AfterDawn: News

Popular gaming emulators get pulled from Android Market

It appears this weekend that Google has pulled a number of popular gaming emulators from the Android Market.

All were created by developer Yongzh and include Nesoid, Snesoid, Gensoid, N64oid, and Gameboid.



The developer says his account was removed without any prior warnings and he is now looking to move his emulators to the third-party "SlideME" app store.

Just last month, Google pulled the PSX emulator, PSX4droid from the Market, as well.

While emulators are legal, as standalone apps, 9 times out of 10, the ROMS (games) used by gamers are obtained illegally thus making the whole legal standing of the software sketchy.

Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 29 May 2011 23:44

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• 10 comments

• DDR4life

  Pity, I liked playing classics on the go. Oh, well.
  

  30.5.2011 00:45 #1

• Mik3h

  You can still get them from SlideMe for free now. I paid for them when they were on android market, they were a well-worthy purchase.
  

  http://my.afterdawn.com/mik3h/blog_entry.cfm/1394 - Guides written by me.
  http://www.adbuddies.org/ - Join us Live on IRC!
  
  (Kudos to Ripper For The Beautiful Sig!)
  
  

  30.5.2011 06:17 #2

• blueboy09

  You know those gaming companies have to bitch about everything these days. You know, when these guys release ROMS like this, those companies (Sony, Nintendo, Microsoft. etc.) consider this to be a threat. Hardly. Instead, they should embrace that this was a good thing instead of a bad thing. More penetration from these games are sure to gain some popularity even if they are the old classics. Hell, even innovation has rose its head. How do you think that we have digital downloads today? From those pirates, silly!! More sales online along with physical media sales is what arose from dowloads.- BLUEBOY
  

  Chance prepares the favored mind. Look up once in a while and you might learn something. - BLUEBOY

  30.5.2011 11:04 #3

• LordRuss

  I kind of place this corporate behavior in the likes akin to the old TV commercials for single album artists back in the late 70's & early 80's. They still "try" to do it now, but they (corporations) but they don't quite have the yank in their jerk-off power like thy used to.
  
  Used to, when corps completely owned the rights to say Elvis, they would sit on his records for a while knowing his audience wanted to hear from the dead idol.
  
  So during the year, when they would hit a dry spell from pumping too much money into whatever finger banging special they were trying to push onto Billboard or simple slump because artists weren't falling for their bullshit & signing; they'd drop an Elvis album onto the airwaves.
  
  Why? HE'S DEAD. The residual check earnings going to his estate ain't what you think they are, so the pure bullshit profits going into the corps pockets is golden gravy.
  
  Now just apply that to the digital market. Except, no packaging, no barker (announcer barfing into a microphone convincing you to buy), any talent (voices on the game) used in the game probably doesn't have additional legal right to compensation so their out 'that' money, no real storage or delivery fees, no unions to deal with...
  
  These guys are in an orgasmic meltdown of biblical proportions that even divinity is about to cower from. So yeah, they don't simple snivelton pissing in their pool.
  
  I was pissed about it back when I was a kid when 8 tracks came out, then things went to cassettes (look it up, you have Google). I knew then I was going to get bent over or corporate "buy your shit over & over again" repeat business venture even back in the 70's.
  
  So I salute you guys that find ways of making my stuff last just a bit longer. Now if I could just find a way to make my own broke ass last a bit longer...
  

  If something I said bothers you, then maybe you needed bothern...
  
  For advanced bothern... http://onlyinrussellsworld.blogspot.com/

  30.5.2011 11:33 #4

• saltesc (unverified)

  So now I have to find a copy of Pokemon Red somewhere and pay someone—who isn't the gaming company by the way—money for it to have it probably crap out.
  
  Think I'll just hack my DS instead...

  30.5.2011 23:57 #5

• farble1670 (unverified)

  Originally posted by blueboy09: You know those gaming companies have to bitch about everything these days. You know, when these guys release ROMS like this, those companies (Sony, Nintendo, Microsoft. etc.) consider this to be a threat. Hardly. Instead, they should embrace that this was a good thing instead of a bad thing. More penetration from these games are sure to gain some popularity even if they are the old classics. Hell, even innovation has rose its head. How do you think that we have digital downloads today? From those pirates, silly!! More sales online along with physical media sales is what arose from dowloads.- BLUEBOY How do you think "penetration" benefits them? It does not. They care about getting money for their games. If people are giving them away for free, it makes it sort of hard to do that.

  31.5.2011 01:49 #6

• klassic

  So if they pulled Nesoid from the marketplace, do they take it off my phone as well, or can I still use it?

  31.5.2011 13:24 #7

• ThePastor

  Amen, LordRuss, Amen!
  
  
  

  Unfortunately for them, all Blu-ray protections have been broken and BD rips can be found around the Internet, usually before the retail even hits shelves.

  31.5.2011 21:06 #8

• plazma247

  I might be wrong, but its strange how this come a week or two after an appearance of an app that allowed users to very very easy way find and download roms using a app (forgot what it was called)...

  1.6.2011 08:09 #9

• felix85

  This now bumps up the number of apps I have purchased that I can no longer download from the marketplace to 9. That is roughly 30 USD now lost. Thanks alot Google.

  3.6.2011 14:42 #10