Apple Has No Plans for Dedicated iOS Gaming Controller - MacRumorsOpen MenuShow RoundupsShow Forums menuVisit ForumsOpen Sidebar
Skip to Content

Apple Has No Plans for Dedicated iOS Gaming Controller

app_store_games_bannerFollowing today's rumor that Apple was quietly polling developers at this week's Game Developers Conference about support for a forthcoming gaming controller for iOS devices, the ever-reliable Jim Dalrymple has quickly quashed that report.

As usual, Dalrymple provides no additional comment beyond a simple "Nope", but his selective quoting of the source material suggests that he is denying any current plans for an Apple-branded controller.

"Long rumoured – and hoped for – GDC 2013 has finally provided confirmation that Apple will release its own dedicated game controller."

Nope.

Dalrymple has solid connections at Apple and has on numerous occasions and with 100% accuracy either confirmed or denied specific rumors. Prior to today, his most recent such statement came last month when he nixed a claim of a television-related Apple media event scheduled Apple for this month.

Popular Stories

iPhone 18 Pro Deep Red Feature

iPhone 18 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features

Wednesday March 18, 2026 7:39 am PDT by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are not expected to launch for another six months or so, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. It was initially reported that the iPhone 18 Pro models would have fully under-screen Face ID, with only a front camera visible in the top-left corner of the screen. However, the latest rumors indicate that only one Face ID component...
ios 26 4 yellow

Here Are Apple's Release Notes for iOS 26.4

Wednesday March 18, 2026 11:56 am PDT by
Apple provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate versions of iOS 26.4 and iPadOS 26.4, which means we're going to see a public launch as soon as next week. The RC versions of the software include Apple's official release notes, giving us final details on what's included in the update. Apple Music - Playlist Playground (beta) generates a playlist from your...
imac video apple feature

Apple Released Yet Another New Product Today

Friday March 20, 2026 2:39 pm PDT by
Apple has unveiled a whopping nine new products so far this March, including an iPhone 17e, iPad Air models with the M4 chip, MacBook Air models with the M5 chip, MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, the all-new MacBook Neo, an updated Studio Display, a higher-end Studio Display XDR, AirPods Max 2, and Nike Powerbeats Pro 2. iPhone 17e features the same overall design as the...

Top Rated Comments

169 months ago
Judging from typical Apple trends, It'll probably be a one button controller anyways if it did ever happen.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WildCowboy Avatar
169 months ago
I'd probably be more inclined to trust him than an "analyst" any day.

Only "probably"?
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
r2shyyou Avatar
169 months ago
Judging from typical Apple trends, It'll probably be a one button controller anyways if it did ever happen.
You mean like this? :D

Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iParis Avatar
169 months ago
I'd probably be more inclined to trust him than an "analyst" any day.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TimUSCA Avatar
169 months ago
Not sure why anyone would buy into this anyway. Apple has always said that the iPhone is about touch... releasing a game controller not only reverses their trends, but it also complicates things by adding apps into the App Store that require an accessory.

Apple will never do this.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
169 months ago
A Joypad made by Apple would suck, they can't even make a decent mouse! a far better idea would be to incorporate BT drivers in iOS then we could have the option of using PS3 pads etc.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Related Apple News: Culture | Opinion | Reviews | Technology | Entertainment