PlayStation and SEGA Emulator for iPhone and Apple TV Coming to App Store [Updated]

[wbeasley]

So why did Apple finally allow emulators?

because EU forced changed to allow alt app stores in EU.

and most common thing people wanted to do but currently couldnt due to Apple policy, not any tech limit, was game emulators.

Apple probably decided it was hold the line and encourage some people to jump to alt app stores or relent, change policy and allow them, worldwide, to keep people using the official app store.

For all that chatter on here, most people were only excited about installing game emulators and pirated ROMs.
There was no money to be made for anyone. Or very little.

If someone gets their act together, perhaps some money can be made from legit purchasing old ROMs.

 

[MacBH928]

We've come full circle...

SJ 1999: "Our goal is to have the best game machine in the world..."

Mac users in 2024: 🤡

 

[scorpio vega]

Ooooh so they're not exactly the same, are they??

Lagdroid having a consistent ecosystem and regular updates the same as apple? 😂😂😂 lmao that’s hilarious.

Even lagdroid fans complain about google inconsistency and dropping of features and apps. Major complaints of the pixel is the crappy chip they used.

This is not from me. This is from actual users. My boss finally came to iOS recently from lagdroid and he finds it loads better after swearing by pixel and before that nexus

 

[Samplasion]

Lagdroid having a consistent ecosystem and regular updates the same as apple? 😂😂😂 lmao that’s hilarious.

Even lagdroid fans complain about google inconsistency and dropping of features and apps. Major complaints of the pixel is the crappy chip they used.

This is not from me. This is from actual users. My boss finally came to iOS recently from lagdroid and he finds it loads better after swearing by pixel and before that nexus

I'm obviously pointing out the logical incongruity of saying "Adding sideloading makes iOS exactly like Android" and "They're not even close" in the same breath. Pick one and stick with it or have your arguments be rightly ignored or mocked.

 

[AppleTO]

This won’t last long. Nintendo alone will get this all taken down soon. They always do, but they build their legal case and take their time before launching the strike!

How? These emulators do not contain any of Nintendo's intellectual property. Nothing of their's is being used.

 

[turbineseaplane]

So funny to see folks hand wringing about this ...

...while the rest of us are simply LOVING playing emulated games on our iPhones & iPads!



Got my old SFC30 out and I'm in heaven on GB/NES/SNES
For N64 I've been using a DualShock 4 -- which works wonderfully there

 

[scorpio vega]

I'm obviously pointing out the logical incongruity of saying "Adding sideloading makes iOS exactly like Android" and "They're not even close" in the same breath. Pick one and stick with it or have your arguments be rightly ignored or mocked.

I honestly don’t care about being “mocked” on a forum by some random stranger lol. Clearly you have a need to have a «gotcha moment and are trying to find it.

You’ve been replying me for days now. First about my opinion about emulators. Then about me “name callin an operating system by calling it lagdroid.

At this point I don’t think you even know what you’re arguing and I also don’t care enough because this entire convo is reductive

 

[turbineseaplane]

I also don’t care enough because this entire convo is reductive

Great -- let's move on and get back on topic

🤟

 

[lee647]

I hate to be THAT guy, but the GameCube is 20 years old (actually, 23) and the Wii is 18 years old. It doesn’t seem like it should be, but it is. (And while we’re at it, the iPhone itself turns 17 this year.)

Also, Delta supports the Nintendo DS, which is the same generation as the Wii (and the GBA is the same generation as the GameCube). I don’t think Apple actually would have a problem with the GameCube and Wii. 3DS might be pushing it (though, yes, it turns 13 this year) and currently supported consoles like the Switch (despite being 7 years old) are almost certainly verboten, but GameCube and Wii are probably both “retro” enough.

everything from the 90s/00s is retro ipods, cd players , DVDs its all retro now yes GameCube , xbox , ps2 is all retro and 3ds is getting there another few years damn getting old lol

 

[lee647]

cant wait to play all these systems on vision pro!

