The best new Apple Arcade games
It’s been a while since this roundup got a proper overhaul, and so this is a much bigger update than usual. I’ve cleared out all the dead wood (or, more accurately, dead games), added a bunch of titles that are new to Apple Arcade and covered a few crackers that weren’t yet on the list. Enjoy!
Newly added in this update: Sid Meier’s Civilization VII, Retrocade, Oceanhorn 3, Cult of the Lamb, What The Clash?, Outlanders 2, Puyo Puyo Puzzle Pop and Sonic Dream Team, along with ‘plus’ games Pocket City 2+, Unpacking+, Dredge+, Kingdom Rush 5+, Lost in Play+, Punch Kick Duck+, Super Monsters Ate My Condo+ and The Battle of Polytopia+.
Stuff’s Apple Arcade favourites
All our top entries, from the latest Arcade Originals to top-notch Timeless Classics and App Store Greats.
Sid Meier’s Civilization VII
Since 1991, Civ has given your inner despot an outlet without you having to go to the trouble of taking over the actual world. This latest take almost has the detail of the real thing, mind, with lush visuals and enough depth to satisfy even the nerdiest of turn-based strategy nerds. In short, it’s fab and will steal days of your life. Probably don’t play it on an iPhone, mind, unless you like squinting at a tiny, slowly melting device.
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Retrocade
It long felt slightly perverse that Apple Arcade didn’t include classic arcade games. Which is why I was so happy to see Retrocade. If you don’t want to faff about with emulators and ROMs while yelling YO-HO-HO, it’s a superb way to dip into gaming’s distant past, with the likes of Space Invaders, Tempest, Pac-Man and Bubble Bobble all included. And if you own a Vision Pro, Retrocade will even plonk virtual arcade cabs in front of your face. Nice.
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Oceanhorn 3
This series has a bit of a ‘we’ve got Zelda at home’ about it. If you’ve spent a lot of time with Nintendo’s finest, you might feel Oceanhorn lacks the same level of magic. But if you’ve got an Apple Arcade sub, you’d be a numpty to not immerse yourself in what’s nonetheless a cracking slice of action-RPG, packed with gorgeous visuals, a revamped combat system and plenty of exploration. It concludes the series in fine style. Well, until Oceanhorn 4 inevitably arrives.
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Cult of the Lamb
I can count on, um, one finger the number of games that feature a murdery sheep who builds a cult to worship a demonic entity and wipes out non-believers. Because that number is one: this game. It’s daft fun too as you blaze around, hacking up enemies, indoctrinating rescued animals and crafting your sanctuary in what almost amounts to a twisted take on Animal Crossing. It’s admittedly repetitive but Lamb’s short blasts of unholy lawks are ideally suited to iPhone.
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What The Clash?
What the Golf? was one of my favourite Apple Arcade games. What the Car? was… not. This entry in the series veers closer to the former, transforming colourful mini-games into surreal one-on-one battles through modifier cards. For example, ping pong might inconveniently replace the ball with a fish – or paddles with sticks and fans. If you lurk alone in a dark room, you can play friends online. Lure someone in with snacks and there’s same-device multiplayer.
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Outlanders 2
Being old, I remember happily playing The Settlers on the Amiga. At least until my tranquil town was invaded and I realised I’d not created an army. Tsk. Outlanders 2 does away with fighty elements, though, resulting in a more relaxing take on the town-building genre. Most of its challenges are mercifully short too, which means you can work your way through a level in a lunch hour, rather than your on-screen civic duties robbing you of an entire day.
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Puyo Puyo Puzzle Pop
Puyo Man’s Tetris, more like, amirite? Etc! OK, that’s a tad unfair. While Puyo Puyo isn’t king of the well-based puzzler hill, it’s probably, I dunno, a baron? In its Apple Arcade incarnation, you’re – as ever – rotating pairs of colourful blobs, aiming to match four or more and create chain reactions that litter your opponent’s well with garbage. The story is forgettable, but the gameplay is solid, and even the touch controls aren’t bad – although I’d recommend using a controller if you have one.
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Sonic Dream Team
Although the blue hedgehog is joined by his chums, the Dream Team in this game is more literal. Dr. Eggman’s latest scheme is to make dreams real, and our snoozing heroes must blaze their way through strange dreamscapes, bouncing on enemies, grabbing enough bling to choke a dragon and generally mocking the laws of physics. Curmudgeons will doubtless wail that you should play Sonic on a ‘proper console’. More fool them, because Sonic Dream Team is an awful lot of fun.
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Space Invaders Infinity Gene Evolve
Space Invaders is a classic, but it’s getting on. Fortunately, this remake only resembles the original for 30 seconds. Thereafter, it flings countless enemies and projectiles your way as it ‘evolves’ at breakneck pace across intense bullet-hell challenges. With artsy visuals, a thumping techno soundtrack and tightly choreographed levels, Evo is like the cooler offspring of Space Invaders and Rez. And although I miss the pitch-perfect portrait mode of the original iOS release, this is a quality evolution of one of the finest games with Space Invaders in the title.
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Balatro+
This deckbuilding roguelite is so addictive it should come with a health warning. It looks deceptively simple: play poker hands to hit target scores while augmenting your deck with ability-granting Joker cards. Easy! But no: it quickly gets fiendishly clever as you uncover synergies that send your scores into the stratosphere. And, yeah, it’s a ‘+’ game and so should really be in the ‘classics’ section below. But Balatro was new when it hit Apple Arcade and is too good to not get a full slot.
