Rules! vs ArcEmu
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Rules!
Engage in a fast-paced, challenging, and fun puzzle game with a hundred levels. Features a daily brain workout for Apple Watch and animated stickers. Offers multiple game modes and unique mechanics.
- Daily Apple Watch brain workout
- Animated sticker pack
- Beginner, Expert, or Timeless game modes
- Multi-touch interface
- Color perception assistance
- Surprising new game mechanics
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• Includes a daily brain workout mini-game for Apple Watch • Includes animated sticker pack • App Store – Best Apple Watch Game of 2015 • App Store – Best of 2014 • German Developer Award 2014 – Best mobile Game • German Video Game Award 2015 – Best mobile Game • Pocket Gamer Awards 2015 Finalist Best Casual/Puzzle Game & Most Innovative Game RULES! is a cute puzzle game that's challenging, fast-paced and fun. • Choose your preferred type of game: Beginner, Expert or Timeless • “What’s presented here is a stylish, original, clever puzzle game that I’m having trouble putting down long enough to write this review.” ~ Gamezebo “A delightfully constructed memory test that grows in complexity and appeal the deeper in you go.” ~ Pocket Gamer “The Coding Monkeys have never released anything that wasn’t utterly brilliant, therefore Rules shall almost certainly be brilliant.” ~ Pocket Tactics Follow RULES! into a hundred level-deep maze of cuteness and order: • Multi-touch interface at its finest • Color perception assistance mode • Whales, Unicorns, Robots and Squirrels! • A plethora of surprising new game mechanics
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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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.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: ArcEmu at 4.9 against Rules!'s 4.2. ArcEmu also leads on review sentiment (95% vs 69%) and ratings volume (1.3K vs 67). On ads, in-app purchases, monetization model 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
Rules! costs $2.99 and ArcEmu $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
ArcEmu holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ArcEmu has 1.3K ratings behind it against 67, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 69% of Rules!'s written reviews are positive against 95% of ArcEmu's.
Rules! ships an update monthly, ArcEmu every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and October 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Rules! | ArcEmu |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $2.99 | $1.99 — better |
| Rating | 4.2 (67 ratings) | 4.9 (1.3K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 68.5% of reviews | 94.5% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 67 | 1.3K — better |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Best chart rank | — | #131 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV, Apple Watch — better |
| Requires iOS | 15.2 — better | 15.5 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 25 MB | 172 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | 137b | Raffaele D'Amato |
Customer experience
Rules!
ArcEmu
User reviews
Rules!
From 67 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Challenging and fun game
- 👍 Gorgeous design and smooth UI
- 👍 Great brain workout
- 👍 Addictive gameplay
- 👍 Fair monetization with no ads or IAPs
Room to improve
- 🕰️ Very short time limit
- 🔁 Having to restart from level 1 after losing
- 🎨 Colorblind-unfriendly
- 🤔 Repetitive gameplay with same rule order
ArcEmu
From 1.3K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Fully functional
- 🚀 Impressive emulation on Apple Watch
- 👍 Great emulator for both phone and watch
- 👍 Seamless save state transfer between devices
- 👍 Customizable controls and layout
Room to improve
- 🐛 Compatibility issues with some games
- 🐛 Audio quality problems on certain games
- 👎 Limited functionality on Apple Watch
- 👎 Difficult controls for action-heavy games on watch
Bugs and requests
Rules!
Reported bugs
2 issues- Freezing and crashing issues, especially on Apple Watch
- Unresponsive tapping on certain tiles
Requested features
5 requests- Option to save progress and continue from last level
- Randomized rule order
- Difficulty settings with longer time limits
- Colorblind accessibility options
- More game modes and challenges
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
In-app purchases
Rules!
No in-app purchases
ArcEmu
No in-app purchases









