You need to pay a hefty sum of $19.99 per month to register your device, after which you can download any of the available emulators at no further cost.

The BuildStore uses the same method as above, but has far fewer revoked apps because it limits access to registered devices. Lastly, go to Settings > General > VPN & Device Management and tap the developer's name to Trust or Install that app. Tap Install, then wait for it to appear on your Home screen. Watch out for ads and follow the onscreen instructions for each site:Īfter downloading an emulator, you should see an iOS or iPadOS alert asking for permission to install it. Visit any of the following alternative App Stores using your iPhone or iPad and tap the Install or Open button next to the emulator you want. Still, if you want a quick download, without needing to pay anything, these sites are usually your best option. There's nothing you can do except cross your fingers and wait, or try a different website. You can't even use it if you already installed it. It can take anywhere from a couple of hours to several weeks for the developer to get a new certificate, during which time you can't install that emulator. This happens when Apple revokes the developer's 'enterprise certificate,' which is what lets you install apps outside of the App Store. You'll frequently find the emulator you want isn't available, or the one you downloaded last week doesn't work anymore. The problem is that these emulators stop working all the time, especially if you're always running the latest version of iOS. All you need to do is find the emulator you want on one of these alternative App Stores, download it, then tell your iPhone to trust that app's developer. We can't control if you choose to do this, but know that MakeUseOf does not condone this practice.Ĭountless websites make it quick, free, and easy to download emulators for your iPhone or iPad. You can then download them on your iPhone to open with your emulator of choice. All it takes is a quick Google search to find whatever ROMs you're looking for. That said, plenty of people do it anyway. No matter what, it's a crime to share a ROM with anyone else. However, Nintendo has previously stated that using ROMs of its games for any reason is against the law.

If you already own a game, in some cases, you can make a ROM version of it for personal use. While emulators are open source, making them free and legal to use, ROMs are a little more complicated. You can use the same ROM with multiple emulators, as long as the original game worked with the console you're emulating. A ROM is the software version of a video game. You also need a ROM for the game you want to play. If you want to play a Nintendo DS game on your iPhone, for example, you need to install a Nintendo DS emulator. An emulator is a piece of software that mimics a computer system, like an old video games console.

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