For some gamers, there’s no school like the old school. While modern video games might boast better graphics, many pew-pew fanatics of a certain age argue that they lack the difficulty and charm of the console titles of yore. Thanks to the jailbreaking community and the Bluetooth connectivity of Nintendo’s Wii Controller, you can combine the gaming greatness of the 1990s with the high-tech power of Apple’s iPad. What respectable nerd or geek could ever hope to resist such a mash-up? Let’s get started!

Step One: Jailbreak your iPad and Install Cydia

Depending on the version of iOS you’re using, there are a number of methods for jailbreaking your iPad. For first time jailbreakers, we suggest taking a look at Greenpois0n and Limera1n--they’re practically fool-proof, while  seasoned jailbreakers may prefer the advanced installation options provided by Redsnow or Pwnagetool.

Step Two: Download SNES4iPhone & iFile

Once Cydia has been installed to your iPad, open it and tap the Search icon, located in the bottom left corner of the Cydia App Store interface. Type in SNES4iPhone as a search. Once you’ve located the application, purchase and download it to your iPad. SNES4iPhone is a stable, feature-rich SNES emulator that allows iPhone, iPod touch and iPad users to, as its name suggests, play SNES games on their iOS device.

While originally intended for use the iPhone or iPod touch, the application’s developer has made a few tweaks to ensure that the emulator looks and plays great on the iPad’s larger screen as well. Next, search for and purchase and install an application called iFile, which will allow you with easy access to your iPad’s file structure, as well as the ability to transfer files from your Mac to your iOS device without the need for iTunes.

Step Three: Locate & Download ROMs

The hoarding and playing of ROMS with emulation software has always been something of a legal gray area. Some feel that once you've purchased a copy of a game--Super Mario Kart, for example--you should be able to play that game on any other system that will support it, emulators included. Others argue that it should never be done for fear of being eaten by the copyright monster.

What do we believe? Software piracy is bad, so don’t do it. But you can locate and download free ROMs from indie developers and play them on the SNES app. There is a huge SNES homebrew community, which even after all this time, continues to crank out new, free content to keep the SNES dream alive.

Step Four: CyberDucky, You’re the One

In order to move your SNES files from Mac to iPad, you’re going to need CyberDuck. With it’s ability to handle just about every file transfer protocol under the sun, this free, open-source beauty is our go-to program for painless file transfers between wireless devices on the cheap. Cyberduck can be downloaded here. Once you’ve installed the software, open the application and turn your attention to your iPad.

Make sure that your iPad and Mac sharing on the same WiFi network. Open iFile and locate the wireless symbol (It looks a lot like your Mac Menubar’s Airport icon). Tap it and your iPad’s screen should turn black and provide you with a message that looks very much like this:

The last line of the data--Accepting connections at http://<your ipad’s name>.local:10000 or http://10.0.1.3:10000--is the the payoff here. This is the Bonjour address that Cyberduck can use to shake hands with your iPad. Type in http://10.0.1.3:10000 into the Quick Connect field, and hit the Return key. You should receive a Growl notification that your iPad and Mac are now connected. The iPad’s file structure should now be on display in Cyberduck. Good work!


Now it’s time to move those ROMs on to the iPad. Using Cyberduck’s interface, browse to private/var/mobile/Media/ROMs/SNES. Select and drag your ROM files into the SNES folder. Cyberduck will open a progress bar window to let you know that the files are being shifted to your tablet. Once the transfer is complete, Click Disconnect in Cyberduck, and click the Done button located in the top right corner of the iFile. Did your ROMs make it over to your iPad in one piece? There’s only one way to find out: Open SNES4iPhone and click the browse button at the bottom of the interface. If you’re ROMs are present in the games list, you’re in business.

Step Five: Take Control

SNES4iPhone can be played using onscreen controls, but in order to be all the geek you can be, you’re gonna want to play your SNES ROMs using a Nintendo branded controller. Lucky for us, SNES4iPhone has the ability to link up to a Nintendo Wii Controller baked right in. Tap the Options icon, located at the bottom of the program’s interface. Set SNES4iPhone’s options to mimic those seen in the next photo:

With screen doubling turned on, SNES4iPhone’s interface may look a little jagged, but with the Scaling and Smooth Scaling turned on, your in-game content should look as smooth as it would on a TV set. By clicking WiiMote Support to on, you’ve given the program permission to accept input from the controller’s hardware, bypassing the need for SNES4iPhone’s on-screen controls. Once you’ve set the appropriate options, close the program. This will reset the application to accept input from a Wii controller. Before restarting SNES4iPhone, make sure that your iPad’s bluetooth functionality is switched off, and if the version of iOS you’re rocking supports multitasking, the SNES4iPhone has been closed, and is not running in the back ground. With that done, we can move on to the cool stuff.

Rustle up your Nintendo Wii Controller, and make sure that it’s got fresh batteries in it. Now, restart SNES4iPhone. The application will launch a screen declaring that it’s searching for a Wii Controller. Push the 1 and 2 keys on your Wii Controller.

The controller will connect to SNES4iPhone thanks to the iOS application’s custom Bluetooth Stack software and ask you to select a ROM from the program’s library to play. All that’s left to do is select what screen orientation and sound settings you’re interested in using and BOOM! You’re living in retro gaming heaven!

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