Comparison

ArcEmu vs HexRain

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

Head to head
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
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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.

About

HexRain

A fast-paced action game where players dodge falling hexes and collect bonus items. It features a challenge editor for creating and sharing custom levels, offering endless replayability.

Highlights
  • Dodge falling hexes
  • Collect bonus blocks
  • Challenge blocks
  • Up to 30 challenges
  • Challenge editor
  • Share custom levels
Features
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A fast paced action game! Dodge the falling hexes, grab bonus blocks and challenge blocks. Earn high scores, complete up to 30 challenges, then remix or make your own to share with the community with a full challenge editor.

Screenshots

ArcEmu4 screens
HexRain3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: HexRain at Free against ArcEmu's $1.99. ArcEmu's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ratings volume (1.3K vs 3). On rating, update cadence, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

HexRain is free to download; ArcEmu costs $1.99 up front. HexRain 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 — 4.9 for ArcEmu against 5.0 for HexRain. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ArcEmu has 1.3K ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ArcEmu ships an update every 2 weeks, HexRain every 11 days. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
ArcEmu versus HexRain: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterArcEmuHexRain
Price$1.99Free — better
Rating4.9 (1.3K ratings)5.0 (3 ratings) — better
Positive reviews94.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings1.3K — better3
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 11 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.515.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size172 MB7 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRaffaele D'AmatoFraser Graham

Customer experience

ArcEmu

All ratings1,304 ratings
Positive98.2%
Neutral0.8%
Negative1.0%
Written reviews528 reviews
Positive94.5%
Neutral2.8%
Negative2.7%

HexRain

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and 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

HexRain

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

ArcEmu

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

HexRain

One-time1
  • Unlock All Game Modes$1.99

Questions

Is ArcEmu free?
ArcEmu costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is HexRain free?
HexRain is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, ArcEmu or HexRain?
HexRain is rated higher. ArcEmu averages 4.9 out of 5 from 1.3K ratings, while HexRain averages 5.0 from 3 ratings.
Do ArcEmu or HexRain have ads?
Neither ArcEmu nor HexRain shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ArcEmu or HexRain?
ArcEmu ships an update every 2 weeks, and HexRain every 11 days. Most recently, ArcEmu was updated on October 13, 2026 and HexRain on October 1, 2026.

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