The free Delta game emulator for iPhone is available directly on the Apple App Store

The app represents the first significant, officially approved game emulator for the iPhone since Apple started allowing it, with extensive console emulation from the original Nintendo Entertainment System to the Nintendo 64 (and even the Sega Genesis, when you want to play those Nintendo games.no).

said Delta developer Riley Testot the edge Emailed that the app is identical to the version that debuted with AltStore PAL. The app features on-screen buttons that change their layout and appearance to match whatever system you're emulating.

It supports Bluetooth controllers like the Xbox One Series S or PS5 controllers, too, and the app lets you customize their layout or assign additional buttons to things like quick save states (basically allowing you to pause the game whenever you want and load it from that point). later) or fast-forward through an old game's unskippable cutscenes or the endless stream of startup logos.

Delta also works with some of Nintendo's more exotic input methods, like the in-game gyroscope WarioWare: Twisted! Or microphone controls in Nintendo DS games like Phoenix Wright: Ace Lawyer (“objection!”).

Delta has other touches too, like automatically getting a box art for your games and the ability to customize that graphic using the built-in database or your own custom images, and users can import controller skins or create their own. It is too supports Multiplayer for NES, SNES, and N64 (up to four players) plus AirPlay.

There are a few other emulators that outperform Delta, including one called iGBA that directly copied Testut's GBA4iOS code and an NES emulator called Bimmy. Both were short-lived, though, as Apple removed iGBA due to spam and violations of App Store and copyright rules, and developer Bimmy got cold feet in light of Nintendo's recent crackdown on emulators.

It is worth noting that Testut is not new. Released Delta version 1.0 in 2019 alongside the original AltStore jailbreak alternative. This means the app has already gone through five years of feature and bug fix iterations, so it's likely to be one of the best emulation experiences on the iPhone for a while.

Updated April 17, 2024 at 12:45 PM ET: Updated to reflect that Delta is now available on the App Store.