Comparison

Asteroid Commando vs ArcEmu

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Asteroid Commando

Pilot a ship through a retro arcade experience, blasting asteroids and collecting gems while battling alien pirates and avoiding mines. Enjoy classic vector graphics and power-ups across iPhone and Apple Watch.

Highlights
  • Vector graphics (modern or classic)
  • Power-ups (Shield, Triple Shot, Rapid Fire, Time Freeze)
  • Intuitive Crown controls for Apple Watch
  • Swipe controls for iPhone
  • Daily global rankings
  • Short burst gameplay
Features
Read full description

Asteroid Commando is a vector graphics arcade game for your iPhone and Apple Watch. Pilot your ship as you blast asteroids in search of priceless gems. Battle alien pirates and avoid deadly space mines! • Choose between Modern Tron inspired graphics or original arcade Vector graphics • Vector style asteroids, enemies and mines! • Power-ups include Shield, Triple Shot, Rapid Fire and Time Freeze! • Intuitive and simple controls using the Crown on the Watch! • Swipe to move on the iPhone! • Short burst gameplay is perfect for the Watch and iPhone! • Daily rank to see how you compare to the rest of the world! • Retro sound effects on the iPhone and Watch! • Play anywhere, anytime! • Runs at 60fps on the Watch! • Watch features stylish Complications! • Ability to invert Crown controls on the Watch! • TouchArcade Game of the Week! Relive the glory days of the arcade on your Apple Watch and iPhone. Thanks for playing -Johnno and Pete

About

ArcEmu

Experience retro gaming on your Apple Watch, iPhone, and iPad. This emulator supports Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance cartridges. Enjoy features like multiplayer, cheats, and customizable controls.

Highlights
  • Game Boy, GBC, GBA emulation
  • Multiplayer support
  • Cheat codes
  • Customizable on-screen controls
  • Save State sharing
  • iCloud support
Features
Read full description

Turn your Apple Watch into a retro game console. Play Game Boy, NES, SNES, Genesis, and more on your wrist, with multi-touch controls and the Digital Crown. ArcEmu also runs on iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV. ▸ SUPPORTED CONSOLES Included for free: - Game Boy - Game Boy Color - Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) Available through in-app purchases: - Game Boy Advance - Pokémon Mini - Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) - Atari 2600 - Sega Mega Drive / Genesis - Sega Master System - Sega Game Gear - Sega SG-1000 ▸ MULTIPLAYER AND LINK CABLE Play home-console games online and locally with friends, or link Game Boy and Game Boy Advance games over the internet. Game Link Cable supports up to four players in compatible games. Online play requires a Game Center account. ▸ SHARE ROMs WITH A CODE Import your ROMs on iPhone, keep them in iCloud, and download them directly to Apple Watch or Apple TV. Share them through iCloud using a code, including with an Apple Watch configured with Family Setup. ▸ SCREEN AND CONTROLS Move and resize the game screen, choose an LCD or CRT filter, and set up the controls the way you like them. On Apple Watch, use multi-touch controls, customize the control layout, and assign actions to the Digital Crown. On iPhone and iPad, adjust button positions and transparency, and play in any orientation. Connect a controller and customize its button mappings, or use a second controller on iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV. ArcEmu also supports iPhone Duo. ▸ MORE FEATURES - Accurate, high-performance emulation - Fast-forward at 2×, 4×, or maximum speed - Slow motion at 0.5× speed - Cheat codes with a built-in database of popular codes - Touch-based light gun controls for NES and SNES - Custom Game Boy color palettes - Button hold/sustain - Accelerometer support - Gyroscope support on iPhone and iPad, with Digital Crown input on Apple Watch - Haptic feedback on iPhone ▸ YOUR ROMs AND SAVES Keep your collection organized with per-console folders, sorting, and search. Import ROMs from ZIP and 7-Zip archives, use automatic saving, and share save states between devices. Both ROMs and save states can be stored in iCloud. ▸ APPLE WATCH COMPATIBILITY - Apple Watch Series 4 or later - Apple Watch SE or later - Apple Watch Ultra or later ArcEmu does not include any games or ROMs. ▸ GAMES FEATURED IN THE SCREENSHOTS - Acorn Grove: https://gibbongl.itch.io/acorn-grove - Big2Small: https://mdsteele.itch.io/big2small - Hauntsfield: https://alliemackie.itch.io/hauntsfield - µCity Advance: https://skylyrac.itch.io/ucity-advance Cheat codes may cause unexpected behavior or affect game stability and save data. ArcEmu is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Nintendo, Sega, or Atari. All trademarks belong to their respective owners.

Screenshots

Asteroid Commando4 screens
ArcEmu4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: ArcEmu at 95% against Asteroid Commando's 38%. ArcEmu also leads on price (Free vs $1.99) and rating (4.9 vs 4.0). Asteroid Commando's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10) and iOS requirement (12.1 vs 16.0). On ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

ArcEmu is free to download; Asteroid Commando costs $1.99 up front. ArcEmu sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Asteroid Commando asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

ArcEmu holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ArcEmu has 1.3K ratings behind it against 134, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 38% of Asteroid Commando's written reviews are positive against 95% of ArcEmu's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Asteroid Commando ships an update every 6 weeks, ArcEmu every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 2 level
Asteroid Commando versus ArcEmu: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAsteroid CommandoArcEmu
Price$1.99Free — better
Rating4.0 (134 ratings)4.9 (1.3K ratings) — better
Positive reviews37.5% of reviews94.6% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1341.3K — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Apple Watch
Requires iOS12.1 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size40 MB234 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRed Sprite StudiosRaffaele D'Amato

Customer experience

Asteroid Commando

All ratings134 ratings
Positive70.1%
Neutral11.2%
Negative18.7%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive37.5%
Neutral12.5%
Negative50.0%

ArcEmu

All ratings1,333 ratings
Positive98.3%
Neutral0.8%
Negative1.0%
Written reviews533 reviews
Positive94.6%
Neutral2.8%
Negative2.6%

Bugs and requests

Asteroid Commando

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

ArcEmu

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Occasional crashes
  • Graphical glitches with certain ROMs
  • Save data not transferring properly between devices

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add cheat/GameShark support
  • Improve volume controls
  • Implement fast forward/slow motion options
  • Allow multiple save slots per game
  • Improve Game Boy Color support
Show 1 more
  • Add joystick/button support for Apple Watch

In-app purchases

None

Asteroid Commando

No in-app purchases

10 purchases

ArcEmu

One-time10
  • Unlock All (Upgrade 4)$0.99
  • Game Boy Advance$0.99
  • SNES$0.99
Show 7 more
  • Pokémon Mini$0.99
  • Atari 2600$0.99
  • Mega Drive / Genesis$0.99
  • Game Gear$0.99
  • Master System$0.99
  • SG-1000$0.99
  • Unlock All (Upgrade 3)$1.99

Questions

Is Asteroid Commando free?
Asteroid Commando costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is ArcEmu free?
ArcEmu is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Asteroid Commando or ArcEmu?
ArcEmu is rated higher. Asteroid Commando averages 4.0 out of 5 from 134 ratings, while ArcEmu averages 4.9 from 1.3K ratings.
Do Asteroid Commando or ArcEmu have ads?
Neither Asteroid Commando nor ArcEmu shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Asteroid Commando or ArcEmu?
Asteroid Commando ships an update every 6 weeks, and ArcEmu every 2 weeks. Most recently, Asteroid Commando was updated on November 3, 2026 and ArcEmu on November 4, 2026.

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