Apple’s negative stance towards emulators is well-known. The company has historically not allowed such software in the App Store for many years. However, with the renewed EU regulations in 2024, this situation has changed to some extent. The brand has relaxed its strict policies and allowed some emulators, such as Emu64 XL, to be uploaded to the App Store.
The video in which Steve Jobs introduced the PS1 emulator for Mac went viral
A video featuring Steve Jobs introducing a PS1 emulator for Mac has recently gained attention. At the 1999 Macworld Expo, Steve Jobs and Phil Schiller showcased the Virtual Game Station (VGS), an emulator developed by Connectix. VGS was the first emulator capable of running PlayStation 1 games at full speed and made its debut exclusively on the Mac platform.
Shiftdelete.netThe VGS emulator wasn’t free, carrying a price tag of $49. However, it could only run original PlayStation game CDs. This move from Apple did not sit well with Sony, as the Japanese company sued Connectix for copyright infringement.
Unexpectedly, Connectix won the lawsuit. Unable to prevent the software that eliminated the need for the PlayStation 1 console through legal means, Sony later purchased the emulator and completely halted its distribution. Thus, Apple’s venture into emulators came to an end.
Today, it can be said that Apple has not always maintained a strict stance against emulators. In fact, the company was confident enough at that time to feature such software in promotional events.
During the presentation, Phil Schiller played Crash Bandicoot: Warped on the VGS emulator, highlighting that Macs were not just computers but also powerful gaming platforms. Steve Jobs even remarked that playing games from the popular PlayStation 1 console on a Mac was a fantastic idea.
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