Comparison

Space Impact Watch vs ArcEmu

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

Head to head
About

Space Impact Watch

Relive classic retro arcade shooter memories on your wrist. This game offers eight classic levels with bosses, sharp graphics, and adjustable controls. Compete on a worldwide leaderboard and enjoy an infinite mode for endless alien-blasting action.

Highlights
  • Eight classic levels with bosses
  • Crispy sharp retro graphics
  • Adjustable gesture and Digital Crown controls
  • Three special weapons
  • Worldwide leaderboard
  • Infinite mode
Features
Read full description

THE LEGENDARY RETRO SHOOTER - ON YOUR WRIST, AND NOW ON IPHONE & IPAD! Remember gaming under the school desk on those bulky, indestructible old phones? Relive those moments - under the office desk, on your watch. And now also on your iPhone and iPad! Dive into the Space Impact world exactly as you remember it - with plenty of modern upgrades: - All eight old-school levels with bosses, exactly as you remember them. Put that muscle memory to good use. - Crisp, sharp graphics with the original retro sprites - without the ghosting of the old 84x48 displays. You can finally see what's happening on that tiny screen. - NEW: fully playable on iPhone and iPad. - Adjustable controls: gestures and the Digital Crown on the watch, on-screen buttons on iPhone and iPad. - Three special weapons - deeply satisfying to fire. - Worldwide Game Center leaderboard. Can you make the TOP 100? - Infinite mode: finished all the levels and want more? Blast alien invaders for as long as your skills hold out. - Butter-smooth movement and animations. Space awaits - on your wrist!

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

Space Impact Watch4 screens
ArcEmu4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: ArcEmu at Free against Space Impact Watch's $0.99. ArcEmu also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.3) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 15 months). Space Impact Watch's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10). On ads, device support and iOS requirement 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; Space Impact Watch costs $0.99 up front. ArcEmu sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Space Impact Watch asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

ArcEmu holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ArcEmu has 1.3K ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 74% of Space Impact Watch's written reviews are positive against 95% of ArcEmu's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Space Impact Watch ships an update every 15 months, ArcEmu every 2 weeks. Both last shipped on October 30, 2026.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Space Impact Watch versus ArcEmu: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSpace Impact WatchArcEmu
Price$0.99Free — better
Rating4.3 (6 ratings)4.9 (1.3K ratings) — better
Positive reviews73.7% of reviews94.6% of reviews — better
Number of ratings61.3K — better
Update frequencyEvery 15 monthsEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Apple Watch
Requires iOS15.6 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size11 MB234 MB
Age rating9+4+
DeveloperSmall Water s.r.o.Raffaele D'Amato

Customer experience

Space Impact Watch

All ratings6 ratings
Positive83.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative16.7%
Written reviews19 reviews
Positive73.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative26.3%

ArcEmu

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

Bugs and requests

Space Impact Watch

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

Space Impact Watch

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 Space Impact Watch free?
Space Impact Watch costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is ArcEmu free?
ArcEmu is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Space Impact Watch or ArcEmu?
ArcEmu is rated higher. Space Impact Watch averages 4.3 out of 5 from 6 ratings, while ArcEmu averages 4.9 from 1.3K ratings.
Do Space Impact Watch or ArcEmu have ads?
Neither Space Impact Watch nor ArcEmu shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Space Impact Watch or ArcEmu?
Space Impact Watch ships an update every 15 months, and ArcEmu every 2 weeks. Most recently, Space Impact Watch was updated on October 30, 2026 and ArcEmu on October 30, 2026.

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