 

[AppleTO]

Well, despite prior resistance, I'll probably buy the next Apple TV for this.

 

[Ctrlos]

That’s what happens when you assume. I love when ppl try to claim I never owned android or I have only used cheap android.

1. I owned the very first android the g1.
2. I owned the first faux g and I was the biggest fan fangirl of the droid line
3. I’ve owned four nexus phones (the line before pixel)
4. The first four or five generations of the galaxy line.
5. Niche phones like the PlayStation android phone. I even owned the first dual screen phone way back in 2011 before foldables became mainstream.
6. I was a part of the 3d rage.

I was mainly an htc girl

I currently only on a galaxy z flip and a S22.

Not to mention my years of using lumia windows phone and webos devices. Not to mention dabbling with blackberry storm (terrible device).

Please don’t tell me what my experience is when I have used android Since 2008. About 60 different models (most high end) I can think I’ve owned at one point or another In the last 16 years.

It’s a terrible os and the nick name isn’t one I came up with. It is fitting though.

Any other comments from the peanut gallery?

How can you use top end devices like the S22 and Zflip and say Android lags?

 

[Ctrlos]

I think the biggest shock here is iOS taking emulators mainstream. Rom sites must be getting hammered which isn’t great for avoiding the Eye of Sauron Nintendo.

Emulators and ROMs have existed since the 1990s and Nintendo have never gone after the emulators themselves before, just the rom hosting sites. If you know where to delve they will generally always exist somewhere.

With any luck someone will chance a court trial and we might get a law change with regard to abandonware which if we are being honest hurts nobody. If there is no avenue for sale then no money is being lost.

 

[Princejb134]

This is awesome! IDK how efficient it will ultimately be on-device (heating and whatnot), but playing Smash Bros. Melee on my phone is a dream come true

I’m more excited to play on the Apple TV. So much wasted potential

 

[scorpio vega]

How can you use top end devices like the S22 and Zflip and say Android lags?

Because it does. It’s not anywhere as smooth as using iOS and I cringe anytime I have to use android.

 

[seanofthedead]

Because it does. It’s not anywhere as smooth as using iOS and I cringe anytime I have to use android.

Granted I’m on an iPhone now, but I haven’t used an Android phone that was laggy since the Galaxy S3 (that’s S “Three”, not a typo) fixed that issue.

 

[purplerainpurplerain]

I think the biggest shock here is iOS taking emulators mainstream. Rom sites must be getting hammered which isn’t great for avoiding the Eye of Sauron Nintendo.

Emulators and ROMs have existed since the 1990s and Nintendo have never gone after the emulators themselves before, just the rom hosting sites. If you know where to delve they will generally always exist somewhere.

With any luck someone will chance a court trial and we might get a law change with regard to abandonware which if we are being honest hurts nobody. If there is no avenue for sale then no money is being lost.

Those rom sites get taken down often and now with this new attention the remaining sites including archive.org will be receiving letters. That’s what happens when too many people get greedy and too many people want free stuff. You will now be left with torrents which is the worst and most unsecure option.

 

[v0lume4]

Legitimate question from a non-owner: how do you put files (ROMS in the context of this convo) onto the AppleTV? It’s a piece of cake with a Fire Stick, which is what I use currently.

 

[theOmega]

little interest like say the vinyl revival by Gen Z and Millenials...

But record labels make some money out of vinyl sales, and the content is the same just delivered in a different medium, these games are so different from modern gaming, I can’t see this blowing up and taking over Fortnite for the younger generations and millennials are on their 40s😭

 

[wbeasley]

But record labels make some money out of vinyl sales, and the content is the same just delivered in a different medium, these games are so different from modern gaming, I can’t see this blowing up and taking over Fortnite for the younger generations and millennials are on their 40s😭

Maybe.

But as much as graphic power has increased thousands of times, the immediate ability to just pick up an old game and dive in. No long intros. No cinematic additions. Pure and simple game play.

Sometimes a simple challenge can be infuriatingly difficult. And addictive.

