Apple Could Be Cooking Up Something Big With Its New Game Mode. Here Are 3 Things We Know

I recently had the opportunity to experience Apple’s upcoming product Game mode featuresand it’s clear that we’re about to see the next generation of mobile gaming on Apple ecosystem of iPhone, iPad and MacBook.

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Mobile gaming isn’t new, but it’s certainly evolving, with improvements aimed at making cutting-edge titles run on the iPhone with performance on par with other handheld gaming devices. The first and most important of these improvements is the Game Mode feature in iOS 18 is expected to launch later this fall.

1. Game Mode turns iPhone into a handheld device

Apple Announces Game Mode Feature for iOS 18 at its WWDC 2024 Keynote in June, but with all the other big news we’ve covered, you might have missed it. In short, enabling Game Mode on your iPhone is intended to maximize immersion by boosting performance and delivering consistently high frame rates for hours of continuous gameplay, reducing performance drops caused by background tasks.

Additionally, this mode also enables hardware-accelerated ray tracing on the iPhone 15 Pro, a huge step forward in how the game looks, turning your iPhone into a true handheld gaming device, not just a phone disguised as a gaming device.

Game mode already exists on MacOSdown last year with MacOS 14 SonomaSo it’s safe to say that the feature will work similarly on the iPhone. For example, when you run a game in full screen mode, it will automatically prompt the user to enable Game Mode. Doing so will prioritize the game’s system resources, such as the CPU and GPU, and disable notifications that disrupt immersion. There’s nothing worse than getting pop-ups when you’re in the middle of an intense match.

It also increases the Bluetooth sample rate, which is aimed at reducing input lag for wireless accessories like controllers or headsets. Gamers everywhere know that every millisecond counts when you’re using a microphone to communicate with your team.

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Adding Game Mode to iOS 18 for iPhone also standardizes your gaming across devices, allowing you to use one device and seamlessly switch to another, continuing your game in the same place. This approach coincides with an overall shift to creating a seamless experience across devices, Powered by Continuityfeature that allows users to ‘remotely access’ their iPhone via their MacBook.

2. You can’t ignore hardware

Perhaps the main reason behind the enthusiasm for gaming on an iPhone, MacBook, or iPad is the sheer power of the hardware built into these devices — and Apple’s confidence that its technology is up to the job. Plus, with new iPhones and MacBooks on the horizon, gaming is likely to be an even bigger focus.

Apple Silicon M4 chip in new products iPad Pro TabletFor example, some of these new titles play better than some full gaming rigs, easily meeting maximum graphics requirements and delivering an impressive experience on the tablet’s Ultra Retina XDR display.

In the demo, I had the chance to play Assassin’s Creed Mirage above New iPad Airand its performance makes me rethink the iPad as an ultraportable gaming device. Additionally, third-party controllers like Backbone One Controller for iPhone, turning it into a handy and useful handheld device.

On the MacBook, performance is equally impressive, even with non-native titles. Emulating Windows-only games on macOS has come a long way in recent years, with many titles performing essentially the same as if they were optimized for macOS. For example, I played the beloved Control — a Windows-only title — on a MacBook. The game isn’t 100% perfect, but it’s better than I expected — and that opens the door to a lot of possibilities.

3. Game Converter Kit Will Open the Door

I’m traditionally an avid PC gamer, but I can’t help but notice how well these games play on Apple devices and how the push to add new titles is catching on. Additionally, it seems like Apple wants to bridge the gap between the number of native games on macOS by creating the Game Porting Toolkit.

The Game Porting Toolkit (GPTK) uses Apple’s Windows emulator, Wine, with D3DMetal to support DirectX 11 and 12. The toolkit is a standardized resource that allows game developers to create Apple-compatible versions of their products, emphasizing cross-platform compatibility with a unified gaming platform. This portability means that if a developer creates a MacOS-compatible version of their game, they have essentially created a version for iOS or iPadOS as well, since they share the same hardware and software technology.

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This compatibility makes it easy for developers to create cross-platform versions of their games. I wouldn’t be surprised to see savvy fans doing the same for long-defunct older games, or to see them creating homebrews of obscure titles.

Game Mode will be available on iPhone via Update iOS 18 This fall, and the iPad comes out iPadOS 18 operating system at the same time. Improvements to Game Mode and additional games will also be rolling out with macOS Sequoia this fall.