Hadlee Simons / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Delta Emulator, one of the best options on iOS, can now play Nintendo DS games online.
- Based on MelonDS, it connects to community Nintendo WFC servers.
- The feature was first launched in beta late last year, but it’s now available for all App Store users.
Emulators on iOS still lag well behind their Android counterparts, but Delta Emulator is one of the few making huge headway. The app supports various Nintendo consoles, from the NES to the Nintendo DS, and now a new feature brings it closer than ever to its counterparts on Android.
Update version 1.7 officially adds online multiplayer to Nintendo DS games via community WFC servers. This feature is built into certain Nintendo DS games, but the process of connecting to servers is onerous, to say the least. Delta Emulator makes this as easy as possible by offering a selection of a few pre-configured WFC servers (Wiimmfi, WiiLink WFC, or AltWFC). Pick one from the Nintendo DS core settings, and the app will take care of the rest. You can connect to additional servers by inputting DNS settings, as usual.
Once set up, iOS users can play games like Mario Kart DS, Metroid Prime Hunters, or Pokemon Black/White against other users online. Since the feature is based on implementations from the MelonDS core, iOS users can play against anyone connected to the same server, including both Android and console users.
iPhone users can play DS games online with Android and console players.
The feature first launched in beta late last year, but it was only available for Patreon subscribers. The feature has now been pushed to both the App Store and AltStore versions.
The update also improved performance for the N64 core, adding OpenGL ES 3.0. This may cause problems in some games, so there is still an option to swap back to OpenGL ES 2.0 when needed. Developer Riley Testut has also promised RetroAchievements in a future update, although there’s no timeline for implementation.
iOS emulation has grown in popularity since Apple loosened its stance on emulators on the App Store. Previously, users had to jailbreak their iPhones to sideload emulators, although sideloading was later supported in the European Union. Now, various emulators, including Delta Emulator, Provenance, PPSSPP, and RetroArch, are available directly on the App Store. However, the lack of JIT support means performance is limited, and some platforms like Dreamcast still aren’t compatible.
