Delta Game Emulator Now Available From App Store on iPhone

[bgillander]

what the #@$$%? why it is not available in EU store? Consumer choice my arse! I would have got it, but no, I will not use some crap, unverified outside store. Boooooooooooooo. Btw, have you seen their install instructions? lol good luck with that

Yes, when people promise choice, they seldom admit that it is often their choice, not yours.

 

[rmariboe]

To all the people living in areas without access to Delta: I created a US account way back to be able to get US only apps - it's a slight hassle to switch between stores, but updating apps works seamlessly (without switching) once you have them

 

[madeirabhoy]

It's not the EU decisions, it's a combination of Apples and the developers decisions, with both i don't agree!

it was the EU which insisted on 'choice' being allowed, that choice being to benefit the developer not the consumer.

 

[UliBaer]

it was the EU which insisted on 'choice' being allowed, that choice being to benefit the developer not the consumer.

Yes, but it was Apples decision, to maliciously separate the EU with special behavior from the rest of the world.

 

[mrochester]

Yes, but it was Apples decision, to maliciously separate the EU with special behavior from the rest of the world.

And it’s the developer of this app who is maliciously not putting their app in the App Store for the consumers who choose to shop there.

 

[nicolas_s]

If I spend a weekend in London, is there a way to download it without having to install that cr*p alternative store? Or is it complicated to bypass that?

 

[UliBaer]

And it’s the developer of this app who is maliciously not putting their app in the App Store for the consumers who choose to shop there.

That's exactly what i wrote there:

It's not the EU decisions, it's a combination of Apples and the developers decisions, with both i don't agree!

 

[turbineseaplane]

It’s on the list at the Patreon

Will Patreon contributions help get an iPad version on App Store?

I'm done with the 7 day AltStore hacks now that we have EMUs allowed on the main App Store

 

[iParis]

Do these support controllers?

Yep! I paired my Switch SNES controller and it was pretty easy to setup. Using it to play Pokemon HeartGold. Let’s you customize the button mapping too.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Yep! I paired my Switch SNES controller and it was pretty easy to setup. Using it to play Pokemon HeartGold. Let’s you customize the button mapping too.

May I ask you -- how does that controller show up to Delta?

As a Switch Pro? Something else?

Flawless or little issues with it?

 

[maxoakland]

Apple only removed one emulator, and that was because the dev admitted to ripping off another app’s code. This is here to stay. Try and keep up.

They removed that one and an NES one

 

[Samplasion]

They removed that one and an NES one

The NES emulator was pulled after scaremongers here on MR convinced the dev that Nintendo's lawyers were coming after them

 

[Jensend]

False.

Developers operating under the alternative business terms for iOS apps in the EU will have the option to distribute their iOS apps from the App Store and/or alternative app marketplaces.

“And/or”

Devs can release on both. Apple isn’t to blame, the dev is.

Why do people keep posting this blatantly incorrect information.

Developers operating under the alternative business terms for iOS apps in the EU will have the option to distribute their iOS apps from the App Store and/or alternative app marketplaces.

For those writing "Not available in [one_of_the_EU_countries]", it won't!

The developer has made an explicit choice of releasing Delta only on the AltStore in EU.

While, for example, people from US will be able to install Delta on both iPhone and iPad, from the official Apple App Store, EU people can only install it from the Alt Store, and because the alternative stores are only available on iPhone and not iPad, EU users won't be able to install it on the iPad.

I'm pretty sure the developer will blame this on Apple, while he clearly made a choice of not giving a choice to the users.

Wanna charge money for Delta? Absolutely fine! Wanna make it 30% more expensive on App Store, to cover Apple fees? Fine as well. But give users a choice and don't force them to install it from an alt store, and most important don't slap iPad users in the face like this!

Wait, Delta would’ve never come to the App Store regardless? It was still in my App Store when I downloaded it yesterday. Is it never already?

My main issue is with developers that complained about the lack of choice and options in the App Store now paying forward a lack of choice and options to those customers that would like to get their software, even when it is obvious that Apple isn’t the one preventing them from being in the App Store. Sure it might be easier for the developer, but it isn’t easier for the customer, but this was never actually about the customer, and it was annoying listening to some present it like it was.

what the #@$$%? why it is not available in EU store? Consumer choice my arse! I would have got it, but no, I will not use some crap, unverified outside store. Boooooooooooooo. Btw, have you seen their install instructions? lol good luck with that

App developer trying to gatekeep.

And it’s the developer of this app who is maliciously not putting their app in the App Store for the consumers who choose to shop there.

Developers who release apps in alternate stores have to pay the CTF fee for apps in the Apple App Store. Apple's policies are the reason it isn't in Apple's App Store.

 

[Samplasion]

And it’s the developer of this app who is maliciously not putting their app in the App Store for the consumers who choose to shop there.

So you're saying it's malicious that Best Buy chooses not to sell in Target stores? (For the record, I'm not in the US so I can't verify the veridicality of this statement)

 

[Jensend]

You can't. It's one or the other.

Edit: Turns out this is false! You can distribute on the App Store and alternatives if you so choose.

But you still have to pay the 50 cents per install per year fee for apps released to the App Store, so effectively developers don't have that choice if they want to release a free app that has a chance of becoming very popular (like an emulator)

 

[kc9hzn]

I'm brand new to this app and to using an emulator on my iPhone. And I'm excited to play some old games! But ... can someone please help me understand where to find the ROMs? I'm sure there are a lot of places, but I assume the ROM has to be a special kind to work inside the Delta app on the iPhone. ???

