15 titles were removed from Apple Arcade due to agreements expiring, with Apple allowing subscribers to play the remaining games for another two weeks.
- What is happening? Apple recently provided a list of 15 games that will be removed from Apple Arcade in a new “coming soon”section. As of August 2, 2022, the listed titles are no longer available for subscription download.
- Why care? You subscribed to Apple Arcade with the expectation that you would always have access to all the games available on the service. But that’s not how subscriptions work. Apple’s contracts with the producers of these games provide for a fixed payment and ongoing royalties. And with the end of these contracts, Apple reserves the right not to renew some of them on the basis of obligations.
- What to do? If you still have any of the pulled games installed on your device, you can play them for two more weeks, or at least until August 16th. If not, do not delete these games as they may relaunch in the App Store, although the developer should add the ability to transfer saved games.
These 15 games are no longer available on Apple Arcade.
On July 18, 2022, Apple announced the first games to be removed from the Apple Arcade service due to the expiration of agreements. As of July 2, 2022, the following Apple Arcade games are no longer available for download:
- Projection: First light
- life slide
- Different daily life
- EarthNight
- Redemption: Elderberry Heart
- Over the Alps
- Terrible Marine
- cardocalypse
- Towaga: Among the Shadows
- dead end job
- Do not lie to me!
- caster
- spiderosaurs
- exploit
- BattleSky Crew: Harpooner
So what will happen on August 16th?
Can I still play remote arcade games?
Apple’s support document says that subscribers will have two more weeks to play the remaining Arcade games. “If you download the game before it leaves Arcade, you will be able to play it for at least two weeks after that,” it says. “If you try to launch an arcade game that is no longer playable, you’ll get a ‘No Longer Available’ message.
In other words, you will be able to continue playing remote games until August 16th. As Apple clarifies, you can only play games that you downloaded to your device prior to deletion. After August 16, the game may still work for a while, but don’t count on it.
Apple says developers can relaunch any of their removed Arcade games on the App Store for download by any user. “Once a game leaves Arcade, the game developer can make their game available on the App Store,” the company explained.
The relaunched games will differ from their arcade counterparts in terms of ads, in-app purchases, and tracking. No Apple Arcade games can ask for money, show you ads, or invade your privacy. “If a developer makes their game available on the App Store and lets you download saved progress, you can pick up where you left off in the arcade version.”Read: How to cancel an Apple Arcade subscription
What will happen to my saved progress?
For your saved games, the developers may allow you to transfer your progress from the Apple Arcade version to a restarted app. It’s also up to the developer, so some developers may decide that adding this functionality to their game isn’t worth their time and effort. For more information, see our frequently asked questions about what happens when games are removed from Apple Arcade.