If you want to see Amiga on Apple stuff, get UAE for Mac OS X. Apples mobile branch doesn´t allow executing "arbitrary" code from outside of the XCode universe, which means that you can only run software that was approved by Apple. So while the iAmiga-App may offer you to download some games there will be no way whatsoever for you to put your own *.adf in or any other data for that matter - not a single byte - no compiler - no basic - no notepad - no anything.
This is not what I call Amiga.
The C64 Emulator for iPhone is the same crippleware. While it includes "BASIC" there is no SAVE and no LOAD-command and it even lacks some keys you would normally use when programming. So in essence you can´t do much more than "HELLO WORLD" on that.
Apple used to have a great attitude towards developers in 2000, but it all went downhill since iTunes became a store. Now it´s all about the big money and Apple tries to forget that open source helped a great deal, when they propelled themselves from their dark ages at the end of the 1990s.
Hey there. I wrote the post in question, took the video.
Manomio's goal here is to release licensed Amiga games through the App Store as games. So, you'd see Defender of the Crown released as Defender of the Crown. IK+ released as IK+. Stand alone titles wrapped in a transparent emulation layer.
Now, there are also plans to release a more advanced Amiga "shell" of sorts that will allow you to play games you've already purchased inside of it. This shell would offer more advanced capabilities like shader-based video effects to render scan-lines, convex CRT glare, etc. Also, TV out and remote control via another iOS device. All for those that want to take the experience farther.
And...has it been all downhill since iTunes appeared? Apple provides the entire Mac and iPhone development system, Xcode, as a free download, fully documented, etc. You can pat $99/year and get your apps on the store, pending approval. You keep 70% profits. Does that seem a rough and lamentable proposition? Have a look at what it takes to get setup to develop and release games on the Nintendo DS and Sony PSP, and tell me how cruel Apple's rules are.
You might find this amusing, also:
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/2506-iPhone-GamesIt is true that Apple has restrictions about executable code running in your apps. But these have loosened. Manomio's C64 emulator is in the store, emulating C64 games and even featuring BASIC. Manomio's approach to the Amiga emulator is not going to be a problem for Apple, either. Now, a straight up Amiga emulator that lets me drag ADFs into iTunes and run them would be great for me and for all of us here in this forum (and that's what this dev build is capable of), but it's hardly a mainstream thing. I don't think gamers who buy the one-off titles to be released through this emulator will lament a lack of emulation flexibility or experience anything negative. They'll be playing the game they chose to buy. That it's running in a virtual Amiga may be of no concern to them. I don't think there's justification for crucifying anyone we're talking about here, Apple or Manomio.
But if the situation still leaves a foul taste in your mouth, well, there's emulators aplenty on GP2X and the like. And perhaps someone will go down this road on Android.
blakespot
