ArcEmu vs Pastime Games
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
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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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.
Pastime Games
Enjoy bite-sized games directly from your Home Screen widgets. Play classic and new challenges offline, with or without an account. Expand your game library with a one-time purchase.
- Play games from Home Screen widgets
- Offline play supported
- No account required
- Mix and match game widgets
- Local multiplayer option
- Unlockable game packs
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Bite-sized games that live on your Home Screen. Pastime turns your Home Screen widgets into a tiny arcade. Just tap a widget to play whenever you have a spare second, whether you’re waiting for coffee, riding the train, or taking a break between meetings. FREE GAMES - Tic Tac Toe: The classic game of Xs and Os. - 4 in a Row: Drop pieces on a grid to connect four in a row before your opponent. - Mines: Dig for safe spots and place flags to clear the board. STARTER PACK Want more? Unlock five more games with a one-time purchase: - Dotgrid: Take turns connecting dots to capture regions on the board. - Sudoku: Fill the grid so every row, column, and box has numbers 1 through 9. - Slide: Shift the tiles back into place, one slide at a time. - Hangman: Guess the mystery word one letter at a time before you run out of chances. - Pipes: Rotate the pieces to connect every pipe. WHY PASTIME? - Play right from your Home Screen, without opening the app - Mix and match widgets to build your own lineup of games - All the games work offline, with no need to create an account - Play side-by-side against a friend, or compete with the computer
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is monetization model: ArcEmu at free against Pastime Games's free with in-app purchases. ArcEmu also leads on ratings volume (1.3K vs 6) and device support (4 vs 2). On price, rating, review sentiment and update cadence 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
Both are free to download. ArcEmu sells 10 one-off in-app purchases and Pastime Games sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for ArcEmu against 5.0 for Pastime Games. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ArcEmu has 1.3K ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 95% of ArcEmu's written reviews are positive against 100% of Pastime Games's.
ArcEmu ships an update every 2 weeks, Pastime Games fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | ArcEmu | Pastime Games |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (1.3K ratings) | 5.0 (6 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 94.6% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 1.3K — better | 6 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Fortnightly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Apple Watch — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 18.5 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 234 MB | 98 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Raffaele D'Amato | Appetizers Inc. |
Customer experience
ArcEmu
Pastime Games
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
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- Add joystick/button support for Apple Watch
Pastime Games
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
ArcEmu
- Unlock All (Upgrade 4)$0.99
- Game Boy Advance$0.99
- SNES$0.99
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- 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
Pastime Games
- Starter Pack$4.99
Questions
Is ArcEmu free?
Is Pastime Games free?
Which has better reviews, ArcEmu or Pastime Games?
Do ArcEmu or Pastime Games have ads?
Which is updated more often, ArcEmu or Pastime Games?
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