4 Nov

GBA4iOS v2.1: Classic iPad Gaming at it’s Best (No Jailbreak required)

Game Boy Advance iPad Gaming with GBA4iOSI love a crack at the pokies on my iPad now and again, but sometimes it’s fun to get back to basics. And by basics, I mean the original, old-school entertainment of Super(fly) Mario and his Big(ger) Brother Luigi [#i♥mustache].

If you still hold a place in your heart for those classic Game Boy Advance titles, like I do, you might be interested in learning how to download GBA4iOS v2.1 for iOS powered iPhones or iPads. Two important notes here:

a) it’s only compatible with iOS 9.3.1, 9.3.2 and 10B.1, and…

b) you won’t have to jailbreak your device to make it work!

Sorry, iTunes Doesn’t Support Emu iPad Gaming

You won’t find GBA4iOS on the Apple iTunes Store, so don’t even bother. Most of those who tried that route just ended up posting terrible 1 reviews of a different app known as ‘GBA Console & Games Wiki Lite‘.

That app is actually quit useful and informative for GBA iPad gaming, but the fact that ‘wiki‘ is in the title should tell users it’s all about information, and not an actual GBA emulator. Even the screenshot at the Apple Store has a big white banner across it clearly stating “GBA Console Informations”. But whatever…

If you want to play classic GBA favorites like Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap, Super Mario Kart or ,y personaly favourite, Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, you have to get the GBA4iOS app elsewhere. Because, aside from the recent launch of Pokemon Go, Nintendo hasn’t developed anything specifically for Apple iOS mobile devices.

How To Download GBA4iOS on iPad

Since the GBA4iOS app isn’t available on the Apple Store – and you can rest assured the company isn’t too keen that it’s available at all – you have to get it from another trusted source.

Don’t worry, it’s not all that uncommon for gamers to download apps outside of iTunes (despite Apple’s guaranteed vehemence of the fact). The truth is, in most countries, iPad gambling apps aren’t available from iTunes, either. But that doesn’t mean we can’t grab them direct from mobile casino operators.

To download GBA4iOS on an iPad, (compatible with iOS 9.3.1, 9.3.2 and 10B.1), follow these simple steps:

  1. On your iPad, open a Safari browser and go to: http://iemulators.gba4ios
  2. Tap on the GBA4iOS logo
  3. A new page will open; scroll down and click Install
  4. A confirmation window appears, click Install again

Now that you’ve installed the app, you’ll have to tell your iPad the gaming app is a trusted source. To do this:

  1. On your iPad, go to Settings > General > Profile
  2. Scroll through the certificates until you find one that starts with the name “Qingdao” and selected ‘Trust’

This completes the installation process. Now head back to the Home screen, look for the GBA4iOS icon and tap it to start the application.

Wait, I Still Need GBA Games for iPad!

Fear not, I didn’t forget about this part. The actual GBA games – or ROMs, as they’re called in the realm of Nintendo emulation – are just a couple of taps away. The new GBA4iOS v2.1 (the one you just downloaded if you followed the steps above) actually comes with a built in ROM search.

When you open the iPad gaming app, simply click the magnifying glass icon in the top right corner. This opens an in-app Goggle search where you can look for your favorite iOS Game Boy Advance ROMs.

The apps’ promoters recommend typing “loveroms” in the search bar, which brings up loveroms.com, where you should be able to find a ROM for just about any GBA title ever released. Personally, I like www.emuparadise.me better, as it didn’t set off any security alarms for me (as loveroms did).