Cape Town-based game developers, Free Lives, have successfully loaded their first game, Cricket Through the Ages, on Apple Arcade and more than anything, it is proudly South African.
How to play Cricket Through the Ages
As reported by Gadget, Cricket Through the Ages is a sports game with a twist.
Users are offered a cool way to enjoy the game of cricket, mixed with a bit of human history.
The game is a totally out-of-the-box history lesson on how the game of cricket was discovered.
Set in single and multiplayer mode, users get to play a game of cricket in a quirky way. In one era, the bowler will field an apple to a batsman holding a sword.
In another, it will be a rock thrown at a club-wielding batsman.
How to pitch games on Apple Arcade
Apple Arcade, a flagship service offered by the mobile tech giant, is a new gaming platform.
More than anything, it has gotten praise for opening up channels for independent gaming developers to pitch their work for inclusion in the service that has already garnered millions of subscribers since it launched in September.
The service only hosts games that are not published on any other platform, for a monthly fee of R73.12 ($4.99). Game developers can pitch their work on Apple Developer’s interface.
Profits are often determined by the length of time a user stays on the game. However, in some instances, Apple Arcade pays developers upfront for development.
For Free Lives founder, Evan Greenwood, getting spotted in a platform this big is certainly a win for South Africa’s developing gaming industry.
“Most games-related conferences – where developers get the opportunity to show their work and tap into global networks – are hosted in the US and Europe, which are difficult to access.
“We’ll certainly be encouraging local developers to pitch their work to Apple Arcade in the future, and we hope to see Apple’s continuing support for independent games,” he said.