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Apple has entered the Chat

MarkMe2525

Banned
Love them or hate them, this is what MS has been talking about for a few years now. This is just the beginning, it will be a few years before Apple reaches its final form.
 

Azelover

Titanic was called the Ship of Dreams, and it was. It really was.
Let us see what they do. Hopefully they won't ruin another gaming sector like they did with the casuals. I hope they come to the game with something really good for us all.
 

JimboJones

Member
For me to be excited for an Apple gaming device it would have to be gaming first, phone second.

Basically a Vita or Switch lite form factor but with the guts of an iPhone as their flagship gaming device.
Sticking plastic shite on a phone or touch screen controllers can be optional for casual players who want phone first , games second.

Major first party investment with games from variety of genres.
 

Smether

Member
They have a strong position in the space already, and there are already promising translation layers that allow you to run games on M based silicone. Surely they are taking gaming in mind with Vision Pro also.
 
The funny thing is that Apple is in the running yes but its all organic really. They are not pushing gaming but rather giving it a place for it to grow with their tech growing.

Like apple didn't go out of their way to get capcom on iphone. Capcom wants to be on iphone. They want to tap that user base.

Where it gets interesting is when the future say A20 chips are ina $200 Apple TV. The thing no one understands about Apples Silicon is they are fast and they are cheap to produce. Right now I think the apple tvs have are the A15s and the new Iphone pro chip is athe A17.
It wonmt be long.

Organic is the right word. I think when most people picture Apple entering the console market they picture a Playstation or Xbox with an Apple logo slapped on it. It's a $500+ giant box you have next to your TV that's a dedicated gaming machine.

The truth is Apple is already quietly in this market via Apple TV. For example, on Apple Arcade the games work across all of your Apple devices (Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, and soon Vision Pro) and you can use whatever controller (PS, Switch, Xbox) you want to play the games. Family sharing costs nothing extra and takes mere seconds to set up. Online is free and your progress is saved across devices. You're likely not buying any of these devices exclusively for gaming.. it's just part of the package.

Up until recently, the above hasn't mattered much. What you play on your phone or Apple TV is generally pretty far removed from the type of experiences we see on a PS5 or even the Switch, but that is starting to change with the new chips and some of the recent game announcements we've seen.

I think Apple is in a similar position that PC gaming was 15 years ago when it wasn't seen as any threat at all to the console market. At first you don't really notice much happening and then next thing you know every major console title is launching simultaneously on PC and your friends who used to be console gamers are debating whether the ROG Ally is worth the extra money over the Steam Deck.
 

64bitmodels

Reverse groomer.
Unfortunately, It's the most successful at the worst types of games. They got to get the mobile stink off the mobile concept.
Nintendo is trying but that Nintendo store is also waste deep in waste.
there is no stink that needs to be removed from handheld gaming. people love the Switch, 3DS, PSP, etc.

it's specifically mobile phones.
 

StreetsofBeige

Gold Member
I dont think Apple will do anything with gaming similar to console makers. They'll just keep doing their Apple Arcade and 30% revenue cuts. I think someone posted one time they make about $500M in cuts per month. That's $6 billion a year of pure revenue. No need to rock the boat.
 

Dream-Knife

Banned
Until the game isn't updated for their yearly OS upgrade and you can't play your game because it isn't actively maintained.

That being said, most gamers deserve the apple experience. Maybe that will bring about a crash and clean up.
 

Magic Carpet

Gold Member
there is no stink that needs to be removed from handheld gaming. people love the Switch, 3DS, PSP, etc.

it's specifically mobile phones.
Yes talking about cellphone games. And sadly I’m including the switch here. They got the Nintendo games but also a butt Stink butt load of cell phone stink.
 

MadPanda

Banned
At least we seem to be moving in the right direction for the time being. Google Play Pass and Apple Arcade are both pretty decent (was playing a bunch of What The Golf today on my phone and having a blast), and the new AAA ports to iPhone are pretty nifty. Any new options for people to experience those games is a win in my book.

I didn't even realize that there's Google play pass! Google is such a weird company. Creating so many products and failing to raise awareness and engagement.
 

Barakov

Member
Apple is easily the leading company to enter into the more traditional gaming market.

I think we all pretty much scoffed at the iPhone 15 Pro being a gaming console or even a gaming handheld, but I think it has considerably more potential than say the Playstation Portal. People already buy iPhones, so it's easy to try to convince them to play traditional games occasionally on their iPhones.

But that is NOT the sell

What has me convinced that Apple is a strong contender is what they've already advertised. Cross-buy across their devices. This is an extremely unique position that only Apple can do.

