Over a decade ago, with the launch of the of the Apple TV HD and the first version of tvOS, Apple set off on a rather unsuccessful journey to turn the Apple TV into a gaming platform. The efforts have largely died off, but I think this year could potentially mark the beginning of a renaissance, if Apple wanted to. Let’s outline it.
The history of Apple TV gaming
You might not remember this since it was over 10 years ago, but Apple had a massive gaming push for the Apple TV. It started with the previous Siri Remote design with a baked in gyroscope and accelerometer, which brought many iOS games like Crossy Road and Jetpack Joyride.
Then, a year later, after a massive back and forth with developers, Apple finally allowed MFi game controllers as a primary interface on tvOS, eventually bringing Minecraft to the Apple TV. It didn’t perform well, but it was there. It’s worth noting that at the time, the Apple TV only had an A8 chip.
Skip forward a couple years to 2019. Apple Arcade launches and Apple allows Xbox and PlayStation controllers to natively pair to Apple TV. There’s still two key limitations with gaming on tvOS: for one, apps had to adhere to a strict 4GB bundle size, and the Apple TV was still powered by a measly A10X chip.
