iPhone is the best gaming smartphone in the world. Apple holds an unprecedented advantage in the gaming industry due to the vertical integration of hardware, software, and in-house chipset. It’s a known fact that developers prefer iOS over Android to release new games. You may have seen some exclusive and high-quality game titles launch for the iOS platform first. While the gaming experience is top-notch on the iPhone, it is ruined a bit due to the way Apple handles notifications and calls. And here is where our tips and tricks guide to play games on the iPhone comes in.
Android OEMs like Samsung, OnePlus, and Xiaomi offer a dedicated Gaming mode on their devices. When enabled, the Gaming mode helps the user to block calls, notifications and allows the Android phone to make the maximum out of the CPU. Unfortunately, Apple doesn’t provide any gaming mode on the iPhone. An incoming call takes up the whole screen while playing games like PUBG, Fortnite, etc. An accidental tap on the notification or the swipe down or swipe up gesture from the up or bottom takes you out of the game. But there are workarounds to these problems.
In this post, we will guide you through the best tips and tricks for an optimum experience while playing games on the iPhone. We will mention the ways to improve iPhone performance during gaming, the ability to automatically switch on Do Not Disturb, turn on Bluetooth, set the volume, and display to the highest level using Siri Shortcuts and many more. Let’s get started.
The Best Tips and Tricks for Playing Games on iPhone
1. Close Irrelevant Background Apps
Users of iPhone X or newer models may not see any difference in the gaming performance on the device. But you might notice sluggish or less than desirable gaming performance on the iPhone 7 or the older models.
You should close the unnecessary apps from the multitasking menu so that the CPU can allocate the maximum cores to the game you are playing. Double-click on the home button and open the multitasking menu. Swipe up and close the irrelevant apps from the menu.
A word of caution though. Closing apps from the multitasking menu will lead to their longer launch time. And it might impact the apps like Google Photos and OneDrive and pause the media uploading in the background.
2. Turn off Automatic Downloads in Background
Most of the games like PUBG, Fortnite, Call of Duty do require a constant internet connection to run smoothly. By default, iOS update the installed apps and games in the background. You should consider switching off the option.
Automatic apps update in the background consumes the bandwidth. If you are on a slow data connection then the practice might lead to a sluggish performance in the games. Open the Settings app on the iPhone, and navigate to Profile -> iTunes & App Store -> turn off Automatic Downloads for apps and app updates.
3. Stop Apps From Asking For Feedback
You might have noticed games asking for feedback and review right after playing it for a while. While I can understand why the game developers would want the feedback from the users, it’s not an experience a consumer usually appreciate. Apple allows you to turn off in-app ratings and reviews from the App Store settings.
Open the Settings app on the iPhone, and go to Profile -> iTunes & App Store and disable in-app ratings & reviews from the following menu. From now on, you won’t see those pop-ups asking for ratings in the game.
4. Automatically Turn on Do Not Disturb and Bluetooth in Games
There is a neat trick to automatically enable DND (Do Not Disturb) while playing games on the iPhone. If you are using headphones while gaming, then you can also automatically enable Bluetooth and set the volume at the highest level while opening a game on the iPhone. Siri Shortcuts lets you automate the entire process. Let’s set it up. First, you should configure Do Not Disturb settings on the device.
Step 1: Open the Settings app on the iPhone and navigate to Do Not Disturb menu.
Step 2: From the DND menu, select Always in the Silence option. Also, make sure that you don’t allow calls from anyone. Go to Allow Calls From and select No One.
Step 3: Now open Siri Shortcuts app on the iPhone and navigate to the Automation section.
Step 4: Tap on the ‘+’ button at the upper right corner and select Create Personal Automation.
Step 5: From the following menu, scroll down to the bottom and select the Open App option.
Step 6: The next screen will ask you to choose games for the Siri Shortcut. Tap Choose and select the relevant games.
Step 7: From the next screen, tap on Add action and search for Do Not Disturb in the upper menu. Add it to actions and set it on for the shortcut.
Step 8: Now tap on the ‘+’ icon and search for Bluetooth and add it to actions. Again tap on the ‘+’ icon and search for volume and set it to the desired level.
Step 9: Add another action for Brightness. Select ‘+’ and search for brightness and add it to actions.
Step 10: Now, select Next and turn off ask before running and hit done.
You have just created an automated Siri Shortcut. It will turn on DND (Do Not Disturb), enable Bluetooth, Set Brightness, and Volume to the desired level when you open any of the selected games on the iPhone. The DND mode will block all the calls and notifications. It’s highly customizable as well. At any point, you can remove the shortcut for Volume or Brightness by just tapping on the ‘x’ mark in the Siri Shortcuts edit menu.
Unfortunately, there is no way to automatically disable DND or reduce the display brightness or lower the volume after exiting the game on iPhone. You have to do it manually from the Control Centre. Now, let’s disable the notification panel and Control Centre while playing games on the iPhone.
5. Disable Notification Panel, Power Button, and Control Centre
We are going to use Guided Access on iPhone to disable the Notification panel and Control Centre. Guided Access keeps the iPhone in a single app and allows you to control which features are available. Follow the steps below to set and use Guided Access on iPhone.
Step 1: Open the Settings app on the iPhone.
Step 2: Navigate to Accessibility -> General -> Guided Access.
Step 3: Switch on Guided Access. From the Passcode Settings, add a passcode for Guided Access or use the Face ID.
Step 4: Set Never in Display Auto-Lock option. So that the display doesn’t get locked after a certain time in Guided Access mode.
Now open any game that you want to play. To start Guided Access, triple-click the power button and it will let you configure Guided Access. Select Options at the bottom left corner and disable side button as well as volume buttons. Hit Done and start Guided Access.
It will disable the home screen gesture, Control Centre, Notification panel, and even volume and power button while playing the game on iPhone. To disable Guided Access, double click the power button, and it will get you out of the Guided Access mode.
6. Reduce Graphics Settings for Improved Performance
While playing games for a long time, you might have noticed the iPhone getting hot or draining battery quickly. Games like PUBG provide an option to reduce the frame rate. This is also a useful option in games like PUBG or Fortnite if you play competitively online as lower graphical settings will allow you to get a higher frame rate.
For example, on PUBG, you can go to game Settings -> Graphics -> Frame Rate and change the settings to low.
7. Limit Game Usage With Screen Time Option
While I know you love gaming on the iPhone. You should put a time limit to play games throughout the day.
With the introduction of iOS 12, Apple announced Screen Time. It helps one keep a tab on their phone usage for the day and set the time limit for apps and games to control their addiction. Users can add fix hours to play games on the iPhone for a day.
Open the Settings app on the iPhone and navigate to Screen Time -> App Limits -> Add Limit. Here you will see the list of categories. Select Games and add a time limit for all the games or the individual ones.
Use the above-mentioned tricks on the iPhone and play games like a pro on the device. While you are at it, do let us know about your favorite trick from the bunch in the comments section below.
