Block Blast+ arrives on Apple Arcade without ads or in-app purchases

Block Blast+ has joined Apple Arcade, turning one of the world's largest mobile puzzle games into a subscription title without advertising or in-app purchases. Hungry Studio's grid-clearing game became one of mobile gaming's biggest download stories, reportedly generating hundreds of millions of installs and enormous daily engagement through its conventional free, ad-supported edition. The Arcade release is therefore more significant than another small catalogue addition.

It tests whether an audience accustomed to playing Block Blast for free sees value in a cleaner version bundled into Apple's gaming subscription. Apple Arcade's model removes many of the monetization interruptions associated with mainstream casual games, which can make simple puzzle experiences feel dramatically different. Block Blast+ joins several other September 3 additions including Art of Fauna: Cozy Puzzles+, NFL Retro Bowl '27, Coloring Games for Families+ and Let's Play Oink Games+.

For Apple, the acquisition of recognizable mobile hits helps Arcade feel less isolated from the broader App Store market. For Hungry Studio, it creates an additional revenue channel without disturbing the huge audience already using the original release.