Comparison

iMSX2 vs BlockMan

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

Head to head
About

iMSX2

Play classic MSX and MSX2 games on your iPhone or iPad. Load games from ROM, MX1, MX2, DSK, or ZIP files. Features include save states, Bluetooth controller support, customizable buttons, and screen filters for an authentic retro experience.

Highlights
  • Play classic MSX/MSX2 games
  • Load games from ROM, MX1, MX2, DSK, ZIP
  • Save and load game states
  • Bluetooth keyboard and controller support
  • Customizable button layouts
  • CRT and scanline screen filters
  • Load BASIC programs
Features
Read full description

Experience Classic MSX and MSX2 Games on your iPhone/iPad with iMSX2! Turn your iPhone/iPad into a portable MSX2 emulator with iMSX2! Emulate classic MSX and MSX2 games in ROM, MX1, MX2, DSK or ZIP format Key Features: · Play Classic Games: Relive the nostalgia of playing your favorite MSX and MSX2 games right on your iPhone/iPad. · Run Your Cartridges: Reproduce MSX and MSX2 cartridges from ROM, MX1, MX2, DSK and ZIP files and enjoy them on your device anytime, anywhere. · Save States: Save and load game states and the configuration type easily (iCloud) · Bluetooth Compatibility: Support for Bluetooth keyboards and game controllers. · Customizable button layouts: Edit the button positions for each orientation and enjoy full compatibility with shells like GAMEBABY and PlayCase. · Choose Your ROM Type: If your rom is not loaded correctly, try to select from various ROM configurations including "Normal", "Type K", "Type K SCC", "Type ASC16", "Type ASC16 SRAM", "Type ASC8", "Type ASC8 SRAM" and "Type ASCII16-X". · Screen filters: Enjoy a more authentic and customizable retro experience with CRT and scanline filters. · Fast forward: Speed through gameplay with the new fast forward mode. · Load Your Own BASIC Programs: Run your own programs in BASIC format directly on your iPhone/iPad. · Powered by C-bios: iMSX2 is built using C-bios for the utmost accuracy and compatibility. · Custom BIOS support: Import your own BIOS files to enhance compatibility and personalize your emulation experience. · Improved Disk Support: Play more MSX disk games with improved DSK compatibility, multi-disk support, on-the-fly disk swapping, and user disks for saving data in supported games. · Auto-fire: Added switches to enable auto-fire for the A and B buttons. · Designed to be very basic: With a beautiful and user-friendly interface for both portrait and landscape orientations. · The app does not require an internet connection, contains no ads, and does not store user data. It also takes up little space. What's Next: Stay tuned for even more enhancements! Constantly working on improving iMSX2 and adding new features to provide you with the best MSX experience on iOS. LZ4 Library Copyright (c) 2011-2020, Yann Collet C-BIOS Copyright (c) 2002-2005 BouKiCHi. All rights reserved. Copyright (c) 2003 Reikan. All rights reserved. Copyright (c) 2004-2006,2008-2010 Maarten ter Huurne. All rights reserved. Copyright (c) 2004-2006,2008-2011 Albert Beevendorp. All rights reserved. Copyright (c) 2004-2005 Patrick van Arkel. All rights reserved. Copyright (c) 2004,2010-2011 Manuel Bilderbeek. All rights reserved. Copyright (c) 2004-2006 Joost Yervante Damad. All rights reserved. Copyright (c) 2004-2006 Jussi Pitkänen. All rights reserved. Copyright (c) 2004-2007 Eric Boon. All rights reserved. emu2413 Copyright (c) 2001-2019 Mitsutaka Okazaki Z80 Emulator micro MSX2+ Copyright (c) 2023 Yoji Suzuki.

About

BlockMan

Features
Read full description

'BlockMan' is an app in which BlockMan, made of blocks, performs various actions such as dancing, walking, running, and spinning on the screen. BlockMan performs various actions in response to the following operations. ・Change the direction of the device ・Shake the device *Please be careful not to drop the device ・Tap the screen. ・Tap the screen with two fingers (iPhone/iPad only) ・Double-tap the screen. ・Triple-tap the screen. ・Press and hold the screen. ・Pinch in the screen (iPhone/iPad only) ・Pinch out the screen (iPhone/iPad only) ・Rotate the screen with two fingers (iPhone/iPad only) ・Flick the screen ・Double-tap with finger (Apple Watch only) ・Turn the digital crown (Apple Watch only) [Notes] The animations and sounds used in this app are all original creations and do not rely on any other content. The creators and production company respect the copyrights of other content and take great care to avoid any infringement. However, as this app uses a limited number of dot matrices to represent humanoid characters, which are a common form, there is a possibility that some patterns may unintentionally resemble existing content by coincidence. Therefore, please understand that it is extremely difficult to completely eliminate all similarities.

Screenshots

iMSX24 screens
BlockMan1 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: BlockMan at Free against iMSX2's $1.99. iMSX2's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 3 months). On 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

BlockMan is free to download; iMSX2 costs $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

iMSX2 ships an update every 3 weeks, BlockMan every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
iMSX2 versus BlockMan: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameteriMSX2BlockMan
Price$1.99Free — better
Rating3.4 (10 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews59.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings10 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS15.014.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size8 MB12 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperEnrique EnguixLegal Prompt Inc.

In-app purchases

None

iMSX2

No in-app purchases

None

BlockMan

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is iMSX2 free?
iMSX2 costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is BlockMan free?
BlockMan is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do iMSX2 or BlockMan have ads?
BlockMan shows ads; iMSX2 does not.
Which is updated more often, iMSX2 or BlockMan?
iMSX2 ships an update every 3 weeks, and BlockMan every 3 months. Most recently, iMSX2 was updated on October 14, 2026 and BlockMan on October 4, 2026.

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