Comparison

GRID™ Legends vs ArcEmu

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

Head to head
About

GRID™ Legends

Experience high-octane motorsport with stunning visuals and precise simulation handling. This edition includes all DLC, offering a complete racing experience with multiple disciplines, a live-action story mode, and extensive career and custom race options.

Highlights
  • High-octane motorsport simulation
  • All DLC included
  • Live-action story mode
  • Massive career mode
  • Customizable Race Creator
  • 10 racing disciplines
  • Touch, tilt, and gamepad support
Features
Read full description

READ BEFORE BUYING: Please expand this description and read the full list of supported devices below to confirm that your device is supported. High-octane motorsport. Wheel-to-wheel rivalries. Edge-of-your-seat action. GRID Legends delivers Codemasters’ unique blend of arcade racing and precise simulation handling that leaves the competition in the dust. GRID Legends: Deluxe Edition is complete with all DLC, and stacked with high-speed action from the starting grid to the chequered flag. === AMAZING MOTORSPORT ON MOBILE Striking visuals, a huge choice of vehicles and an exhilarating sensation of speed on your phone or tablet. TOUCH, TILT AND TOTAL GAMEPAD SUPPORT Seamlessly intuitive controls from the team that brought you GRID Autosport. 10 DISCIPLINES TO DOMINATE From prototype GTs and hypercars to trucks and open-wheelers; pit yourself against the pack or beat your best times in high-speed Circuit racing, Elimination events and Time Trials. LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION-PACKED The Live-action story mode "Driven to Glory" offers a unique ride through the twists and turns of the GRID World Series. RACE TO THE TOP Rise through the ranks in Legends’ massive career mode, or race your own way in the hugely customisable Race Creator mode. TUNED TO PERFECTION Comes fully loaded with all the DLC: Classic Car-Nage destruction derby, Drift and Endurance modes, added Career and Story events, and bonus cars and tracks. === We recommend playing GRID Legends: Deluxe Edition on iOS 17 or later. You need at least 11GB* of free space on your device, though we recommend having double this to avoid initial installation issues. Supported iPhones: • iPhone 12 Pro / 12 Pro Max • iPhone 13 Pro / 13 Pro Max • iPhone 14 and later Supported iPads: • iPad mini 7th generation (2024) • iPad Air models released since 2022 with an M1 chip or better • iPad Pro models released since 2021 with an M1 chip or better *Devices with 8GB of RAM or more can download and install HD Vehicle Textures. If you wish to use HD Vehicle Textures you will need 14GB of free space to install the game. • If you require assistance, please contact our support team at support@feralinteractive.com © 2025 Electronic Arts Inc. GRID and Codemasters are trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. Originally developed by Codemasters and published by Electronic Arts Inc. Developed for and published on iOS by Feral Interactive Ltd. iOS and the iOS logo are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. Feral and the Feral logo are trademarks of Feral Interactive Ltd. All other trademarks, logos and copyrights are property of their respective owners. All rights reserved.

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

GRID™ Legends4 screens
ArcEmu4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: ArcEmu at Free against GRID™ Legends's $14.99. ArcEmu also leads on review sentiment (95% vs 64%) and rating (4.9 vs 4.5). GRID™ Legends's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10) and chart position (#15 vs unranked). On ratings volume, update cadence, ads 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; GRID™ Legends costs $14.99 up front. ArcEmu sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. GRID™ Legends asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

ArcEmu holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 543 and 1.3K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 64% of GRID™ Legends's written reviews are positive against 95% of ArcEmu's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

GRID™ Legends ships an update every 4 weeks, ArcEmu every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and November 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
GRID™ Legends versus ArcEmu: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGRID™ LegendsArcEmu
Price$14.99Free — better
Rating4.5 (543 ratings)4.9 (1.3K ratings) — better
Positive reviews63.7% of reviews94.6% of reviews — better
Number of ratings5431.3K — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 weeksEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree — better
Best chart rank#15 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS17.016.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size1.9 GB234 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperFeral Interactive LtdRaffaele D'Amato

Customer experience

GRID™ Legends

All ratings496 ratings
Positive88.3%
Neutral3.6%
Negative8.1%
Written reviews328 reviews
Positive63.7%
Neutral10.1%
Negative26.2%

ArcEmu

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

User reviews

GRID™ Legends

From 543 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Excellent graphics and performance
  • 👍 Great mobile port of console game
  • 🎮 Supports controllers
  • 🎨 Customizable controls

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Bugs and glitches (e.g. upgrade issues, crashes)
  • 🔋 Overheating and performance issues on some devices
  • 🌄 Inconsistent graphics quality and resolution
  • 🤔 Arcade-like feel compared to previous Grid games

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

GRID™ Legends

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Upgrade bug in Mechanic Pass
  • Crashes and freezes on some devices
  • Blurry graphics on certain settings
  • Inconsistent performance across devices

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add steering wheel support
  • Improve save/resume functionality
  • Increase graphics and resolution options
  • Implement online/multiplayer mode

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

GRID™ Legends

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 GRID™ Legends free?
GRID™ Legends costs $14.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is ArcEmu free?
ArcEmu is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, GRID™ Legends or ArcEmu?
ArcEmu is rated higher. GRID™ Legends averages 4.5 out of 5 from 543 ratings, while ArcEmu averages 4.9 from 1.3K ratings.
Do GRID™ Legends or ArcEmu have ads?
Neither GRID™ Legends nor ArcEmu shows ads.
Which is updated more often, GRID™ Legends or ArcEmu?
GRID™ Legends ships an update every 4 weeks, and ArcEmu every 2 weeks. Most recently, GRID™ Legends was updated on November 7, 2026 and ArcEmu on November 8, 2026.

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