Drastic Emulator Removed from Google Play Store

The popular Nintendo DS emulator Drastic has vanished from the Google Play Store, as reported by Android Authority. While the exact reason remains unclear, the removal was initiated by the developer rather than Nintendo.

Last year, developer Exophase made Drastic free to download and indicated plans to remove it from Google Play and open-source its code. However, this transition never materialized. The announcement came after Nintendo’s legal actions resulted in the shutdown of the Yuzu Switch emulator and the Citra Nintendo 3DS emulator. Although Exophase mentioned that these events did not influence its decision, they did accelerate the removal timeline.

Drastic’s absence is a significant loss for the emulator community, which was already affected by Nintendo’s legal actions. Despite this, Apple’s unexpected changes to App Store guidelines have led to a growing iOS emulator market.