Apple believes apps are the future of television, and those apps include games. With its new Apple TV, Apple made clear that gaming will play an important role in the app ecosystem, with an Apple TV exclusive game coming from a major development studio.
It's called Beat Sports, and it will be created by the developers at Harmonix. If that name sounds familiar, that's because Harmonix is the original developer of Guitar Hero and the creator of Rock Band. With its music game pedigree, perhaps it shouldn't be a surprise that its Apple TV exclusive title is a rhythm game.
However, Beat Sports is different from other Harmonix titles in that it's a motion-controlled game. That's right: Apple TV, with the power of the Siri Remote, allows for motion gaming not so different from the Nintendo Wii.
Players take control of a cutesy, baseball bat-wielding character to hit back balls at enemies to the beat of different pieces of music. The game will feature multiplayer as well. A developer from Harmonix took the stage for a live demo and the game's motion controls look to perform like a charm.
The Siri Remote appears to be an impressive piece of tech for gaming. Featuring Bluetooth 4.0, an accelerometer and gyroscope, motion gaming looks like it might make a big comeback when the Apple TV releases in October. Apple also announced that if you purchase a game in the app store on an iPad or iPhone, you will get it on the Apple TV as well. Play a game on your phone and the game's progress will be saved and can be later resumed on the Apple TV.
Exclusive games, motion controls, cloud saves and cross-buy are all features we've seen from video game companies like Sony and Nintendo — but it seems like Apple is looking to get a piece of the pie as well. If games like Beat Sports catch on, expect even more exclusive motion-controlled games to come to the Apple TV.
Check here for more news from Apple's September announcements.
