Report claims Apple Arcade payments have declined significantly, leaving devs concerned

A new report claims that the payments made to game developers for their Apple Arcade releases have declined significantly over the years, which has apparently left some concerned for the service’s future. 

This comes from Mobilegamer.biz, which has cited anonymous sources who claim that both upfront payments for new Apple Arcade releases and “bonus pool” payments have gone down since Apple’s game subscription service was launched. Reportedly, these bonus pool payments are calculated using a “qualifying session” metric, but it’s not clear what this metric actually means or how it works. One of the report’s sources partially explained it as being related to how long gamers play a game for and how often they come back to it.

Because of the uncertainty surrounding how this payment is calculated, it’s claimed that developers aren’t sure about how to question Apple regarding why the numbers are declining in the first place. One anonymous developer reportedly told Mobilegamer.biz that they expect payments to keep going down until it gets to the point where putting games on Apple Arcade in the first place is far less viable than it once was. 

TechRadar Gaming has reached out to Apple to verify this information, and we will update this article if we receive a response. 

Apple Arcade was launched in 2019, and over the years, it’s been the host of a number of popular games. Recent releases include the adorable Tamagotchi Adventure Kingdom, which sees players step into the shoes of iconic character Mametchi on a quest to restore the kingdom and make new friends. Last year, a brand-new Sonic the Hedgehog game, Sonic Dream Team, was launched, which TechRadar Gaming’s hardware editor Rhys Wood previously described as “brilliant.”

Looking for some games to dive into on the go? Be sure to check out our recommendations for the best Android games and best iPhone games.