  • iPhones
  • iPads
  • Macbooks
  • iMacs/MacMinis/Mac Pros
  • Apple Vision Pro (VR)
  • Apple TV
  • Apple Arcade

The ability to potentially buy games once and play it on any device that you own? All Apple was missing before was the support of developers/publishers and it seems that they are starting to get more of that. I think that publishers/developers are going to look to create as many competitive platforms as possible to keep royalties down. It makes a lot of sense to support Apple, especially given their user base size.

They could very easily release a gaming-oriented M Series chipset Apple TV that could compete directly with Sony and Microsoft and they could certainly subsidize it across gaming and Apple TV.

Obviously, they'll need more software, but I could easily see them buying any large studios or publishers. There is even some talk that they could buy Disney. They wouldn't have the regulatory hurdles that Microsoft is going through in order to buy a major publisher either.

When you combine Apple Arcade which can be bundled into Apple One. They could far more easily subsidize a subscription service and their games in a more similar way like Amazon does with Amazon Prime. I don't think an exclusively gaming subscription service can sustain itself at this point. Apple is already the biggest revenue maker in gaming.

Apple has the money, the engineers, the ecosystem, and the consumer base to be a legitimate entrant into the console gaming space. Unlike Sony and Microsoft, they can create their own chipsets, which would eventually allow them to undercut Sony and Microsoft on hardware prices.
Bbc Three Idk GIF by BBC

"Unlike Sony and Microsoft, they can create their own chipsets, which would eventually allow them to undercut Sony and Microsoft on hardware prices."

They sell most of their products at a ridiculous mark up. I think the latest iphone costs something like $502 to make and their selling that thing for a grand. If anything Apple needs to stay in their lane and get out of the chat.

I'll give them one thing though, they're very good at hoodwinking stupid people into buying their overpriced products. I have many misgivings about MS but Apple is orders of magnitude worse.
 
yes of course not but also they won't need to?

From a consumer perspective sure, I'd agree with that. From a dev perspective I'm not so sure. If they don't get the content then no player base, no install base then no devs wanting to learn your walled garden code and limited release platforms...Apple can dodge all that being Apple and all but it's a pretty shite affair to have another device and exclusive/subs locked down. In terms of semi-open I prefer the approach of Google or MS e.g. not one hardware exclusive.

At a time when regulators are literally holding up the industry for years based around pricing and lockouts or strongarm tactics it's pretty reflective of Apple pushing a more traditional console gaming approach. When you consider what MS is going through it might work better as an extension of App stores e.g. don't buy a massive publisher but leverage the platform and network Apple have existing, at least the talent would have experience with all things Apple too. I doubt regulators are going to fuck up how they let Apple strangle the mobile/app/games market only to produce a duopoly.
 

nial

Member
Well I mean in the sense of making most of their games cross-platform.
It kinda devalues their own platform a little bit.

If Apple manages to get devs to release games on their platform day one, and also some decent exclusives, they might be able to get somewhere.

There's never been a better time for Apple
That might have worked at the beginning of the generation, but now that they've pretty much abandoned the PS4 and the gen has been running for quite some time, that ship has sailed. It's much better to wait until like 2026, they would surely be much better at this than MS at least, although I don't see them touching either Sony or Nintendo.
 

Robb

Gold Member
Until they invest in it I don’t see it. The only thing Apple is seemingly interested in is making more money off of 3rd party sales and microtransactions.
 

V1LÆM

Gold Member
Love them or hate them, this is what MS has been talking about for a few years now. This is just the beginning, it will be a few years before Apple reaches its final form.
This is it… Microsoft is competing with Sony/Nintendo but they are looking at the big picture and playing the long game.

If Apple truly enters the gaming market then Sony and Nintendo are fucked. Microsoft would be fucked too but they are planning ahead for Apple entering.

Gamepass and xCloud are important in their strategy to stand up against Apple. Apple already has a gaming subscription (Arcade) and their ecosystem is arguably the tightest out there.

It also explains why they have bought Bethesda and are trying to get Activision/Blizzard. The leaks about buying Nintendo also make sense too. I believe if Microsoft doesn’t buy them then Apple will.

Sony and Nintendo are rich companies but they aren’t on the level of Microsoft or Apple. Microsoft is the only one who has the financial power to stand up against Apple.

In the next 10-15 years things are going to shift significantly. Someone is going to disappear. Nintendo could become a MS or Apple division. I wouldn’t say Sony are safe but let’s see how they do over the next gen or so. They need to improve PS+ and do better with PC games.
 

damidu

Member
This is it… Microsoft is competing with Sony/Nintendo but they are looking at the big picture and playing the long game.

