Update 07/15/2024: Apple seems to have reversed its decision on PC emulation, with PC emulator UTM SE now being available in the iOS, iPadOS, and visionOS App Stores.
This article's original text follows below.
Anyone who was hoping to turn their iPhone into a literal computer-in-their-pocket will have to walk away disappointed, as Apple has rejected two PC emulators from the App Store.
The move follows a recent rule change that allowed emulators of retro game consoles like the Super Nintendo and even the PlayStation on the App Store, finally giving developers clearer boundaries on what exactly is and isn’t allowed.
The apps in question were iDOS3, which allows your iPhone to run MS-DOS, and UTM SE, a general operating system emulator that includes ways to run Windows 7, Windows 10, various versions of Linux, and more.
iDOS3 developer Chaoji Li told The Verge that Apple’s reason for rejecting the app was that “Only emulators of retro game consoles are appropriate per guideline 4.7.”
Li said Apple refused to offer suggestions for changes, or to define what exactly entails a retro game console.
UTM posted a similar note to X, formerly Twitter, taking issue with Apple’s idea that a “PC is not a console” on the basis that “there are retro Windows / DOS games for the PC that UTM SE can be useful in running.”
Regardless of Apple’s resistance to allowing PC emulation, UTM SE faces an extra barrier in making it to the iPhone. A follow-up to the post noted that Apple is also refusing to notarize the app for third-party App Stores due to inclusion of just-in-time compilation, which would technically break a guideline that apps must be self-contained. UTM said the emulator does not include any code that violates these rules, but that it will not be fighting Apple on the decision.
In an email to The Verge, Li lamented that “as the sole rule maker and enforcer in [the] iOS ecosystem, they don’t need to be consistent at all.”
Apple did not immediately reply to Lifehacker’s request for comment. For now, those looking to play retro games on iOS will have to look to alternatives like Delta and Retroarch.
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