Emulator

How to install MAME ROMs on a non-jailbroken device with Gridlee

Mike Schnier ∙ Updated January 22, 2018

As we reported on Saturday, Gridlee is a freeware arcade game from 1982 which was re-released on the iTunes App Store by David Loureiro. This would have been unremarkable, if Gridlee was a straight port from the source code and if it wasn't actually powered by an up-to-date and fully featured version of MAME4iOS Reloaded.

This means if you have a program capable of tunneling into the iOS file-system through USB, you can once again have a working version of MAME on a non-jailbroken device, complete with your own ROM images. As I can't think of anyone who would legitimately want to play Gridlee on an iPad, this was likely an intentional attempt to sneak the emulator back into the App Store, so we're guessing Apple won't be hosting the file for too long. Grab it while you can...

MAME emulator ‘Gridlee’ pops up in the App Store

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 22, 2018

Good news old school gamers. Word has started spreading this afternoon that a MAME emulator has made its way into the App Store. It's called Gridlee, named after an old arcade game that never made it to market, and it's based on the MAME4iOS platform.

The app fronts as just a port of the aforementioned Gridlee arcade game. But similar to the iMAME app we saw pop up a little over a year ago, you can add your own MAME ROMs to the app's subdirectory, turning it into a fully functional emulator...

Joypad Legacy turns your iPhone into a retro game controller for Mac and PC

Mike Schnier ∙ Updated February 23, 2018

Want to play retro-style games on your Mac or PC, but don't have a controller handy? While we wouldn't recommend using touch screen controls for every game, if you're in need of a quick retro fix you can download Joypad Legacy for your iPhone and quickly play retro games with 'classic' controls.

Joypad Legacy comes in two parts: the first part is the controller app for your iPhone that comes with layouts for NES, GBA, SNES, Genesis, and N64. You'll also need a second piece of software called Joypad Connect, running on your Mac or PC. You can use Joypad Connect to build profiles for the games and emulators you want to play with Joypad Legacy...

How to change button skins in Robert Broglia’s Emulators on iOS

Mike Schnier ∙ January 16, 2013

In the comments section of our article on Snes9x EX+'s release, one of our readers asked if there was a way to swap out the overlays for the on-screen buttons. I thought the question was interesting enough to answer in a full tutorial.

While there isn't a built-in option for skinning Snes9x EX+, nor are there any themes for the app currently available on Cydia, with a jailbroken iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, it's not too difficult to manually edit raster graphics used in any app. All you need to do is navigate to Snex9x EX+'s app directory and edit the overlay bitmap...

Robert Broglia releases ‘Snes9x EX+’ SNES emulator to Cydia

Mike Schnier ∙ Updated February 25, 2013

Robert Broglia, the developer behind the free Snes9x EX jailbreak app, and a number of other commercial '.emu' emulators for other consoles, just released Snes9x Ex+. Broglia's latest branch of his popular iOS Super Nintendo emulator is based off of Snes9x version 1.53, which is the most recent available build of the PC software.

The more recent v1.53 codebase should provide near-complete emulation for a number of games, especially those that make heavy use of mode7 scaling or the Super FX co-processor...

Play more than 100 old school Nintendo games in your iPhone’s browser

Cody Lee ∙ Updated October 11, 2018

Nintendo hasn't released games for its NES or Game Boy systems in more than 20 years, but that doesn't mean people have forgotten about them. Emulators for old Nintendo games exist on nearly every platform imaginable — even iOS.

Until now, however, your iOS device had to be jailbroken to play these older games. That, or you had to snatch up one of the handful of emulator apps that popped in the App Store before Apple pulled them. But we've found another way...

Apple Pulls iMAME Arcade Game Emulator From the App Store

Cody Lee ∙ December 23, 2011

No surprise here. It appears that Apple has just pulled iMAME, the arcade game emulator we told you about a few days ago, shortly after it surfaced in the App Store.

Judging by Apple's history with controversial apps, we figured it was only a matter of time before Apple removed it. Especially since iMAME can play illegally-downloaded arcade games...

How to Add Game ROMS to iMAME on Your iOS Device

Cody Lee ∙ December 23, 2011

Yesterday we told you about iMAME, the free iOS emulator that somehow managed to sneak its way into the App Store. The app allows users to play classic arcade games by loading ROM [read only memory] files onto an iOS device.

iMAME comes with 10 classic arcade games, but is compatible with thousands more if you can figure out how to transfer ROMs onto your handset (or iPad). We put together this easy tutorial to show you how to do sideload retro game ROMs for iMAME.

iMAME Arcade Game Emulator Slips into the App Store

Cody Lee ∙ Updated February 28, 2018

It would seem that the folks on Apple's crack team of app approvers have been slipping a bit lately. Just the other day the company approved iTether, an unlimited tethering application for the iPhone. And now this.

Word has been spreading like wildfire this afternoon that Apple has admitted iMAME into the App Store. So, what's the big deal? Well, we're pretty sure the ROM-playing emulator doesn't quite meet Apple's strict app guidelines...

iEmu is the Best iOS Emulator Around

Guest Author ∙ Updated January 24, 2016

There are a lot of Kickstarter projects out there, and this is by far one of the best. iEmu is a project started by Chris Wade, who also happens to be jailbreak developer. Apple currently provides an iDevice simulator to developers, but it is lacking in a lot of areas, including only being able to run apps developed by the developer that's testing.

iEmu is an emulator that can emulate any iDevice, including the Apple TV. What makes iEmu so special is that it is cross-platform. This includes the Mac, PC, iOS, and even Android...

Jailbreak App iMAME4All Adds iCade Support

Cody Lee ∙ July 12, 2011

Remember when we told you about the iCade? The retro iPad accessory lets you play select iOS games via a set of arcade-style controls, and its SDK just became available for 3rd party development. It looks like the jailbreak community struck first.

Engadget is reporting that the popular Cydia app known as iMAME4All was just updated to support the new tablet accessory. iMAME4All is an emulator that plays hundreds of retro titles, so needless to say it would be an awesome fit for the iCade...

Nostalgy: iPhone Runs Einstein Newton Emulator

Sébastien Page ∙ September 15, 2010

This video should bring up lots of memories to our older readers. TUAW found some footage of an Einstein Newton emulator running on what seems to be an iPhone 3G or 3GS. The thing is painfully slow but the developer said he'll be working on it.

I love seeing those kind of useless hacks. I mean, realistically, no one will ever use that but it's just great some people have the passion and the skills to make it happen. Video after the jump.