Apple has listed as many as 15 games that’ll be leaving Apple Arcade soon, yet another reminder that you don’t own anything in the subscription economy.
- “EarthNight,” “Spelldrifter” and “Cardpocalypse” are among more than two-dozen Apple Arcade titles which will be leaving the games subscription service soon.
- This marks the first time Apple Arcade will be losing a bunch of titles at once. Due to Apple’s poor messaging, we don’t know what happens when a titler vanishes from its game-subscription service. Are your game saves preserved? Deleted?
- That’s some harsh reality of the subscription economy: On Netflix, non-original movies and shows are also available for a limited time due to licensing.
15 games leaving Apple Arcade soon
Apple Arcade has provided a “Coming Soon” section since its inception where you can view games that will be hitting Apple Arcade soon. And now, Apple has implemented another section listing games that will be actually leaving Apple Arcade shortly. Aptly titled “Leaving Soon,” the section highlights the following fifteen games as ones that will soon be no longer available on Apple Arcade:
- Projection: First Light
- Lifeslide
- Various Daylife
- EarthNight
- Atone: Heart of the Elder Tree
- Over the Alps
- Dread Nautical
- Cardpocalypse
- Towaga: Among Shadows
- Dead End Job
- Don’t Bug Me!
- Spelldrifter
- Spidersaurs
- Explottens
- BattleSky Brigade: Harpooner
To view the list on an iPhone, iPad or Mac, open the App Store and tap the Arcade tab, then choose “See All” next to the heading “Leaving Apple Arcade soon.”
Apple Arcade like Netflix?
Apple in the past did remove some titles from Apple Arcade, but this is the first time that a greater number of games will be leaving the subscription service in bulk. Apple Arcade is like Netflix in terms of content availability. Just as licensed movies and shows from other studios arrive on Netflix, spending a few years on the platform (depending on the terms of the licensing agreement) before disappearing from the streaming service, the same is happening with Apple Arcade titles.
None of the games from more than the 200 titles included in Apple Arcade subscriptions are Apple’s own. These games would’ve otherwise been available on the App Store for anyone to download and play, but are instead exclusive to Apple Arcade. And every exclusivity comes to an end, sooner or later. Apple Arcade is no exception in that regard. Read: How to watch YouTube on Apple Watch
What happens when a game leaves Apple Arcade?
Therefore, it’s great that you can now see which games are leaving Apple Arcade. But that’s not enough. Apple should do better than this. One wild idea: Highlight this information on the game’s page. And why also not email your subscribers about titles that will soon no longer be available. So, what exactly happens when a title gets removed from Apple Arcade because the licensing agreement has expired?
Will game saves disappear? We’ll soon find out about that. A sensible move would be to simply let those expired games relaunch on the App Store as non-Apple Arcade downloads, but that would mean a switch to a freemium model and the return of ads and annoying purchase prompts. Read: How to cancel an Apple Arcade subscription