If Apple truly enters the gaming market then Sony and Nintendo are fucked. Microsoft would be fucked too but they are planning ahead for Apple entering.

Gamepass and xCloud are important in their strategy to stand up against Apple. Apple already has a gaming subscription (Arcade) and their ecosystem is arguably the tightest out there.

It also explains why they have bought Bethesda and are trying to get Activision/Blizzard. The leaks about buying Nintendo also make sense too. I believe if Microsoft doesn’t buy them then Apple will.

Sony and Nintendo are rich companies but they aren’t on the level of Microsoft or Apple. Microsoft is the only one who has the financial power to stand up against Apple.

In the next 10-15 years things are going to shift significantly. Someone is going to disappear. Nintendo could become a MS or Apple division. I wouldn’t say Sony are safe but let’s see how they do over the next gen or so. They need to improve PS+ and do better with PC games.
this level of brain rot is probably what’s causing phill to lose his sense of reality while he is forum hopping.

somehow looking at current landscape and everything that’s unfolding you came to the conclusion that its sony and nintendo who are doomed. bravo my man!
 

V1LÆM

Gold Member
this level of brain rot is probably what’s causing phill to lose his sense of reality while he is forum hopping.

somehow looking at current landscape and everything that’s unfolding you came to the conclusion that its sony and nintendo who are doomed. bravo my man!
Do you believe Sony or Nintendo have the money to compete with Apple?
 

MarkMe2525

Banned
This is it… Microsoft is competing with Sony/Nintendo but they are looking at the big picture and playing the long game.

If Apple truly enters the gaming market then Sony and Nintendo are fucked. Microsoft would be fucked too but they are planning ahead for Apple entering.

Gamepass and xCloud are important in their strategy to stand up against Apple. Apple already has a gaming subscription (Arcade) and their ecosystem is arguably the tightest out there.

It also explains why they have bought Bethesda and are trying to get Activision/Blizzard. The leaks about buying Nintendo also make sense too. I believe if Microsoft doesn’t buy them then Apple will.

Sony and Nintendo are rich companies but they aren’t on the level of Microsoft or Apple. Microsoft is the only one who has the financial power to stand up against Apple.

In the next 10-15 years things are going to shift significantly. Someone is going to disappear. Nintendo could become a MS or Apple division. I wouldn’t say Sony are safe but let’s see how they do over the next gen or so. They need to improve PS+ and do better with PC games.
If this future you describe turned out to be true, I feel as if there would always be an audience for tightly crafted experiences. Because of this, I would like to believe there would be a place for Nintendo or Sony. Maybe not at the same size as now, but at some major scale.
 

Crayon

Member
Idk how I feel about them jumping in. The main problem is that it's another tech giant like ms. Hopefully more people understand the problem with that over the last couple days. On the other hand, apple actually comes up with neat stuff and im curious about how they would do it.
 

Hudo

Member
And you really think that Apple is any fucking better than Microsoft? Lmao. They are as shitty and backhanded as Microsoft, they just hide it better. And you can bet your asses that they won't even entertain the idea of releasing a disc-based console. Apple is even more into the digital-only future than Microsoft.
 
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Thick Thighs Save Lives

NeoGAF's Physical Games Advocate Extraordinaire
they'll buy studios and make their own. They don't have a history of monopolization like MS does so they're surely to build and not buy. Ala Sony & Nintendo
Like Amazon and Google has done recently, right? Oh wait... it's not that simple, else we would have more players than the big 3 on the console market.
They only way I'm seeing Apple having a success in the current console market is if MSFT sells off their Xbox division to them.
 
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Business

Member
How is cross-buy such a unique Apple thing when for the last 20 years you have Steam where you buy a game and it will work for your desktop, laptop, steamdeck (and similar), a variety of VR headsets... PLUS with the same purchase you get it in Windows, Linux and/or MacOS version?
 

PaintTinJr

Member
True, but their hardware is top notch, certainly a level above all current console makers.
That statement is clearly false.

At the same spend on costs for a product, Sony - not just PlayStation - produce far better products than Apple. You only need look at all the Sony R&D tech they need for their iProducts, watches and the new headset (priced +$1000 over the Apple BoM) to see that Sony would be paying production costs on expensive components, rather than profit margin uplifted component buyer costs, so for the same product price with the same total BoM cost Sony provide more allowing them to massively out engineer Apple, and virtually every other electronics company on the planet, and have done for decades.

