Apple Arcade launch date and pricing confirmed

Apple will launch its game subscription service, Apple Arcade, on September 19.

As previously rumoured, it will be priced at $4.99/£4.99 per month, with a one-month free trial available.

It will also support Apple’s family sharing feature, meaning up to six family members can share purchases.

The launch details were confirmed during a special Apple event at the company’s Cupertino headquarters on Tuesday.

Announced in March, Apple Arcade will house over 100 games for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV, with more titles set to be added regularly.

These games won’t be available on any other mobile platform or in any other subscription service. Every title will be playable offline and they won’t feature advertisements or microtransactions.

Users will be able to play titles across multiple devices, enabling them to start a game on one platform, then resume their game session on another.

Confirmed Apple Arcade titles include The Chinese Room’s Little Orpheus, Mistwalker’s Fantasian, Revolution Software’s Beyond a Steel Sky, Klei Entertainment’s Hot Lava, Red Games’ Lego Brawls, Giant Squid’s The Pathless, and Sega‘s Sonic Racing and ChuChu Rocket! Universe.

Demos of Konami’s Frogger in Toy Town, Capcom’s underwater adventure Shinsekai: Into The Depths, and Annapurna Interactive’s “playable music video” Sayonara Wild Hearts were shown at Tuesday’s Apple event.

Apple has reportedly committed to spending some $500 million on the first wave of Apple Arcade games.

Rather than just curating the titles available, the platform holder has confirmed it’s “contributing to the development costs and working closely with creators to bring the games to life”.

Revolution Software’s Charles Cecil recently told VGC he hopes that Apple Arcade will significantly increase the audience for premium games on mobile.

Google‘s also currently testing a new app and game subscription service called Play Pass. The company confirmed the news after screenshots of it emerged in July, revealing details including a tentative monthly price of $4.99.