Apple Arcade goes live in macOS Catalina GM ahead of public launch

Posted:
in macOS edited February 2020
Developers and public beta testers evaluating the macOS Catalina golden master now have access to Apple Arcade, Apple's cross-platform subscription gaming service that went live on iOS 13 in September.


Apple Arcade is due to arrive alongside macOS Catalina this October.


Mac access to Apple Arcade arrived on Friday, one day after Apple released the macOS Catalina GM to developers for testing.

Similar to a slow rollout to tvOS 13 beta testers last week, Apple appears to be taking Apple Arcade live region by region.

On Mac, the gaming service is accessed through the Mac App Store in a special section called "Arcade." Like its iOS, iPadOS and tvOS counterparts, the macOS version boasts immersive preview screens, game videos, screenshots, synopses and more. A full-pane splash screen currently displays featured content accompanied by a "Try It Free" button that grants users a one-month trial pass to the gaming service.

A separate "welcome" screen provides information about the subscription product and can be found in the Arcade tab of the Mac App Store.

The product launched as part of iOS 13 in September with a handful of original games from some of the world's top studios, as well as select choices from indie developers. Game options on Mac appear to mirror those on iOS, iPadOS and tvOS.

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. Wide access to the service on Mac is slated for October.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 10
    This great for the whole family. Finally my kid will have lots of games to play without all that nagging shit about buying coins and crap ads. I want to pay one price for a service or for an entire game, instead of being exposed to the equivalent of a randomware attack to have fun.
    lkruppn2itivguydavgregwatto_cobra
  • Reply 2 of 10
    noelosnoelos Posts: 126member
    So wasn’t Catalina supposed to be going live on October 4? Was there an issue with the GM that mean they pulled it?
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 3 of 10
    AF_HittAF_Hitt Posts: 143member
    noelos said:
    So wasn’t Catalina supposed to be going live on October 4? Was there an issue with the GM that mean they pulled it?
    October 4th was never announced by Apple, it was always only speculation on the part of tech blogs. Apple only ever committed to October, they did not set a specific day.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 10
    noelos said:
    So wasn’t Catalina supposed to be going live on October 4? Was there an issue with the GM that mean they pulled it?
    The rumor was from a country's (I forget which) website where it stated it would be available October 4. The problem was that the 4 was actually for a footnote. So either when it got translated someone thought the 4 was the date or the footnote marker was bigger than it should have been.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 10
    noelos said:
    So wasn’t Catalina supposed to be going live on October 4? Was there an issue with the GM that mean they pulled it?
    They just pushed out the GM. Now they are asking developers to submit their apps before the release. I'm guessing late October along with a new 13" MBP with 32GB of RAM.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 10
    noelosnoelos Posts: 126member
    Thanks all. Makes sense. 
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 7 of 10
    boogabooga Posts: 1,082member
    I'm already subscribed on iOS, but ugh, the choice between losing access to all 32-bit apps and getting to play macOS Apple Arcade is an annoying one to have to make. I'll probably upgrade, but not right away.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 8 of 10
    Looking forward to it. It will be interesting to see how close the graphics in Oceanhorn 2 on my iPhone XS are to the Radeon Pro 570 in my 2017 iMac. I rarely game on the Mac platform anymore, but I think Apple Arcade is going to change that dynamic for a lot of people. 
    n2itivguywatto_cobra
  • Reply 9 of 10
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member
    booga said:
    I'm already subscribed on iOS, but ugh, the choice between losing access to all 32-bit apps and getting to play macOS Apple Arcade is an annoying one to have to make. I'll probably upgrade, but not right away.
    Some always recommend waiting to update to a new macOS but this time they’re right on the money. Wait and read, wait and read to see how even your 64 bit apps run on Catalina. It looks like this will be the biggest paradigm shift in many years, especially the notarization requirements. Even though Apple has rolled back some of the timeframes for developers to comply it’s going to be a bumpy ride for many.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 10 of 10
    davgregdavgreg Posts: 1,036member
    booga said:
    I'm already subscribed on iOS, but ugh, the choice between losing access to all 32-bit apps and getting to play macOS Apple Arcade is an annoying one to have to make. I'll probably upgrade, but not right away.
    Couldn't you run an older version of mac OS on a second drive to use your 32-bit apps or run a second version in a hypervisor?
    watto_cobra
Sign In or Register to comment.