About by PCalc vs ArcEmu
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
About by PCalc
Explore a whimsical 3D city filled with interactive elements and hidden surprises. This app began as a fun 'About' screen for a calculator and evolved into a playful exploration toy with driving and collectible elements.
- Interactive 3D city exploration
- Playable 3D icon
- Drive a car around the city
- Discover hidden areas like The Castle of the Panda King
- Supports gamepads and keyboards
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About by PCalc is the former About screen of our scientific calculator app PCalc. It was partially an excuse to learn how to program 3D graphics, but mainly I wanted to make the most fun About screen ever. It started just as a 3D icon that you could play with and throw bananas at, then there was a little car you could drive around, and soon there was a whole city to explore. It's kind of a toy, kind of a game, and kind of a window into my subconscious. Anyway, it got a little on the big side, so I decided to spin it out into its own app. Just explore and see what you can find, and be sure to visit The Castle of the Panda King! You can play using the on-screen joysticks, but it also supports gamepads and keyboards.
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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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
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: About by PCalc at none against ArcEmu's 10. ArcEmu's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 7 months) and ratings volume (1.3K vs 23). On price, review sentiment, ads and monetization model 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
Both are free to download. ArcEmu sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. About by PCalc asks for nothing beyond the download.
ArcEmu holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ArcEmu has 1.3K ratings behind it against 23, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 88% of About by PCalc's written reviews are positive against 95% of ArcEmu's.
About by PCalc ships an update every 7 months, ArcEmu every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | About by PCalc | ArcEmu |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (23 ratings) | 4.9 (1.3K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 88.2% of reviews | 94.6% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 23 | 1.3K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 7 months | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Vision Pro — better | iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Apple Watch |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 64 MB | 234 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | TLA Systems Ltd. | Raffaele D'Amato |
Customer experience
About by PCalc
ArcEmu
Bugs and requests
About by PCalc
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 moreShow fewer
- Add joystick/button support for Apple Watch
In-app purchases
About by PCalc
No in-app purchases
ArcEmu
- Unlock All (Upgrade 4)$0.99
- Game Boy Advance$0.99
- SNES$0.99
Show 7 moreShow fewer
- 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 About by PCalc free?
Is ArcEmu free?
Which has better reviews, About by PCalc or ArcEmu?
Do About by PCalc or ArcEmu have ads?
Which is updated more often, About by PCalc or ArcEmu?
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