The ROM files have to be somewhere in iCloud or on the local storage of your phone (or somewhere else with the proper type of storage provider extension, such as Dropbox). Delta has the ability to open files and keeps a reference to where those files are in its library. That’s actually one thing that’s always been good about Riley Testus’s emulation efforts on iOS, usually he makes a good effort at adopting new iOS frameworks and features (more so than, say, Google or Spotify).

As for where you find ROMs on the greater internet? I’ll leave that for you to figure out, I’ve been out of the emulation game for long enough that I don’t know anymore what sites are best. Besides, telling you would probably violate forum rules.

 

[mrochester]

So you're saying it's malicious that Best Buy chooses not to sell in Target stores? (For the record, I'm not in the US so I can't verify the veridicality of this statement)

The app developer shouldn’t be gatekeeping where the user buys their app from.

Gatekeeping is bad don’t you know. We need to regulate to prevent this behaviour.

 

[Jensend]

The app developer shouldn’t be gatekeeping where the user buys their app from.

Gatekeeping is bad don’t you know. We need to regulate to prevent this behaviour.

Apple sets a 50 cent per user per year fee for downloads in the EU Apple App Store when the same app is in an alternate app store in the EU, if a million or more users download it.
Over a million people have downloaded Delta. The developer would be out over $500,000 if they had also made it available for free in the official App Store.

Also, a software developer choosing which stores they sell their software in is in no way analogous to a hardware developer choosing which apps they will allow on their customers' devices.

You are either ignorant or arguing in bad faith.

 

[mrochester]

Apple sets a 50 cent per user per year fee for downloads in the EU Apple App Store when the same app is in an alternate app store in the EU, if a million or more users download it.
Over a million people have downloaded Delta. The developer would be out over $500,000 if they had also made it available for free in the official App Store.

Also, a software developer choosing which stores they sell their software in is in no way analogous to a hardware developer choosing which apps they will allow on their customers' devices.

You are either ignorant or arguing in bad faith.

Why doesn’t the developer just stick the app in the App Store only then? That way consumers get what they want and the developer doesn’t owe any money to Apple. Win win.

 

[Mailia]

it was the EU which insisted on 'choice' being allowed, that choice being to benefit the developer not the consumer.

Consumer options for installing Delta on their iPhone before the DMA:

• sideload it using AltServer + AltStore

Consumer options for installing Delta on their iPhone after the DMA:

• sideload it using AltServer + AltStore
• install it from AltServer PAL (EU)
• install it from the App Store (non-EU)

As far as I can see, consumers have more choice than ever for installing Delta and that they now have much better options than they did before.

 

[mrochester]

Consumer options for installing Delta on their iPhone before the DMA:

• sideload it using AltServer + AltStore

Consumer options for installing Delta on their iPhone after the DMA:

• sideload it using AltServer + AltStore
• install it from AltServer PAL (EU)
• install it from the App Store (non-EU)

As far as I can see, consumers have more choice than ever for installing Delta and that they now have much better options than they did before.

The DMA doesn’t dictate that Apple must allow emulators in the App Store, that’s an Apple decision.

App developers should be doing what is best for consumers, not what is best for the app developer. That means putting your apps on the App Store.

 

[Mailia]

The DMA doesn’t dictate that Apple must allow emulators in the App Store, that’s an Apple decision.

App developers should be doing what is best for consumers, not what is best for the app developer. That means putting your apps on the App Store.

And why did Apple wait until DMA was in enforcement to allow emulators in the App Store? They've had around 15 years before the DMA to allow emulators in the App Store, so why did it happen the month after DMA enforcement began?

The fact is, before the DMA, there was only a single way to install Delta on your iPhone. Now in a post-DMA world, there are three.

 

[Jensend]

Why doesn’t the developer just stick the app in the App Store only then? That way consumers get what they want and the developer doesn’t owe any money to Apple. Win win.

That's a fair question.

But Apple changed the rules just days before the developer was set to release his app store, so I don't blame him for not immediately changing his plans. It's obviously not a coincidence that Apple changed their rules about emulators just before alternate app stores were going to be available. Also, he also has a second app on his store, a clipboard manager, which is not allowed on the official App Store, so he presumably wants some attention for that as well.

 

[purplerainpurplerain]

And why did Apple wait until DMA was in enforcement to allow emulators in the App Store? They've had around 15 years before the DMA to allow emulators in the App Store, so why did it happen the month after DMA enforcement began?

Sounds like you were not around a decade or more ago.

Emulators were allowed many years ago but they could not load games from the file system. There was no file manager on iOS at the time anyway.

One Commodore 64 emulator had a built in App Store with a small selection of licensed games for $1.99 each. They pulled it from the store after a while because nobody cared.

People just pretend to care about emulators on smart phones. They fiddle with them for a while, roleplay that they are Che Guevara because they downloaded a rom from a pirate site, and then they go play a new game on a new console.

Watching grown up men cry about Nintendo emulators is peak late stage capitalism when people are no longer doing useful stuff with their life so they waste time baiting each other.

 

[Mailia]

Emulators were allowed many years ago but they could not load games from the file system. There was no file manager on iOS at the time anyway.

One Commodore 64 emulator had a built in App Store with a small selection of licensed games for $1.99 each. They pulled it from the store after a while because nobody cared.

That emulator that you're referring to was famously rejected from the App Store because it had the ability to launch other executable code, as in, what emulators usually do. They had to make sure that it can only run everything that was bundled with it and nothing else.

And while there was no Files app on iOS, you did have a file system and you could in fact add arbitrary files to applications using iTunes. Here's a 13-year-old tutorial on how to add PDF files to a PDF reader app:

So it would've been extremely possible to make a generic retro game emulator like Delta on iOS even back then, but obviously Apple did not allow it.