Consoles specifically have a price ceiling for mass market, so just like Microsoft, Apple would be struggling to not lose money on hardware every generation and for the whole of a generation at that. That doesn't fit with Apple's MO for selling nerfed UI products for the less technical while exploiting those consumers' lower appreciation of value for money to sell with high margin.

Unlike in the iDevice market where Sony intentionally caveat their own world first products to showcase tech they want to supply to Apple and Samsung, etc 2years later and have done well in smart devices with that strategy, despite small sales of their own products, there's no situation where Sony are going to do that for them with components and devices they'd need for a home console. For Apple to have produced a PS5 at launch it would not have cost them as little as it did Sony. If Microsoft with 2 decades of console making experience are losing $250 on the inferior designed Series X. To match or exceed the PS5 would have cost significantly more for Apple, putting the product at odds with the PS1, PS2, PS4 type offering that gets the +100M success in this market.
 
Bbc Three Idk GIF by BBC

"Unlike Sony and Microsoft, they can create their own chipsets, which would eventually allow them to undercut Sony and Microsoft on hardware prices."

They sell most of their products at a ridiculous mark up. I think the latest iphone costs something like $502 to make and their selling that thing for a grand. If anything Apple needs to stay in their lane and get out of the chat.

I'll give them one thing though, they're very good at hoodwinking stupid people into buying their overpriced products. I have many misgivings about MS but Apple is orders of magnitude worse.

$ for $ Macbooks completely outperform their equivalent PC laptop counterparts.
 
How is cross-buy such a unique Apple thing when for the last 20 years you have Steam where you buy a game and it will work for your desktop, laptop, steamdeck (and similar), a variety of VR headsets... PLUS with the same purchase you get it in Windows, Linux and/or MacOS version?

Valve doesn't own the hardware outside of Steamdeck which sells in limited quantities...
 

StueyDuck

Member
Muricans don't understand how little influence apple have outside of the US.

Sure they've gained popularity over the years but it's not nearly as much of a religion in the real world, they are also moronically over priced with absolutely everything they produce.

They wouldn't survive in gaming unless they get those prices down.
 
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SmokedMeat

Gamer™
What has me convinced that Apple is a strong contender is what they've already advertised. Cross-buy across their devices.

  • iPhones
  • iPads
  • Macbooks
  • iMacs/MacMinis/Mac Pros
  • Apple Vision Pro (VR)
  • Apple TV
  • Apple Arcade

The ability to potentially buy games once and play it on any device that you own?

So you can’t play it on any device you own.

Edit: On a side note, it’s yet another platform to optimize for, in an industry that can’t optimize for shit. Let’s see how those 30fps ports turn out.
 
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ResurrectedContrarian

Suffers with mild autism
Silicon-based Macbooks are amazing machines all around, and I certainly see some gaming potential there.

On Steam, that is...screw Apple's own attempts at an ecosystem for gaming, it's a non-starter and I'd rather deal with even Origin than come within ten feet of it.
 

Urban

Member
Their M1 Chip has huge potential as a dedicated Handheld but i dont see them making a exclusive HH since their appstore makes already so much money
 

Trogdor1123

Member
Apple has a history of overpricing. I don’t want their influence to reach here.
Normally I would agree but I’m not certain I do anymore. The Apple TV is cheaper this generation than last and with more storage and faster processor. It can run some extremely expensive impressive stuff. MacBook airs are also a fantastic value in the laptop space. The Mac mini was just on sale for 669 cdn with 150 gift card. That’s the m2 version which is pretty decent too. The iPad has essentially decimated any competition but it still hasn’t gone to the roof on pricing either (but has certainly increased). Certainly in lots of areas it is borderline criminal what they charge for some things but it’s certainly not everywhere. There could be an opportunity for them to do something good here.

My number one concern with them would be price, it would be their control scheme. You can bet money it would pair up with a phone as it’s controller which could be ok in some instances but in most it would be awful
 
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I wonder if in the future one of these mega corporations will have the ability to wage war then there will be a big awful war with a fucking corporation
 

NickFire

Member
It would be interesting if they released a dedicated gaming console. But I'm not holding my breath waiting for it to happen. They are widely successful selling high priced hardware. Tough for me to believe they want to get into the subsidy game. And I don't see home consoles drawing as much of the "must have Apple device" crowd as general purpose items like phones and CPU's do. I know tons of people who are Iphone or bust with cell phones, myself included, but most of them have little interest in console gaming.
 

quest

Not Banned from OT
What is funny and ironic is those wanting apple to replace Microsoft because of gamepass. When apple has the largest gaming subscription service by a mile.
 
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