Comparison

Tile Slider vs ArcEmu

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

Head to head
About

Tile Slider

Engage in a timed sliding tile puzzle challenge with adjustable difficulty. Customize your game with numbered tiles or personal photos, and even flip pieces for added complexity. Enjoy a leisurely pace by disabling the timer or play a quick game on your Apple Watch.

Highlights
  • Multiple difficulty levels
  • Use custom photos as tiles
  • Flip pieces for extra challenge
  • Optional timer for relaxed play
  • Apple Watch compatibility
Features
Read full description

Race against the clock to complete a sliding tile puzzle. • Five difficulty levels/puzzle sizes, suitable for all ages and skill levels (larger sizes require an in-app purchase). • Play with classic numbered tiles, or use images from your camera/photo library. • For an extra challenge, enable the Flip Pieces setting so pieces can be flipped over. • Turn off the timer for a more leisurely game! • Play a 3×3 puzzle on Apple Watch. Tile Slider is available for iOS and Mac. It is free to download and play 3×3 and 4×4 puzzles. A single in-app purchase unlocks 5×5, 6×6 and 7×7 puzzles on both platforms. For more information see https://hacknicity.com/tileslider or email me at support@hacknicity.com

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

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

Tile Slider4 screens
ArcEmu4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Tile Slider at Free against ArcEmu's $1.99. Tile Slider also leads on iOS requirement (11.0 vs 15.5). ArcEmu's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 3 months). On rating, review sentiment, 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

Tile Slider is free to download; ArcEmu costs $1.99 up front. Tile Slider sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. ArcEmu asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Tile Slider against 4.9 for ArcEmu. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ArcEmu has 1.3K ratings behind it against 233, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 98% of Tile Slider's written reviews are positive against 95% of ArcEmu's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Tile Slider ships an update every 3 months, ArcEmu every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Tile Slider versus ArcEmu: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTile SliderArcEmu
PriceFree — better$1.99
Rating4.8 (233 ratings)4.9 (1.3K ratings) — better
Positive reviews97.6% of reviews — better94.5% of reviews
Number of ratings2331.3K — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV, Apple Watch
Requires iOS11.0 — better15.5
Further details — not scored
Size2 MB172 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGeoff HackworthRaffaele D'Amato

Customer experience

Tile Slider

All ratings228 ratings
Positive95.2%
Neutral2.2%
Negative2.6%
Written reviews42 reviews
Positive97.6%
Neutral2.4%
Negative0.0%

ArcEmu

All ratings1,304 ratings
Positive98.2%
Neutral0.8%
Negative1.0%
Written reviews531 reviews
Positive94.5%
Neutral2.8%
Negative2.6%

User reviews

Tile Slider

From 233 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Simple and straightforward gameplay
  • 👍 No annoying ads (in basic version)
  • 👍 Nostalgic feel, like childhood toys
  • 👍 Can use own photos for puzzles
  • 👍 Addictive and challenging

Room to improve

  • 👎 Basic version limited in tile count
  • 👎 Requires payment to increase tile count
  • 👎 Tiles slide slowly, requires multiple swipes
  • 👎 Cannot move a whole row at once
  • 👎 UI is a bit drab

ArcEmu

From 1.3K App Store ratings

What 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

Tile Slider

Reported bugs

1 issue
  • Game Center leader board shows impossible times for easy mode

Requested features

5 requests
  • Make highlighted correct spot toggle-able
  • Remove hard mode and crazy mode
  • Remove flip tile
  • Fix Game Center leader board (easy mode solve time)
  • Allow single taps to move tiles

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

1 purchases

Tile Slider

One-time1
  • Upgrade to Full Version$1.99
None

ArcEmu

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Tile Slider free?
Tile Slider is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ArcEmu free?
ArcEmu costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Tile Slider or ArcEmu?
ArcEmu is rated higher. Tile Slider averages 4.8 out of 5 from 233 ratings, while ArcEmu averages 4.9 from 1.3K ratings.
Do Tile Slider or ArcEmu have ads?
Neither Tile Slider nor ArcEmu shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Tile Slider or ArcEmu?
Tile Slider ships an update every 3 months, and ArcEmu every 2 weeks. Most recently, Tile Slider was updated on October 21, 2026 and ArcEmu on October 25, 2026.

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