Apple acquires videogame studio behind hit Apple Arcade title

1 month ago 2

Apple has just made a very interesting acquisition: per Digital Trends, the company has acquired its first ever videogame studio. RAC7, the two-person studio behind Apple Arcade hit Sneaky Sasquatch, has been acquired by Apple.

RAC7’s two-person team joins Apple in ‘unique’ acquisition

Apple Arcade is home to a variety of titles from big and small game studios. But now RAC7, the small company behind Sneaky Sasquatch, has joined Apple.

Sneaky Sasquatch is an Apple Arcade Game of the Year winner, and launched exclusively on the service back in 2019.

Now its team is officially part of Apple.

Per the Digital Trends article, here’s Apple’s statement:

“We love Sneaky Sasquatch and are excited that the 2-person RAC7 team has joined Apple to continue their work on it with us,” an Apple spokesperson tells Digital Trends. “We will continue to deliver a great experience for Apple Arcade players with hundreds of games from many of the best game developers in the world.”

It’s an extremely unusual move for Apple. Not only is this its first videogame studio acquisition, but as the statement implies, RAC7’s team has been acquired “to continue their work on” Sneaky Sasquatch.

Could other indie studios be acquired by Apple next as a way to bolster Apple Arcade?

It’s hard to say, but it seems Apple is signaling that this was a unique situation. Giovanni Colantonio writes:

The acquisition doesn’t necessarily signal the beginning of a new gaming strategy for the tech giant. Apple notes that the move is a unique circumstance, as it saw an opportunity to help the team grow its game more on Apple Arcade. It says that it will continue to work with third-party studios big and small to create games for the service.

Even if Apple doesn’t want other indies to get their hopes up, the precedent has nonetheless been set: if you’re a small studio who has a hit on Apple Arcade, it may just get you acquired by Apple.

Apple Arcade is available as a standalone service for $6.99/month or included in the Apple One bundle. It includes access to over 200 games with no ads or in-app purchases.