GAMES Developer runs Red Dead Redemption 2 at 30 fps on iPhone 18 Pro using Madeira INTEL Sixunited debuts 0.15-liter Wildcat Lake mini PC with smartphone-sized chassis INTEL KyTyPS5 Emulator Runs Demon’s Souls Remake at 40-50 FPS on RTX 5090 GAMES Monster Hunter: World Seamless Co-Op Mod Released by Huntardy PHONES iPhone 18 Pro display shows degraded color accuracy at small viewing angles compared to iPhone 17 Pro ANDROID Konami pulls Castlevania from stores October 24, 2026, leaving free mobile window closing GAMES Where Winds Meet Studio Files Trademark for Unannounced MMORPG ECC: Redline AMD Minix ZR535 mini PC debuts with dual Gigabit Ethernet and Ryzen 5 3501U for $529 GAMES Aniimo Mobile Launches with Version 1.1 Update, Adding Irisalis Chapter and Chaos Mode GAMES Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2 tops Fall anime poll with 16.42% of votes GAMES Jon Watts to Direct Star Wars Episode X, Filming Could Begin in 2027 NINTENDO Japan’s PC gaming market more than doubles to $1.88 billion as console share shrinks PHONES Honor Magic 9 Super Edition packs 11,000mAh battery and active cooling fan GAMES Activision Holds Key to Rare’s New Games as Sea of Thieves Studio Cuts Staff

Developer runs Red Dead Redemption 2 at 30 fps on iPhone 18 Pro using Madeira

Daniel Cross 0 comments 2 min read

Developer Will Faust releases Madeira, enabling Red Dead Redemption 2 and other AAA PC games to run on non- jailbroken iPhones with playable frame rates.

Will Faust Madeira
GAMES

PC gamers can finally run major Windows titles on a handheld console that fits in a pocket. Developer Will Faust released Madeira, a software tool that bypasses Apple’s sandbox restrictions to execute x86-64 code on iOS devices. This shift matters because it removes the need for jailbreaking, allowing users to access a library of PC games directly on their iPhones.

Madeira emulator translates PC games to iOS with 30 fps performance

The application functions as a unified pipeline that translates desktop instructions into a format Apple silicon can process. It combines Wine ARM64EC with FEX-Emu to handle the processor architecture shift and uses DXMT to convert DirectX 11 calls into Apple Metal graphics commands. This technical stack allows the iPhone to interpret standard PC game binaries without requiring native iOS ports.

  • Minimum Hardware: iPhone 13 Pro or above (A15 Bionic or above)
  • Technical Stack: Wine (ARM64EC), FEX-Emu (x86-64 to ARM64 translation), DXMT (D3D11 to Metal translation)
  • Memory Management: Swap-like implementation offloading memory to iPhone storage
  • Performance (RDR 2): Close to 30 fps at nearly 720p on iPhone 18 Pro

System requirements start with the iPhone 13 Pro and the A15 Bionic chip, though newer hardware delivers significantly better results. The latest builds demonstrate Red Dead Redemption 2 running at nearly 720p resolution with frame rates close to 30 fps on the iPhone 18 Pro. Grand Theft Auto V, Fallout 4, Dead Space, Mirror's Edge, and Far Cry 3 also operate on the device with playable performance.

Memory management now includes a swap-like feature that offloads data to the iPhone's internal storage to prevent crashes. Users must sideload the application manually because iOS 18.4 and later versions block Just-In-Time (JIT) compilation in App Store submissions. This restriction forces enthusiasts to configure their devices manually to enable the necessary execution permissions.

The tool represents a significant technical milestone for mobile emulation by delivering playable frame rates for demanding AAA titles. Users with compatible hardware can now test these games through manual installation and JIT configuration.

Source: NotebookCheck

Related stories

Discussion

0 comments

Leave a comment