Just a few weeks ago, retro Nintendo emulatorDeltatook the iPhone’s App Store by storm. While it hasn’t remained in the top 10 most popular apps, Delta has still maintained its place as one of thebest emulators available for Apple’s smartphone.
There are a few things that make Delta as fantastic as it is, but one of the more underrated features of the emulator is skins. As an emulator designed for a smartphone, Delta features an on-screen controller for those who prefer to forego carrying around a gamepad like theRazer Kishi Ultra. While the layout and haptics of Delta’s on-screen controls are the best available on the App Store, you can actually make them even better.
Delta skins simply replace the default on-screen layout for any given console. And this isn’t limited to just putting a fresh coat of paint on the pre-existing layouts, you can actually change the entire button layout for a console. With a fantastic community making tons of skins, you may get a little lost trying to find some that are truly great. Below are a few that stand out as truly fantastic.
Delta is one of the top emulators available on the iOS App Store, offering access to emulating many classic Nintendo Systems.
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How to use skins on Delta
Improve your layout, or your aesthetic
Before you dive in and begin downloading a sea of Delta skins, it’s important to first know how you’re going to use them to begin with. Doing so is simple enough to do:
To make the entire process easier, you may want to create a dedicated folder in your Files for Delta skins. Creating a dedicated folder will help to keep your skins organized and make them easy to find when adding them to Delta.
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PSX-style GBA skin by bradenhirschi
For a better shoulder button experience
ThePSX-style GBA skin by bradenhirschiis exactly what it says on the tin: a PSX styled controller for the Game Boy Advance core on Delta. For a dose of original PlayStation nostalgia, this skin is fantastic. For much more usable shoulder buttons while playing GBA games, it’s perfect.
In a Reddit comment describing the skin, bradenhirschi wrote that the skin may be “super niche” and went on to describe the terror of trying to play the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater GBA ports with the default Delta GBA skin. Whether or not it is super niche, this is absolutely spot-on criticism, and the PSX-Style skin absolutely gets the job done. Playing Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2 using Delta’s default on-screen controls is an absolute nightmare due to heavy reliance on the L and R buttons. The PSX-style skin makes this a non-issue by simply moving both buttons into a grid with A and B.
Granted, this isn’t going to be useful for every single GBA game in existence. There are plenty of times I’ve forgotten the GBA even has shoulder buttons to begin with. However, for games that rely on using shoulder buttons, such as Metroid Zero Mission, having the virtual L and R right next to A and B is the difference between playable and unplayable. While the button layout can be a little clunky when taken outside of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, it is easy to get used to.
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Ergo Metal by aphaits
A slick, notch or island-conscious Nintendo DS skin
There are two key factors that make a Delta skin truly great: aesthetic and functionality. There’s almost no skin that better encapsulates this thanErgo Metal by aphaits. It’s a simple Nintendo DS skin that opts for a metallic look and a souped-up button layout.
In addition to the aesthetic and improved button layout, the skin also brings four function buttons to the table. Those four buttons provide quick access to creating a save state, loading a state, fast-forwarding, or locking fast-forward on or off. For those that frequently utilize any of these functions, the on-screen options are nothing short of life-saving.
The Ergo Metal skin works in portrait and landscape, and there are two different variants tailor-made for iPhones with the Dynamic Island and iPhones with the notch. If you aren’t a fan of the metal aesthetic and have the will and the want to modify your own skin, aphaits also has a template available for the Ergo skin. For the sweet spot between aesthetic and function, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a better skin than Ergo Metal.
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The idle series by parosilience
One-handed convenience
It’s not the most frequently occurrence to put both hands on your phone. By design, you’ll have your phone in just one of your hands most of the time. But, playing games on your phone will generally require the use of both hands. However, it doesn’t have to. Using theIdle SNES,Idle GBA, andIdle GBC skins, all made by parosilience, you can keep your gaming experiences one-handed.
All three skins have a minimal aesthetic, simply being buttons on a black background. But, their function is what’s important. Each skin simply has the entire controller laid out to be reachable on one side of the screen. This allows you to fully control a game with one hand on your phone. While this isn’t an ideal set-up for a platformer, it is fantastic for RPGs. The Pokémon games, in particular, work fantastically with these skins.
Each skin is available in both a left-handed and right-handed variant, and both Game Boy skins also have a variant that removes save state buttons from the interface. For those who want to play their favourite RPGs on Delta, these skins are a must-have. It’s also worth noting that a spiritually similar skin,NDS Delta OneMax by Colinh68, is currently in beta for the Nintendo DS core.
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HZN - NES Famicom Controller Style by HoriZon
A quaint throwback with added functionality
TheHZN - NES Famicom Controller Style by HoriZonis a simple enough skin to understand. It’s an NES skin styled like Japan’s Famicom controller. It also adds save state and load state buttons, which can be fantastic additions for those getting used to the difficulty curve of some NES titles. The controller also includes a fast-forward button directly on the interface.
For those that prefer the look of the NES controller as it was in North America, HoriZon has also made thesame skin in the NES style. If you like the look of the original NES controller or the Famicom controller, but you just want a little bit of extra functionality, either of these skins can be a great addition to your Delta setup.
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Ultra64 by starvingartist
A dual-stick N64 layout
The Nintendo 64 controller is popularly panned for a number of reasons, but the C-button layout is less a strange decision and more so just poorly aged. A secondary analog stick wasn’t really all the rage at the time, so you instead get four buttons that occasionally function like you’d expect a modern right-stick to. As time has passed, more people have played N64 games on a controller with two sticks and using a stick instead of the C-buttons actually isn’t that bad in some cases.
For those that prefer to use two sticks rather than one stick and the C-buttons, theUltra64 skin by starvingartistis a perfect solution. It’s a fantastic-looking skin that emphasizes the control stick and the A and B buttons while also allowing users to pick between C-buttons or a C-stick. It also move the Z button to a smaller place by A and B. For some games this is absolutely fantastic, but it’s not so great of a placement for others. Aside from the potentially wonky Z button placement, Ultra64 is a fantastic skin all around.
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Where to find more Delta skins
There are plenty of places to find more
For the most part, your wants for a Delta skin are going to come down to aesthetic preferences. While some of these picks fall within mine, they may not fall within yours. But, there are plenty of places to search for more skins that may fit what you’re looking for.
One great resource is theDelta Styleswebsite. Additionally, you can keep an eye on various Reddit communities, such as/r/iOSEmuSkinsand/r/Delta_Emulator, for more skins that may not appear elsewhere.
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You can always search around on X or Threads to see what others are sharing in terms of skins Delta. No matter where you look, there’s always more to find for customizing the look and feel of your Delta experience. No matter what you’re looking for, it’s a pretty safe bet that someone has made a Delta skin for it.
