PPSSPP vs Thirsty Nellan
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
PPSSPP
Experience your favorite PSP titles on your iOS device with high-definition graphics and enhanced features. This emulator allows you to play a vast library of PSP games with excellent performance. Access your own game files or explore free homebrew titles.
- Play PSP games on iOS
- High-definition graphics
- Extra features
- High performance
- Supports ISO/CSO files
- Built-in Homebrew Store
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Play PSP games on your iOS device, in high definition with extra features! PPSSPP is the original and only PSP emulator for mobile devices. It can run nearly all PSP games with great performance on iOS. No games are included with this download. Use your own real PSP games and turn them into .ISO or .CSO files (see the homepage for instructions), or simply play free homemade games, which are available in the built-in "Homebrew Store". PSP is a trademark of Sony. The PPSSPP project is in no way affiliated with Sony.
Thirsty Nellan
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A 3D animated "talkie" adventure! Help Tux the penguin explore an enchanted house in search of four missing treasures. Designed for children, yet fun for grown-ups too. The game includes both English and French versions.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Thirsty Nellan at none against PPSSPP's 1. PPSSPP's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 26.5). On price, update cadence, 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
Both are free to download. PPSSPP sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Thirsty Nellan asks for nothing beyond the download.
PPSSPP ships an update every 4 weeks, Thirsty Nellan every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | PPSSPP | Thirsty Nellan |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (2.8K ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 72.2% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 2.8K — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 4 weeks | Every 3 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 26.5 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 44 MB | 24 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Henrik Rydgård | Thirsty Nellan Productions |
Bugs and requests
PPSSPP
Reported bugs
3 issues- Crashes when trying to load save files
- Controller mapping not working properly
- Certain games not launching or freezing
Requested features
5 requests- Add support for PS2 and PS3 emulation
- Improve save state functionality
- Implement haptic feedback for on-screen controls
- Allow customization of button mapping
- Add portrait mode support
Thirsty Nellan
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
PPSSPP
- PPSSPP Gold$3.99
Thirsty Nellan
No in-app purchases
