Game development for Apple platforms has been described as “like a forced relationship” due to a lack of support or strategy.
In a new report, MobileGamer.biz spoke to a number of anonymous developers creating games for the Apple Arcade mobile platform and the Vision Pro VR headset.
Sources describe a whole host of problems, suggesting that Apple simply “doesn’t understand gamers” or the industry.
A major problem is reported to be a lack of contact or technical support. “We can go weeks without hearing from Apple at all, and their total response time to emails is three weeks, if at all,” said one source.
“We’re supposed to be able to ask product, technical, and business questions, but often half the Apple team doesn’t want to show up, and when they do, they have no idea what’s going on and can’t answer our questions because they don’t have any knowledge of how to answer or cannot share this information for privacy reasons.”
This is particularly evident for developers working on Vision Pro, with one developer describing Apple’s technical support as “the worst I’ve seen anywhere.”
“Developing the Vision Pro is like stepping back in time 10 years, because despite the advertised power – and the price – this is not a machine built for gaming,” they said. “Getting any complex games to work on the platform is difficult.”
Apple also offers no financial incentives for studios to develop for Vision Pro, unlike its main competitor Meta, which was described as “completely confusing” by an anonymous developer.
Other issues include discoverability in Apple Arcade and shady QA and update processes. One source said: “It feels like the game has been in the morgue for the last two years… It’s like we’re invisible.”
Another developer details the QA and localization process, which involves sending a thousand screenshots at once for each device aspect ratio and language. “My team was like, ‘There’s no fucking way we’re going to do that,'” they said.
On the plus side, the sources interviewed said Apple is paying well, although times have changed since Arcade’s first few years. However, there is now a five-month backlog of royalties payments – one developer hasn’t been paid for six months and is almost out of business, while another said he has been “hindered” by Apple representatives to chase payments.
And while developers believe Apple views gaming as a “necessary evil,” Arcade seems directionless. One source said it “feels like an anchor to the Apple ecosystem” and not “really supported within the company.”
“Honestly, I think Apple doesn’t understand gaming and gamers,” another source said. “I believe Apple Arcade is a good idea overall, but they need a clear goal of where it should go and what it’s for.” That’s a question they have to answer and then act accordingly.”
Another source was particularly unhappy. “Given their status as a huge tech company, it seems they treat developers as a necessary evil, and that we’ll do our best to please them for little in return, in the hopes that they’ll grace us with another project – and a chance to get screwed again,” they said.
“It’s like an abusive relationship where the abused stays in the relationship in hopes that the other partner will change and become the person you know they can be.”
Eurogamer asked Apple for comment, which declined, but pointed to an interview with Arcade senior director Alex Roffman in The Guardian. “Arcade is a place for games that might not otherwise exist, and I think that’s a really important part of our strategy,” he said, adding that “games are more important to Apple now than they’ve ever been.”
A previous report from February, also from MobileGamer.biz, stated that developers were concerned about the future of Apple Arcade and described the “smell of death” around the platform.
It’s certainly a tough time for mobile gaming. Capcom’s iOS port of Resident Evil 7 has reportedly done under 2,000 sales since its launch in early July. The likes of Assassin’s Creed Mirage, Resident Evil Village and Death Stranding performed similarly.
