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I played Game Boy Advance games on my iPhone last night thanks to a new emulator called iGBA, which appears to be the first Game Boy Advance emulator on the App Store since Apple started allowing emulators<\/a> worldwide. The only trouble is, it doesn\u2019t look like iGBA is developer Mattia La Spina\u2019s own work.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Despite that, he says it\u2019s Apple he\u2019s frustrated with, not La Spina.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Testut also provided this statement to The Verge:<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n I\u2019ve been working with Apple to release AltStore as an alternative app marketplace for over a month now, and I\u2019m disappointed to see that they\u2019ve approved a knock-off of AltStore\u2019s flagship app Delta in that time. However, we\u2019re still planning to launch Delta ASAP, and we\u2019ll have more to share on that very soon.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n Here are some screenshots of GBA4iOS and iGBA for comparison, starting with iGBA.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n When reached for comment, La Spina did not explicitly confirm using Testut\u2019s code, but told The Verge<\/em> they \u201cdid not think the app would have so much repercussion, I am really sorry,\u201d and added that they have reached out to Testut via email.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The other issue with iGBA is that, according to its App Store listing<\/a>, it collects data that can be used to identify you, such as location data and identifiers. I\u2019d suggest reading developer Mattia La Spina\u2019s Github-hosted privacy policy<\/a> before diving in. The app didn\u2019t request location data permission when I loaded it, however, and I didn\u2019t see the in-app browser tracker consent form some Reddit users reported seeing<\/a>. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n I\u2019m aware of one other emulator, spotted by The Verge\u2019<\/em>s <\/em>Parker Orlotani<\/a>. It\u2019s a Commodore 64 emulator called Emu64 XL<\/a>. Here, I did see a consent request form populated with toggles for what seemed like miles of trackers. I did not attempt to find or play any Commodore 64 games with Emu64 XL and deleted the app.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Apple has tightly controlled the App Store since its inception. That control is breaking down now, with the EU\u2019s Digital Markets Act making the company permit other app stores<\/a> and sideloading on the iPhone. The company also faces a US Department of Justice lawsuit<\/a> that could force it to make similar concessions \u2014 which may be why the company started allowing emulators in the first place. Whatever the case, emulators being allowed feels like a win; it\u2019s just a shame the first apps to take advantage of that aren\u2019t quite up to snuff.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n