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Cypher 007
Aside from a certain N64 effort, few Bond games have made a mark for the right reasons. But Cypher 007 is a bit of a gem. Top-down isometric stealth larks in the mould of classic Metal Gear Solid suit the Bond aesthetic. And plenty of iconic villains make an appearance in a surprisingly entertaining original story, while Q ensures you’ve a steady supply of gadgets to assist with your sneaking around.
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Finity
Another match-three puzzler. Slide rows of coloured blocks. Clear them by lining up three of the same type. New blocks fall. You know the drill. Here, though, you can only make finite moves before getting yourself into a right old mess. Blocks have turn-based timers and conditions on how you can move them. Eventually they lock up, forcing you to consider every swipe. Fortunately, the game doesn’t rush you, and the slick presentation means getting stuck has never been so satisfying.
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Ridiculous Fishing Ex
How ridiculous can fishing be? Here, you plunge your line into the inky depths, weave left and right to avoid swimming critters, hook one, snare everything you can on the way back up, fling your catch skywards when it reaches the surface, and then blow it to smithereens with high-powered weaponry to earn cash for upgrades. So, er, that ridiculous. Reckon this is a bit fishy and now have deja vu? That’s because this is a remaster of a long-gone App Store classic. More of this, please, Apple.
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Horizon Chase 2
Like the original Horizon Chase, this follow-up is a blazing-fast arcade racer, where you barrel along roads where everyone is suspiciously all driving in the same direction. Aside from spangly revamped visuals, the sequel adds a bunch of new challenges and the welcome addition of multiplayer. In all, it’s like having 90% of an OutRun 2 on your phone – or a modern remake of Amiga classic Lotus 3 or Top Gear. In short, it’s vrooming great.
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Zen Pinball Party
Zen’s approach to smacking a metal ball around with flippers has long been to dispense with reality and make pinball tables come alive through animation and dynamic characters. That’s the case here, whether battling it out in Adventure Land, Kung Fu Panda or a surprisingly vicious Snoopy table. Prefer traditional fare? Top takes on Williams classics Theatre of Magic, Medieval Madness and Attack from Mars will get your thumbs twitching.
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Alto’s Odyssey: The Lost City
The original Alto’s Odyssey was the most gorgeous one-thumb leapy game around, featuring a daredevil soaring above dunes, grinding along canyon walls, bouncing on balloons, and trying to not get monstered by a lemur or fall down a ravine. This add-on has you find pieces of a map that unlock the titular Lost City, a vibrant, living biome that neatly contrasts with the lonely ruins elsewhere in the game.
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SP!NG
Despite the minimalist visuals, the exhilarating one-thumb action in SP!NG makes you feel like Spider-Man as you swing through side-on levels, getting into the flow and scooping up diamonds. Right up until you impale yourself on a spike, that is. Fortunately, levels are short and possible to memorise – just as well when you’re aiming for bling-collection perfection.
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Taiko no Tatsujin Pop Tap Beat
Guitar Hero? Pah! Drumming rhythm action games are where it’s at. In Taiko no Tatsujin Pop Tap Beat, it’s you and your thumbs against everything from J-pop to the William Tell Overture. The entire thing is gloriously demented tappy fun – although you won’t see much of the on-screen madness when zeroed in on the note markers!
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Easy Come Easy Golf
In everything but name, Easy Come Easy Golf is an Everybody’s Golf game for Apple Arcade, marking the end of developer Clap Hanz’s long exclusivity deal with PlayStation. But don’t expect an inferior knockoff. Like its predecessors, this infectiously cheerful ball-thwacker hits that perfect sweet spot between arcade and simulation golf, while the new touch controls arguably make hitting a great shot even more satisfying.
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Fantasian
When it comes to RPGs, names don’t come much bigger than Hironobu Sakaguchi, best known for being the man who created Final Fantasy. If you hanker for the classics in that genre, you’ll love Fantasian. It’s an unashamedly old-school JRPG (you’d better believe there are random battles) that stands out from the crowd thanks to its wholly unique visual style, which uses stunning handcrafted dioramas to form its game world.
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Sneaky Sasquatch
Like Yogi Bear meets Metal Gear, Sneaky Sasquatch has you play as the titular hairy chap, who steals grub, hides from rangers, and acquires exciting new possessions from a kleptomaniac raccoon. It’s joyful stuff, from how Sasquatch messily stuffs his face, to the beautifully realised way he tiptoes around humans. Even better, the game often gets meaty updates, making it worth regularly returning to.
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Grindstone
Recalling long-dead iPhone classic Dungeon Raid, Grindstone is a match game where you draw a snaking path to remove items from the board. Only here, a brute-like hero scythes his way through hordes of bloodthirsty creeps. As you work your way up a mountain, increasingly intricate layouts demand think-ahead tactics. It’s fantastic, top-tier stuff, especially on iPhone.
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What The Golf?
Mini-golf? Yawn. But wait, because What The Golf? goes weird almost instantly, with the golfer flying through the air instead of the ball. Later, you send an entire clubhouse towards the hole, and the ball thinks its Spider-Man, swinging from walls. If that doesn’t make you chuckle and want to keep playing, you’re deader than a ball in the rough.
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Card of Darkness
This combination of Rogue-like adventuring and cards (illustrated by Adventure Time artist Pendleton Ward) demands you balance risk and reward. You flip cards to grab bling but need to clear entire stacks to progress. Lack health/weaponry to do so and you’re dead. It’s thinky brilliance, with speedy levels that let you crack on in short bursts.
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