Comment & Opinion

Is Apple Arcade worth it? A personal view

Some of the best mobile games are part of the service

Is Apple Arcade worth it? A personal view

In the industry's current climate, companies - especially gaming companies - such as Sony, Microsoft and Google are turning to subscription-based services.

And so it was that in late 2019 Apple launched its own gaming subscription service - Apple Arcade.

It offers over 100 premium games at the price of $4.99 per month. You also get the first month free.

The company has since launched an annual subscription cost - much like PlayStation Plus and Xbox Gold - for $49.99. 

Value for money

But when I first started with Apple Arcade, it was to kill time - due to some long haul flights.

Certainly I didn't think I'd be willing to add yet another subscription to my growing list.

But some of the games are must-plays. My favourite mobile game of 2019 - Sayonara Wild Hearts - alone is enough of a reason to try out Apple Arcade's free trial.

And to my surprise, since then, when exploring the library, I found something new constantly; a variety of games with different offerings that pique my interest.

One thing worth mentioning in this context is exclusivity. All Apple Arcade titles are exclusives - at least to mobile when released - meaning consumers will not find them anywhere else. 

To the future

The next logical step for Apple, in my opinion, would be to move into VR/AR-focused titles, it would undoubtedly bring in even more consumers if high quality XR titles were to be added to the Arcade library.

Yes, there is so much potential for Apple Arcade, especially in terms of building hype for incoming mobile games; something we'd never seen before at a OS level.

Overall, I would personally recommend Apple Arcade - even if it is just to use your one month free trial.


Staff Writer

Kayleigh is the Staff Writer for PocketGamer.biz. Besides PGbiz and PCGI she has written as a list writer for Game Rant, rambling about any and all things games related. You can also find her on Twitter talking utter nonsense.