Since I had a Gameboy (original), and still own the cartridge even though the device died, I tried Tetris on Delta.
It's plays just like the original that cost me hundreds of hours.

I found a ROM of Gyruus as well since it was something I remember from arcade days as difficult. If you played enough, you remembered the patterns and could wipe out swarms quickly. The controller on screen wasn't as good as a physical joystick. But it was fun to try it.

The fact they crammed so much in tiny amounts of memory is a testiment to those early coders.

 

[wbeasley]

Legitimate question from a non-owner: how do you put files (ROMS in the context of this convo) onto the AppleTV? It’s a piece of cake with a Fire Stick, which is what I use currently.

iCloud Files I would think.

 

[Ctrlos]

Those rom sites get taken down often and now with this new attention the remaining sites including archive.org will be receiving letters. That’s what happens when too many people get greedy and too many people want free stuff. You will now be left with torrents which is the worst and most unsecure option.

Actually Torrents are pretty secure if you know where to find the best links and more environmentally friendly than hosting things on a server!

I have a feeling things might be different this time. These things going mainstream normally forces a change in business model. For example Napster popularised the MP3 which later led to iTunes launching not long after. Apple were smart enough to spot a gap in the market and it changed the course of their entire company. I read an article in Rolling Stone at the time that stated that if the record companies took charge of Napster and charged 10c a download they would have made a fortune. Apple took the money and ran And users were left with the DMCA. Yay.

Roms are only illegal in that you are denying a sale of software, a grey area if it’s not for sale! Apple or some other bright spark could go to the publishers and licence all the old games they don’t care about (if they cared they’d be up for sale) and offer an ’iTunes for ROMs’. There is clearly a market for it and it wouldn’t need any changes to copyright laws. And just like MP3s these files are all universal in their emulator compatibility so you could have rival sites creating a competitive marketplace.

 

[MacBH928]

Delta lets you run an iTunes purchased ROM... so if anyone with rights put the in the store, you COULD buy them.
It would be a sensible monetize situation for those wanting a legal way to install.

I'm guessing most people just pirate ROMs.

Then again, most people pirated MP3s until Apple created the iTunes store.
It would be an interesting experiment to see if people would pay.

because EU forced changed to allow alt app stores in EU.

and most common thing people wanted to do but currently couldnt due to Apple policy, not any tech limit, was game emulators.

Apple probably decided it was hold the line and encourage some people to jump to alt app stores or relent, change policy and allow them, worldwide, to keep people using the official app store.

For all that chatter on here, most people were only excited about installing game emulators and pirated ROMs.
There was no money to be made for anyone. Or very little.

If someone gets their act together, perhaps some money can be made from legit purchasing old ROMs.

- Ah , explains it well. They allowed emulators so people will not flock to alt-stores. This was a main reason why I wanted an alt-store. They got me!

-Previously people have been showing that they are willing to pay if the price is right and its convenient (itunes store, Netflix) but not if they make it more difficult to make the legal purchase. For example, I wanted to purchase Max Payne but Steam tells me its not available in my region 🤷‍♂️

 

[Unregistered 4U]

Apple might as well stop with Apple Arcade, this stuff is going to blow it out of the water as a free app. No wonder they wanted to block emulators for so long.

I think they’re shrewdly using emulators to show the pain points of regulating iOS separately from the other OS’s (all of which have small marketshare in the EU region). Even though Delta is available worldwide, in the EU one can’t get it from the official App Store. One has to first buy the alternate App Store and THEN download it. Even after that, one then can’t use it on the iPad or the Mac or Apple Vision the way some folks are doing outside the region.

So, for those that want to avoid alternate stores AND download Delta, there’s no solution for folks in the EU.

 

[Unregistered 4U]

- Ah , explains it well. They allowed emulators so people will not flock to alt-stores. This was a main reason why I wanted an alt-store. They got me!

Delta is ONLY available by an alt-store, though. Can developers offer an app on an alt store and the official store in the EU at the same time?