What you need to know
- Early gameplay preview of Apple Arcade shows off how the new service will work.
- 9to5Mac got access to the employee-only preview and tested it out on a Mac.
- There are only six games available to play right now.
Apple Arcade won't launch until the fall, but Apple is already showing off some of its capabilities with early previews. The first to get a preview was 9to5Mac, who got access to an early internal program and showed what it's like running on a Mac.
When Apple Arcade launches in the fall, it'll reportedly be available for $4.99 per month. For now, testers are being charged a small fee of $0.49. The early preview of Apple Arcade is running on the latest version of the macOS beta.
Within the Mac App Store, there is now an Arcade tab that shows which games are available with the service. To try one out, just click the "Try It Free" button and it'll begin downloading.
Each game page has a nice video showing off gameplay. You'll also get important information such as age rating, category, developer, controller support, language and download size.
So far, only six games are available to play during the initial access period: Way of the Turtle, Down in Bermuda, Hot Lava, Kings of the Castle, Sneaky Sasquatch, and Frogger in Toy Town. The games themselves are "early in-development builds," according to 9to5Mac, so they're not fully fleshed out.
Judging from the early preview, Apple Arcade looks promising. Some of the games look pretty fun and should provide a new experience for people looking for quality games on the go or at home.
When Apple Arcade launches in the fall, it'll be available for the iPhone, iPad, Apple TV and Mac.
