If you’re an iOS 13.1 beta user who’s been eagerly awaiting the arrival of Arcade, it looks like you may be able to pop the hood on Apple’s subscription gaming service a full three days ahead of its official launch date.
The service began rolling out early to some users on Monday, according to multiple reports. Gizmodo was able to verify that Arcade was available as a new tab in the App Store on two devices running a beta version of iOS 13, replacing a tab previously reserved for Updates (those appear to now be nested under the user Account tab, that little round icon in the upper-righthand corner of of the App Store).
Apple confirmed to Gizmodo by email on Monday that all iOS 13.1 beta users now have access to Arcade.
From the Arcade tab, Apple prompts you to begin a free one-month trial before it begins charging the $4.99 per month subscription fee. (If you’re not interested in paying Apple five bones every month to access its games, make sure you cancel your automatic renewal in Subscriptions so that you won’t be charged when your trial ends.)
After activating, you’ll have access to dozens of brand new games, including a new version of Frogger, LEGO Brawls, Skate City, Sayonara Wild Hearts, and more. Arcade—which Gizmodo Senior Reviews Editor Alex Cranz says is pretty damn great and probably worth its $5 monthly price tag—will be ad-free and available for offline play on iPhones, iPads, Apple TVs, or Macs.
If you aren’t running a beta version of the latest iOS, don’t stress. Arcade will officially launch in the App Store on September 19. You’ll likely have to do an update to see it, but we won’t know for sure until Thursday.
Added comment from Apple.