Subscribers to Apple Arcade will have instant access to 100 different games. However, that won't be what makes or breaks the service.
The way in which we game on our phones is about to change. That's what Apple will be hoping anyway. Later this week, the company will launch Apple Arcade - its most adventurous foray into the video game world yet. The subscription service will cost $4.99 per month, and will grant players access to 100 different titles from day one.
That's pretty impressive, and is a number that will continue to grow should Apple Arcade be successful. However, Apple is flaunting that triple-figure number a little too much for our liking. As great as it is that there will be a large, presumably diverse choice of games to play as soon as Apple Arcade is made available, we're hoping that there has been a bigger focus on quality rather than quantity.
Judging by the trailer above, it looks as if the games featured on Apple Arcade will be different than your regular mobile game. That will be key to the service's success. Plus, there are already a few big names mixed in there, such as Sonic. Again though, name identity alone isn't enough. If Apple Arcade's games don't feel different to ones players can buy in the Apple Store, they will question why they're handing over $4.99 per month.
The target audience for a subscription service like this one is ultimately for the casual gamer. Someone who isn't spending $60 on a game as they simply won't spend enough time playing it to warrant the price tag. That means Apple Arcade's games don't need to be graphically stunning with in-depth stories. There's a middle ground somewhere here, and that's where Apple can potentially thrive.
We sincerely hope that Apple Arcade is a success and we will most definitely be signing up for that free month on September 19, 2019. However, we highly doubt we will be playing all of the 100 games initially on offer via the service. That's obviously not what Apple wants players to do, and we assume the idea is to have something in there for everyone. Providing the aim is to make quality games rather than churn out as many as possible, we think the future could be bright for Apple Arcade.