News | Apple Music now available on Xbox consoles

An Apple Music app has been released on Xbox Series X and S and Xbox One.

The app can now be downloaded for free on Xbox consoles, although a subscription is required for use. The app allows you to listen to music on the streaming service in the console menu and in games.

Spotify has been available on Xbox for years. This is a similar music streaming service. Apple Music also came out on PlayStation consoles last year.

by GamersInfuzed

News | iOS 16 adds support for Switch Joy-Cons and Pro Controllers

With the upcoming iOS 16, people can connect their Joy-Cons or Switch Pro Controllers to their iOS devices.

Apple recently announced iOS 16 and made the beta of the operating system available to developers. The Verge reports that developer Riley Testut learned that the Switch Pro Controllers and Joy-Cons are now recognized by iOS and can be used on the iPhone.

Following on from this discovery, Apple engineering manager Nat Brown has confirmed that this is indeed a new feature. Joy-Cons can be used as individual controllers as well as grouped together for one controller.

iOS 16 is expected to go into public beta in July and will be fully rolled out in September this year. Several other controllers have been supported by iOS for several years, including the Xbox Series X and S and Xbox One controllers, as well as the DualShock 4 and DualSense.

by GamersInfuzed

Column | Apple Arcade is one of the biggest shifts in gaming industry since ages

Although I don't pay much attention to smartphone games here at GamersInfuzed, this is still a very interesting side of the game industry. The new Apple Arcade is potentially one of the biggest shifts in this industry for a long time.

Apple Arcade is Apple’s new subscription service. Soon you will have separate subscriptions for television series, news and now also games.

You pay five euros per month for a collection of games that can be played exclusively via Apple Arcade on smartphones. In addition, they are also playable on macOS and Apple TV with savegames in the cloud without additional costs. The games were selected by Apple, with seventy titles at the launch. This collection will be further expanded over time.

Well-known studios have been approached to post their new titles on Apple Arcade. The quality is therefore remarkably high. Not every game is equally good or appeals to everyone, but after trying several I’m absolutely impressed. From the crazy graphics in Oceanhorn 2 with a Zelda feel or the hilarity of What the Golf?.

A game subscription is nothing new, but with Apple Arcade, Apple is making some major changes to the way smartphone games usually work.

Gamedevelopers have different ways to make money from their games on iOS and Android. The game can of course cost some money, but the most important source of income is in-app purchases. Many smartphone games therefore work with an energy system. Then you can wait to continue playing, or fill the energy meter for a few euros and get back to work immediately. Ads are also used to earn free games.

What is special is that no game within Apple Arcade contains in-app purchases or advertisements. You never have to worry anymore that you cannot continue due to hidden costs, or that third-party trackers keep an eye on your behavior. It is finally purely about the games and that is a big relief.

Still, Apple Arcade is causing a huge shift in the gaming industry. The service will have a major impact on the games that are offered outside of the subscription service. If Apple Arcade is a success, then there is a big chance that the sales of games not selected by Apple will get a big blow.

But Apple Arcade does not only affect iOS. All games offered through the service may not appear on Android from Apple. Android is the most popular operating system for smartphones with potentially the largest group of players. That is a big difference with the Play Pass subscription service from Google, where the games and apps do not have to be exclusive.

For a company that for a long time has shown not understanding how important games are, Apple can suddenly become one of the most important players in the game industry.

by GamersInfuzed

News | Apple Arcade now live on iOS 13 beta

Apple Arcade is now live on iOS 13 beta, this is announced through a tweet from Mark Gurman.

Apple Arcade is a subscription service to play mobile games without ads for 4.99 euros per month. More than a hundred games are available at launch. These games can be downloaded on an Apple device of your choice. An internet connection while playing is then not required, although a periodic confirmation of the subscription is probably necessary. A subscription can be shared with five others.

Among the hundred games that will be available are Sayonara Wild Hearts, ChuChu Rocket Universe, Enter the Gungeon, Pac-Man Party Royale, Rayman Mini, Shantae and the Seven Sirens, Skate City and The Enchanted World.

Simogo, the developer of Sayonara Wild Hearts let Twitter know that they were not aware that the game would be part of the beta. It was clear that the game would be part of Apple Arcade, but apparently there was no clear communication about the beta.

Simogo asks if nobody wants to reveal the content for the game to others, the main reason for this is probably because the game is not only for iOS. Simogo wants to ensure that everyone can enjoy the first experience when the game is released for PlayStation 4 and Switch later this week.

You can read more about Apple Arcade here.

Apple Arcade launches on September 19 for all Apple devices.

by GamersInfuzed

News | Apple Arcade subscription service launches with more than 100 games

Apple is launching the Apple Arcade subscription service somewhere this fall. More than a hundred games are planned for launch.

The service, which will be available on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV, will receive a curated range of games that players can download to their device via the App Store. As a result, the games can also be played offline. Games on this service have no ads or in-app purchases. A price for the service is not yet known, but it is known that up to six family members can share one subscription.

The company announced several games during the presentation earlier today, including a sequel to the sci-fi point ‘n’ click game Beneath a Steel Sky, called Beyond a Steel Sky. This game also comes to consoles and PC. Clay Entertainment’s Hot Lava, Mistwalker’s Fantasian, Giant Squid’s (Abzu) The Pathless, Lego Brawls, Sonic Racing, Simogo’s Sayonara Wild Hearts, Little Oprheus from The Chinese Room, WayForward’s Spidersaurs, Oceanhorn 2: Knights of the Lost Realm and Finji’s Overland. Furthermore, Will Wright (The Sims) and Ustwo Games (from Monument Valley), among others, would work on exclusive games.

Apple will collaborate with various publishers and studios to bring games exclusively to Apple Arcade. With exclusive, Apple most likely means games that are not available on Android. A launch date for the service is not yet known, but Apple Arcade is due to launch in more than 150 countries sometime this fall. It is not known whether the Netherlands falls under this.

During the same presentation, Apple also announced a paid streaming service called Apple TV +, which includes exclusive programs and films from Steve Carell, Steven Spielberg and Oprah Winfrey, among others. Apple TV + should also launch in a hundred countries somewhere this fall. Furthermore, Apple comes with new AirPods with a wireless box to charge them, a new iPad Air and iPad Mini and a personal credit card called the Apple Card.

Here’s Apple’s announcement trailer for Apple Arcade.

by GamersInfuzed