ZOOKEEPER DX vs ArcEmu
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
ZOOKEEPER DX
Engage in a classic match-three puzzle game where you swap adjacent panels to line up three or more of the same color. Clear levels by catching a quota of animals, with multiple modes offering different challenges and scoring opportunities.
- Swap adjacent panels
- Match three or more animals
- Catch animals to clear levels
- Normal Mode
- Tokoton Mode (unlimited time)
- Score Attack Mode (3-minute challenge)
- Online multiplayer
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10 million people are playing! Zoo Keeper, the definitive action puzzle game finally available for iPhone/iPad/iPod touch! Aim for it! The Best Opp Zookeeper! [game description] This is a simple puzzle game with a simple rule: swap two panels next to each other, and line up three or more panels of the same color to make them disappear. Touch the animal you want to move and slide it in the direction of the animal you want to replace. If you line up 3 or more same animals vertically or horizontally, you can catch the animal. The level is cleared when a quota of animals are caught. [mode description] *Normal Mode Catch more than your quota of animals to clear all levels! *Tokoton Mode Level up with 100 animals! This is a challenging mode with unlimited time. *Score Attack Mode Try to score as many points as possible in a 3-minute challenge in Fever mode! You will receive a time extension when you score over 10,000 points and 100,000 points. *Play Zoo Keeper Online Play Zoo Keeper online for free! (Link to App Store "ZOOKEEPER BATTLE".) [ranking description] You can participate in the ranking by logging into Game Center and using Leaderboards. Compete with players around the world for high scores! [System Requirements] iOS 11 or later; iPhone 5s or later, iPad 5th generation or later, iPod touch 6th generation or later
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 rating: ArcEmu at 4.9 against ZOOKEEPER DX's 3.7. ArcEmu also leads on review sentiment (95% vs 60%) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 3 months). ZOOKEEPER DX's advantage is price ($0.99 vs $1.99) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 15.5). On ads, in-app purchases 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
ZOOKEEPER DX costs $0.99 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 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ArcEmu has 1.3K ratings behind it against 43, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 60% of ZOOKEEPER DX's written reviews are positive against 95% of ArcEmu's.
ZOOKEEPER DX ships an update every 3 months, ArcEmu fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | ZOOKEEPER DX | ArcEmu |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $0.99 — better | $1.99 |
| Rating | 3.7 (43 ratings) | 4.9 (1.3K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 60.3% of reviews | 94.6% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 43 | 1.3K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV, Apple Watch — better |
| Requires iOS | 11.0 — better | 15.5 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 206 MB | 172 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | KITERETSU INC. | Raffaele D'Amato |
Customer experience
ZOOKEEPER DX
ArcEmu
User reviews
ZOOKEEPER DX
From 43 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Fun and addictive gameplay
- 👍 Cute and charming visuals
- 👍 Great for passing time
- 👍 Nostalgic for DS players
- 🚀 Smooth performance on newer devices
Room to improve
- 🐛 Compatibility issues on older devices
- 🐛 Choppy animations and frame rate
- 🐛 Unresponsive controls
- 🐛 Difficulty ramps up too quickly
- 🐛 Partial screen cutoff on iPhone
ArcEmu
From 1.3K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Fully functional
- 🚀 Impressive emulation on Apple Watch
- 👍 Great emulator for both phone and watch
- 👍 Seamless save state transfer between devices
- 👍 Customizable controls and layout
Room to improve
- 🐛 Compatibility issues with some games
- 🐛 Audio quality problems on certain games
- 👎 Limited functionality on Apple Watch
- 👎 Difficult controls for action-heavy games on watch
Bugs and requests
ZOOKEEPER DX
Reported bugs
4 issues- Game crashes on launch for some users
- Leaderboards show impossible high scores
- Pause function can be exploited
- Inconsistent performance across devices
Requested features
5 requests- Add quest mode from DS version
- Include time attack and other game modes
- Allow disabling timer for casual play
- Implement local high scores with names
- Add colorblind accessibility options
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
ZOOKEEPER DX
No in-app purchases
ArcEmu
No in-app purchases









