3 must-play games coming to Apple Arcade in May

Here are our picks of the new games to play on your iPhone, iPad, Apple TV or Mac soon

Apple Arcade May 2024
(Image credit: Pomelo Company / Terry Cavanagh / Chinykian Games)

Apple Arcade is a wonderful resource for games, whether you play them on an iPhone, iPad, Apple TV or Mac.

There are more than 100 available and they all come at no extra cost to subscribers – with no in-game adverts or in-app purchases neither.

Even better is that new games are released all the time, so there should always be something new to discover and play.

Here then are our picks for the games available coming to the service on 2 May 2024 that you should download and play.

A Slight Chance of Sawblades+

An enhanced version of the seemingly simple, but fiendishly addictive platformer, A Slight Chance of Sawblades+ tasks you with avoiding the eponymous sawblades that dart around the screen.

Your points tally then goes onto a global leaderboard and you'll be eager to try to improve each time. Be warned though, fight the urge to throw your iPhone if you die after a particularly long run. This is the voice of experience right here.

Dicey Dungeons+

Dicey Dungeons+ is a roguelike, deck-building adventure where the dice themselves are the heroes. Strategy and luck are the order of the day, as you defeat monsters and bosses as you progress through a procedurally generated dungeon.

Again, this is a fiendishly addictive game that is easy to learn but harder to master.

Summer Pop+

Cute and cuddly, Summer Pop+ is a fun and friendly match-three game that greatly benefits from being available on Apple Arcade (and therefore free of in-app purchases).

I've been enjoying Temple Run: Puzzle Adventure on the platform recently, so it's great that there'll be another puzzler available to move onto soon.

What is Apple Arcade?

Apple Arcade is the company's subscription gaming service, which gives members access to 100s of games for one reasonable monthly price.

Arcade games are essentially mobile titles that are generally exclusive to Apple and come with no advertising or in-app purchasing at all. You get the full game with no strings attached.

Some are enhanced versions of games also available to purchase and/or download on the general App Store, some are titles you might also find on other game stores for PC, PS5 or Xbox Series X/S. All are curated and the list is regularly refreshed.

It's also worth noting that Apple Arcade games work across iPhone, iPad, Apple TV and Mac, with the ability to save your progress on one and carry on playing on another. All games work with touch or game controllers.

How much does Apple Arcade cost?

Apple Arcade costs £6.99 / $6.99 per month with a 1-month free trial to kick you off. This includes access for you and up to five family members.

Alternatively, you can also opt for an Apple One subscription at £18.95 / $19.95 per month. As well as Apple Arcade, that will give you 50GB of iCloud storage, plus Apple TV+ and Apple Music. That's for single person membership.

A Family subscription costs £24.95 / $25.95 per month, but increases the iCloud storage to 200GB. It also enables service sharing with up to five people.

Finally, a Premier subscription is available for £36.95 / $37.95 per month. It adds Fitness+ and Apple News+, and increases the iCloud storage to 2TB.

Rik Henderson
News Editor

Rik is T3’s news editor, which means he looks after the news team and the up-to-the-minute coverage of all the hottest gadgets and products you’ll definitely want to read about. And, with more than 35 years of experience in tech and entertainment journalism, including editing and writing for numerous websites, magazines, and newspapers, he’s always got an eye on the next big thing.

Rik also has extensive knowledge of AV, TV streaming and smart home kit, plus just about everything to do with games since the late 80s. Prior to T3, he spent 13 years at Pocket-lint heading up its news team, and was a TV producer and presenter on such shows as Channel 4's GamesMaster, plus Sky's Games World, Game Over, and Virtual World of Sport.