Apple App Store will soon receive its first game streaming app with the dedicated retro games platform AntStream Arcade, over six months since Apple allowed the streaming apps on the site.
First reported by Cult of Mac last week that AntStream's gaming services will arrive for iPhone and iPad devices on June 27, offering more than 1,300 retro games across early and '80s consoles.
These include classics like the Atari 2600, Commodore 64, SNES, Megadrive, and PlayStation One.
Of course, using the game streaming service will cost people at least $4.99 per month or $39.99 per year, although AntStream is expected to offer a limited discount of $3.99 per month at launch.
Apple Leans More Towards Retro Games
The arrival of AntStream Arcade is expected to be only the first out of many game streaming platforms on the App Store as Apple gives more platforms to retro game emulators and platforms.
Earlier in January, Apple started allowing game streaming services as full-featured apps, including the Xbox Cloud Streaming and GeForce Now.
AntStream Arcade itself uses Xbox's Cloud services to host all the retro games on the platform.
Apple touted the new services as a way to give developers "enhanced discovery opportunities for streaming games, mini-apps, mini-games, chatbots, and plug-ins that are found within their apps."
This is in addition to Apple allowing legal retro game emulators on its app store last April as part of the sweeping changes the company has rolled out to comply with the European Union's Digital Markets Act.
So far, the App Store already hosts several console emulators for old-school Nintendo consoles, Commodore 64, and even PSP.
Apple Expands Game Catalog for Newer iPhone, iPad Devices
Of course, retro games are not the only titles Apple is setting up to introduce on its devices.
Since the release of its iPhone 15 Pro, Apple has been rolling out newer games on its App Store to show people the full capabilities of its upgraded processor and hardware.
This year, the company has collaborated with Capcom to bring both the Resident Evil 7 and the 2019 Resident Evil 2 remake to its mobile devices in the coming months.
The company has previously brought Hideo Kojima's Death Stranding, Final Fantasy 14, and Tom Clancy's The Division Resurgence.
