game on which players connect icons to erase them. The latest addition to the Puyo Puyo series is playable on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV and Apple Vision Pro, and is an Apple Arcade exclusive.
Plus there are two new classics in the gaming service for young and old.
It’s hard to know where to start on Apple Arcade because the service offers so many titles. But we scoured the catalog and found all the best Apple Arcade games so you can get right to the good stuff.
Check out our latest video or keep reading below to see the best Apple Arcade games. And if you like what you see, you can pick up a subscription here.
Backbone updated the Lightning version of its popular game controller for iPhone with new magnetic adapters, a reshaped D-pad, and more. The goal of the second generation Backbone One is “better, faster, and longer gaming,” according to the company.
It now matches the updated USB-C version that Backbone introduced in autumn 2023.
Blofeld, the criminal mastermind and head of Spectre, is once again scheming to defeat James Bond in Cypher 007 from Tilting Point LLC.
I’m a fan of RPGs so I loaded the action game on my iPhone. It’s also playable on a range of other Apple devices.
★★★★☆
The GameSir X2s Type-C Mobile Controller is ready to make your mobile gaming so much better. Wrap the telescope design around your iPhone 15 to be ready for your favorite RPG, FPS and other advanced games.
It boasts Hall Effect sticks and triggers in a familiar arrangement, but is always ready for you to pick it up and go.
I tested it with my iPhone 15 and had quite a lot of fun. It also works with Androids. And if you’re still rocking a Lightning-enabled iPhone, don’t feel left out — GameSir has a version for you, too.
This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: Apple pulled the plug on Project Titan, its not-so-secret, decade-long effort to build a self-driving electric car. After spending a reported $10 billion on R&D, the moonshot Apple car project winds up canceled — in favor of generative AI!
Let’s just say we have some opinions.
Also on The CultCast:
Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video live stream, embedded below.
Apple Arcade now focuses so heavily on family-friendly titles from well-known franchises that some indie game developers feel abandoned, according to a new report. Some even predict doom — or at least creative stagnation — lies in Apple Arcade’s future if things don’t change.
Cupertino’s shifting priorities leave the developers, who Apple once wooed for the service, with few incentives for creating new Apple Arcade games.
In this week’s Awesome Apps roundup, you’ll find apps for managing files, using AI to boost your writing, and turning an iPad into a creative input device for a Mac.
And if all that productivity wears you out, we’ve got other options. You can relax with a charmingly peaceful Apple Arcade game with a delightful Japanese theme. Or you can blast enemy spaceships in an arcade-style game that’s great on iPhone — but even better on Vision Pro.
Ladies and gentlemen, get ready to download.
Three games designed for visionOS spatial experiences through the new Vision Pro headset will soon join a dozen existing such titles, plus another 250 compatible games already in Apple Arcade, Apple said Thursday.
The company highlighted all the fun Vision Pro users can have, including descriptions of the upcoming versions of Alto’s Odyssey, Gibbon and Spire Blast for Vision Pro.
February brings BEAST: Bio Exo Arena Suit Team, a 3v3 online action game with animal heroes piloting powerful mechanized armor, to Apple Arcade.
Adults might prefer Words in Progress, a puzzle game, which is also newly available for iPhone, Mac and more.