Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gaming
  3. News

Apple iOS 14, iPadOS 14 deliver major gaming improvements

By

Apple’s recently announced iOS 14, macOS, iPadOS 14, and tvOS promise several major improvements that could make gaming on them feel more like playing on a console or PC.

Recommended Videos

Apple released new details about its upcoming operating systems this week, including a rash of new game-controller support functions, like button remapping, rumble, and motion controls. As long as developers code those features into their games, players with traditional game controllers will be able to swap their buttons, feel vibrations during gameplay, and more.

Related

On games that support Sony’s DualShock 4 controllers, developers can set the Lightbar at the top to change colors based on a character’s health. They can also let players use the DualShock 4’s touchpad for finger tracking.

That may not seem like much to console players who have had those features for years, but until now, features most players take for granted on console games haven’t been available to iOS, tvOS, or macOS players.

The updates are part of a broader set of gaming improvements Apple unveiled in this year’s software updates. A new Game Center makes it easier to find friends to play with and access leaderboards and achievements. Apple also said that it’s finally allowing Microsoft’s Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2 to work with iOS-based games. The company didn’t say, however, whether Sony and Microsoft controllers for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X will also work with the new operating systems.

In addition to console controller support, PC players will find a home on Apple’s iPad with dramatically improved keyboard and mouse functionality. Apple’s iPadOS already works with keyboard and mice, but the experience has been less than stellar. Players can’t hit multiple keys on a keyboard, for instance. And clicking with a mouse tends to be more trouble than it’s worth. Apple’s update aims at addressing that.

Apple unveiled its new operating systems at its first virtual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) on Monday. All of the updates will be available later this year as free downloads, but developers can start building the new functions into their games now. Check out our full rundown on all of Apple’s announcements at the event.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Don Reisinger
Don Reisinger
Don Reisinger is a freelance technology, video game, and entertainment journalist. He has been writing about the world of…
Could the Vision Pro replace your iPad? There’s just one problem
The front visor of the Vision Pro on display at an Apple Store.

In the time since it launched in early February, we’ve heard a lot about how Apple’s Vision Pro could replace some of the company’s other devices, especially the iPad. Now, prominent leaker Mark Gurman has joined the fray and lent weight to the idea of the headset becoming a tablet killer. But while that seems plausible, there’s one major problem with it.

Specifically, it’s the price. Because while Gurman’s Power On newsletter makes some good points about the Vision Pro’s strengths, it can’t get around the unavoidable obstacle that is the device’s $3,500 asking price. If the Vision Pro really is going to replace the iPad, a lot has to change first, especially given how wide of a range of prices the iPad line hits.
The iPad killer?

Read more
MacBooks could soon fall behind the iPad Pro in this important way
The iPad Pro (2022) sitting in the Magic Keyboard.

The dynamic balance between the Mac and the iPad may be about to shift again. Both the MacBook Air and iPad Pro will reportedly get updated this spring, boosting performance with the inclusion of the new M3 chip.

But a new report from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman indicates that a new "landscape Face ID camera" may be in the works for the iPad Pro, potentially taking away one of the main advantages that MacBooks have over iPads. With so much of work happening in video calls, the iPad Pro might become a far better laptop replacement in this new generation.
The dream experience

Read more
Get a free copy of Death Stranding for iOS when you buy this Backbone One controller
Sam Porter Bridges climbs a ladder in Death Stranding for iOS played on a limited edition Death Stranding Backbone One.

Mobile game controller maker Backbone is releasing a limited-edition version of its Backbone One controller themed around Kojima Productions' Death Stranding. If you pick one up, you'll get a free code for the iOS version of Death Stranding: Director's Cut, will launch alongside the controller next week.

Based on the second-gen USB-C Backbone One controller, this limited-edition controller is themed to the game. The grip on the controller features a beige see-through design reminiscent of the BB Pod from Death Stranding. The bridge of the controller features the logos of both Backbone and Kojima Productions. It's a simple design, yet one that's instantly recognizable as related to Death Stranding and appealing to those who like translucent gaming hardware.

Read more