Asteroid Commando vs ArcEmu
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
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.
- 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
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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
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.
- Game Boy, GBC, GBA emulation
- Multiplayer support
- Cheat codes
- Customizable on-screen controls
- Save State sharing
- iCloud support
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ArcEmu brings retro game emulation to Apple Watch. It also works on iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV, delivering a seamless gaming experience across your Apple devices. Supported Consoles - Game Boy (.gb) - Game Boy Color (.gbc) - Game Boy Advance (.gba) - Pokémon Mini (.min) - Nintendo Entertainment System (.nes) - Super Nintendo Entertainment System (.sfc and .smc) - Atari 2600 (.a26 and .bin) Main Features - Accurate, high-performance emulation powered by the mGBA and Ares cores - Game Link Cable support with online multiplayer for up to four players* - Cheat-code support with a built-in database of popular codes** - Frame-independent emulation at 30 or 60 FPS - Multi-touch and Digital Crown support on Apple Watch - Support for all screen orientations on iPhone and iPad - Precise, thoughtfully designed on-screen controls - Customizable control position and transparency on iPhone and iPad - Fast-forward at 2×, 4×, or maximum speed - Slow motion at 0.5× speed - Touch-based light gun controls for NES and SNES - Custom color palettes for Game Boy games - Button hold/sustain feature - Accelerometer support - Gyroscope support on iPhone and iPad, with Digital Crown input on Apple Watch - Haptic feedback on iPhone - Game controller support with customizable button mappings - ZIP archive support - Automatic saving - Save-state sharing between devices - iCloud support for ROMs and save states - ROM sharing through iCloud using share codes - Support for Apple Watch devices configured with Family Setup - ROM sorting and search 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. You can import compatible ROM files from your iPhone and store them in iCloud. Your Apple Watch can then download them directly from iCloud. On an Apple Watch configured with Family Setup, ROMs can be downloaded from iCloud using share codes. Games Featured in the Screenshots - Acorn Grove: https://gibbongl.itch.io/acorn-grove - Anguna: https://gauauu.itch.io/anguna - Hauntsfield: https://alliemackie.itch.io/hauntsfield - µCity Advance: https://skylyrac.itch.io/ucity-advance * Requires a Game Center account. ** Cheat codes may cause unexpected behavior or affect game stability and save data. ArcEmu is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Nintendo. Nintendo and the names of its game systems are trademarks of Nintendo Co., Ltd.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: ArcEmu at 95% against Asteroid Commando's 38%. ArcEmu also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.0) and monetization model (free vs paid). Asteroid Commando's advantage is chart position (#190 vs unranked) and iOS requirement (12.1 vs 15.5). On price, ads, in-app purchases 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
Asteroid Commando costs $1.99 and ArcEmu $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
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.
Asteroid Commando ships an update every 6 weeks, ArcEmu fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 20, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Asteroid Commando | ArcEmu |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1.99 | $1.99 |
| Rating | 4.0 (134 ratings) | 4.9 (1.3K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 37.5% of reviews | 94.6% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 134 | 1.3K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Best chart rank | #190 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV, Apple Watch — better |
| Requires iOS | 12.1 — better | 15.5 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 40 MB | 172 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Red Sprite Studios | Raffaele D'Amato |
Customer experience
Asteroid Commando
ArcEmu
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
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- Add joystick/button support for Apple Watch
In-app purchases
Asteroid Commando
No in-app purchases
ArcEmu
No in-app purchases









