Comparison

ArcEmu vs Lathe Master

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
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.

About

Lathe Master

Features
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Lathe Master is a lathe simulator: turn metal and wood parts to a drawing, keep the cutter inside the tolerance and earn three stars for a perfect part. The stock spins in the chuck. You steer the cutter with a finger or engage the power feed, take material off pass by pass and bring the profile down to the yellow line on the blueprint. Cut too deep and the metal does not grow back, the same as in a real workshop. Unless you reach for the welding torch. 150 LEVELS, EIGHT CHAPTERS Five materials, each with its own feel: wood, aluminium, brass, steel and hardened steel. Then three chapters of the trade: Boring: boring bars and their holder, bores and bushes, parts turned outside and in. Grooves: V and square grooving tools for pulleys and circlip grooves. Threads: set the pitch, depth and infeed yourself, close the half-nut and release it on time, as on a real lathe. Every chapter ends with a rank exam on a part of its own that you have not turned before. HOW A PART IS SCORED Match to the drawing, time against par and precision. Get all three right and the part earns three stars. The deviation is written down next to it, so you always know how close you came. ON THE BENCH Eight cutters, from the standard tool to diamond and needle, plus three boring bars of different reach. A drawing with every dimension before each level. Power feed with change gears. A loupe for the last hundredths and marking-out that shows where metal is left. Heat to watch: push too hard and the tool snaps. THE WORKSHOP A daily order and side jobs: parts you already know, for coins. A collection shelf: every finished part, exactly as you turned it, with a reward for each full chapter. Game Center leaderboards. Reminders you set up yourself. ON YOUR WRIST Lathe Master also runs on Apple Watch, for a quick part between other things. MASTER PLAN (OPTIONAL) The whole core game plays without it. Master adds: 25 PRO orders: hard parts in gold. Double coins for every part. +15 seconds on every order (exams stay the same for everyone). 2 marking-outs and 1 loupe every day. Master's coins: 500 for every paid week, or 1000 at once with Lifetime. Master comes as a weekly subscription that starts with 3 free days (new subscribers only), or as a one-time Lifetime purchase. Prices are shown in the app before you pay. Payment is charged to your Apple ID account at confirmation of purchase. The weekly subscription renews automatically unless it is cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period; your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours before the period ends. You can manage or cancel the subscription in your App Store account settings. Any unused part of the free trial is forfeited when you buy a subscription. Terms of Use: https://kadapps.com/lathe-master/terms Privacy Policy: https://kadapps.com/lathe-master/privacy DETAILS Plays offline. In English and Ukrainian. One part takes from half a minute to a few minutes, so it fits a short break as well as a long evening. Chuck your first piece of stock and turn a part.

Screenshots

ArcEmu4 screens
Lathe Master4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Lathe Master at Free against ArcEmu's $1.99. ArcEmu's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs monthly). On ads, in-app purchases, device support 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

Lathe Master is free to download; ArcEmu costs $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ArcEmu ships an update every 2 weeks, Lathe Master monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
ArcEmu versus Lathe Master: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterArcEmuLathe Master
Price$1.99Free — better
Rating4.9 (1.3K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews94.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings1.3K — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch
Requires iOS15.514.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size172 MB41 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRaffaele D'AmatoOlha Kadushkevych

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

Lathe Master

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

ArcEmu

No in-app purchases

None

Lathe Master

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is ArcEmu free?
ArcEmu costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Lathe Master free?
Lathe Master is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do ArcEmu or Lathe Master have ads?
Neither ArcEmu nor Lathe Master shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ArcEmu or Lathe Master?
ArcEmu ships an update every 2 weeks, and Lathe Master monthly. Most recently, ArcEmu was updated on October 21, 2026 and Lathe Master on October 15, 2026.

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