7:50 AM PDT · May 28, 2025
With Apple’s flagship Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) event a few weeks away, the company is signaling that it’s paying attention to the opportunity of mobile gaming.
Apple already has a subscription-based Arcade product for iOS, which gives users access to various mobile games, including cult-classic indie games like Stardew Valley. But per a Digital Trends report, the company is taking things a step further by acquiring its first game studio, RAC7, which makes the hit Apple Arcade game Sneaky Sasquatch.
Apple joins some other seemingly unlikely suspects in their investment in mobile gaming — Netflix, for example, acquired several gaming studios after launching Netflix Games in 2021, which makes cloud mobile gaming available to Netflix subscribers.
Meanwhile, Bloomberg confirmed a 9to5Mac report that Apple is developing a dedicated gaming app for iOS 19. The app will reportedly replace the Game Center app and integrate with Apple Arcade to host features like gaming leaderboards, recommendations, challenges, and social features. The new app could also integrate into iMessage or FaceTime to facilitate remote multiplayer gaming.
Apple’s additional investment in mobile gaming comes at a time when cloud gaming — which allows users to stream games to their devices without downloading massive files — is on the rise. Microsoft has been a leader in this shift with its Xbox Cloud Gaming offerings.
Amanda Silberling is a senior writer at TechCrunch covering the intersection of technology and culture. She has also written for publications like Polygon, MTV, the Kenyon Review, NPR, and Business Insider. She is the co-host of Wow If True, a podcast about internet culture, with science fiction author Isabel J. Kim. Prior to joining TechCrunch, she worked as a grassroots organizer, museum educator, and film festival coordinator. She holds a B.A. in English from the University of Pennsylvania and served as a Princeton in Asia Fellow in Laos.
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