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Apple Further Explains Why Game Boy Emulator iGBA Was Removed From App Store

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Over the weekend, a Game Boy emulator named iGBA appeared in the iPhone’s App Store, but Apple quickly removed the app due to violations of the company’s App Review Guidelines related to spam and copyright. Apple has since shared additional details about why it removed iGBA from the App Store, and it also clarified its guidelines for emulators.

iGBA Feature Slashed
iGBA was a copycat version of developer Riley Testut’s open-source GBA4iOS app, with the addition of ads on top. While it did not explicitly name GBA4iOS, Apple told us it removed iGBA from the App Store after learning that it was a knockoff app that copied another developer’s work and attempted to pass it off as its own.

Notably, Apple confirmed to us that emulators on the App Store are permitted to load ROMs downloaded from the web, so long as the app is emulating retro console games only. Apple also said it had approved iGBA’s functionality, before learning that it was a knockoff app, suggesting that Game Boy emulation is permitted on the App Store, but the company has yet to share any other examples of retro game consoles.

All in all, it appears that iGBA was removed from the App Store entirely because it was a ripoff of GBA4iOS, rather than due to piracy concerns resulting from users being able to load any ROM downloaded from the web. However, exactly which consoles Apple considers to be retro, and if there will be any other restrictions, remains to be seen.

It also remains to be seen how Nintendo reacts to Apple approving Game Boy emulators for distribution through the App Store on the iPhone. On its U.S. customer support website, Nintendo says downloading pirated copies of its games is illegal:

Pirate copies of game files are often referred to as “ROMs”.

The uploading and downloading of pirate copies of Nintendo games is illegal.

We have reached out to Nintendo for comment.

Apple updated its App Review Guidelines to permit retro game console emulators earlier this month. Apple says developers of emulators are “responsible for all such software” offered in the app, including compliance with “all applicable laws.”

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Apple today said it removed Game Boy emulator iGBA from the App Store for violating the company’s App Review Guidelines related to spam (section 4.3) and copyright (section 5.2), but it did not provide any specific details.

iGBA Feature
iGBA was a copycat version of developer Riley Testut’s open-source GBA4iOS app, which has long been distributed outside the App Store. The emulator rose towards the top of the App Store charts following its release this weekend, but users on social media complained that the app was a blatant ripoff overlaid with ads.

“So apparently Apple approved a knock-off of GBA4iOS,” said Testut, in a Threads post on Saturday. “I did not give anyone permission to do this, yet it’s now sitting at the top of the charts (despite being filled with ads + tracking).” He quipped that he was “so glad App Review exists to protect consumers from scams and rip-offs like this.”

It is unclear if Apple removed iGBA because it felt the app ripped off GBA4iOS. We have asked Apple for clarification about the app’s removal, and we will update this article if we receive any additional information about the decision.

iGBA lets iPhone users play Game Boy games by loading free ROMs downloaded from the web. ROMs can be found online for a wide variety of games, including those from the popular Pokémon and The Legend of Zelda franchises. The emulator can still be used by those who installed it on their iPhones before it was removed from the App Store.

On its customer support website in the U.S., Nintendo says downloading pirated copies of its games is illegal. It is unclear if Nintendo sent a complaint to Apple about iGBA, and whether that may have been a factor in the app’s removal.

An excerpt from section 5.2 of the App Review Guidelines, related to intellectual property:

Make sure your app only includes content that you created or that you have a license to use. Your app may be removed if you’ve stepped over the line and used content without permission. Of course, this also means someone else’s app may be removed if they’ve “borrowed” from your work.

iGBA appeared in the App Store just over a week after Apple updated its App Review Guidelines to permit “retro game console emulators,” but it is inevitably not yet certain what Apple will allow exactly following the app’s prompt removal.

As for Testut, he went on to create another Nintendo game emulator called Delta, which is distributed outside of the App Store. Delta will also be available through Testut’s alternative app marketplace AltStore on iPhones in the EU. It is not clear if he plans to make Delta available in the App Store following the rule change.

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