Pips and Pixels is a column from James Bentley, iMore's resident gaming expert, discussing all things gaming in the Apple ecosystem. Pips and Pixels explores the latest news, accessories, and titles you might have missed out on, and brings you commentary from the leading developers in the app market. As recent advancements in the Apple Silicon M processors and the brand new A17 Bionic chip show, Apple is becoming more serious about gaming. James looks to the rest of the games industry to see what could be next for Apple gamers.
The iPhone 15 Pro Max, the best iPhone right now and my favorite mobile gaming device, is fast approaching its 1st birthday. In that time, a handful of very big titles have been released and it has started to get more support as a gaming platform. However, Assassin’s Creed Mirage performed pretty poorly for me and I would like to see a bigger gaming commitment to the iPhone as a gaming platform from mainstream publishers.
The A17 Pro chip is capable of hardware-accelerated ray tracing, which leaves room for some very impressive gaming in the future but much of the developments that need to be made are on the software end. Luckily, the iPhone 16, expected to launch later this year, is set to come with improved hardware and software. With this in mind, here’s how I think the next iPhone could make mobile gaming better.
How mobile gaming could get better with iPhone 16
The iPhone 16 is reportedly skipping the A17 chip, which was previously expected to be in the device, and will instead jump straight to the A18. This will allow the regular iPhone and Pro models to share the same basic chipset going forward. Not only does this unify the language around chips but the jump can help cement the iPhone’s use with Apple Intelligence, the company’s set of AI features that will be coming to iOS 18. From what we know so far, Apple Intelligence is unlikely to affect how gaming is powered, though the better chip will certainly come in handy for AI tasks.
Staying on the hardware side, the iPhone 16 is expected to get a memory upgrade of 8GB of RAM which, compared to the 6GB featured in iPhone 15, should help make the device even more capable when it comes to gaming. As well as this, if the iPhone 16 gets a minimum storage bump (like the iPhone 15 Pro did), this won’t help run games any better but will make downloading them a much more pleasant experience.
Though these hardware upgrades are sure to slightly improve gaming in regards to graphical capabilities it’s the software upgrades I’m looking forward to. Following on from the Game Mode feature for Mac that was launched in macOS Sonoma, iOS 18 is introducing Game Mode for iPhone. This will minimize background activity, allowing the device to utilize the hardware for higher framerates and more consistent gameplay. This will also allow for lower latency connections for Bluetooth controllers and AirPods when playing music. If you own an iPhone 13, 14, or 15, you will still benefit from this new mode in iOS 18.
If you want a more immersive gaming experience, iOS 18 also launches with personalized Spatial Audio, allowing games to implement audio in more natural ways. If you have a compatible audio source, such as AirPods Pro 2, this will make all that sound feel more dynamic and three-dimensional.
Perhaps the most exciting part of the iPhone 16 is something that has already been launched. The A18 chip and better RAM can further unify the next iPhone line, making Game Porting Toolkit’s mobile porting tool easier to use for developers. Game Porting Tool Kit, as the name implies, is a framework that helps developers port games to Apple devices.
GPTK2, which launched during WWDC this year, added support for iPad and iPhone devices. As more users will be able to buy cheaper iPhones in the future which will surely include A17 chips capable of hardware-accelerated ray tracing and above, it will become far easier for more games to be ported for gamers. The iPhone 15 Pro line has been Apple’s biggest push into mobile gaming for some time, and the refining of that push with the iPhone 16 makes it an even more viable gaming machine.
Calendar: July's Big Game Releases
- Though it doesn't run natively on Mac, Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess is getting very strong reviews like 4.5 out of 5 from our friends over at TechRadar. In their review, they said it is "a beautiful adventure that transcends genres for a highly memorable experience with all the makings of an instant classic."
Level Up — Gaming accessories on our radar
AAA games are too large to fit on most of the best Macs out there comfortably and end up hogging all the storage on my consoles too, like Baldur’s Gate 3 which sits at over 150GB. Since I’ve been testing out an external hard drive that works with both, I can finally play all those games I’ve been putting off until I have the room. It might not let me get through my backlog but I tell myself I’ll make a dent in it someday.
Hitting the Arcade — What to play on Apple Arcade
Apple Arcade is filled with tons of exclusive experiences and fantastic games. However, with so many out there, it can be hard to decide what to play. Here’s what I've been testing out this week:
Zen Koi Pro+ recently launched on Apple Arcade and it’s a very relaxing experience. In it, you play a Koi fish, who has to eat other fish to complete objectives and level up, allowing you to swim faster, make prettier Koi, and grow the size of your small pond. With simplistic gameplay and a very chill soundtrack, this is one of those games you put on when you relax in the evening.
Have you played any great games this week or seen some interesting Apple gaming news we've missed? Let us know in the comments!
