Ren'Py Packaging a renpy game for IOS systems but not in an IOS environment?!

[Amahl Farouk]

Hi there!

So I installed all the files required by renpy and the IOS screen, and gleefully made my zip and shared it with my friends. I got back a WTF are we supposed to do with this. So I went to the rules and I read the manual. I know I should have done that first!

My problem specifically seems to be the fact that you actually need to be in an IOS/Mac environment to build an IOS port of ren'py and this really sucked because I dont have any devices based on those OSs (I live in windows 10 with the occasional dirty weekend in Android) . Is there any kind of work around or am I up the Clyde without a paddle (the scots among you will know that expression)?

I have some people who use my program who would really prefer to have it on their IOS devices so I am really trying to do it for them!

 

[MissFortune]

Hi there!

So I installed all the files required by renpy and the IOS screen, and gleefully made my zip and shared it with my friends. I got back a WTF are we supposed to do with this. So I went to the rules and I read the manual. I know I should have done that first!

My problem specifically seems to be the fact that you actually need to be in an IOS/Mac environment to build an IOS port of ren'py and this really sucked because I dont have any devices based on those OSs (I live in windows 10 with the occasional dirty weekend in Android) . Is there any kind of work around or am I up the Clyde without a paddle (the scots among you will know that expression)?

I have some people who use my program who would really prefer to have it on their IOS devices so I am really trying to do it for them!

TL;DR: Third paragraph.

Take a gander at the games on this forum. Bigger ones, smaller ones, average ones. What do they all have in common beyond most likely being a Ren'Py VN or sandbox?

None of them support iOS. Not a single one. That I've run across, at least. They support MacOS, but not iOS. Why? Because getting non-Apple Store iOS apps on an iPhone/iPad is like trying to fuck a hooker in the Sahara Desert. Not worth it. Most users aren't going to know to sideload on an iPhone. Most of them don't care enough to. Terms like 'jailbreaking' and 'sideloading' for the average iPhone are a foreign language to the casual phone user, which is the market Apple absolutely dominates. People that just want to call, text, record videos and/or take pictures/selfies. Possibly bricking their iPhone likely isn't something they even want to think about it. You can still possibly sideload without jailbreaking on Apple, but are they technically competent enough to attempt trying it - for a porn game? Not to sound rude, but if they were, then why would they be using an iPhone? There's a reason they're using iOS and not Android.

So, in short (with bias aside), it's something that's basically just become quietly understood among developers. Why struggle and/or waste time for such a small portion of the community, especially when their chosen communistic platform makes it as difficult as possible? The reality is that most players who are using phones to play a lot of these projects tend to be (though obviously not all) on the lower-end of middle-class. There's no such thing as a budget iPhone, which is Android's market. This tends to inherently create more of a demand for Android versions over something like iOS.

 

[anne O'nymous]

Because getting non-Apple Store iOS apps on an iPhone/iPad is like trying to fuck a hooker in the Sahara Desert. Not worth it.

It can also lead to trouble. The store is a big part of Apple benefits, but it's only one of the reasons why you are supposed to use the store for all you apps. The other is that they want to have a strict control over what can be run with iOS, and are strongly opposed to any kind of NSFW content.
It's because they wanted to release their app on iOS, that OnlyFans initially decided to stop hosting adult content. Then, as far as I understood it, they finally goes for an app that can't show the adult content.

Therefore, they would probably come to anyone who just release an app without using the store, and more that surely make his life a hell if they catch him doing it with a NSFW app. And, well, I guess that no indie dev want to have a meeting with Apple lawyers.

 

[Deleted member 4963437]

I never packaged a game for iOS since I don't have an Apple device. Making Ren'Py games for iOS can be really hard because most of the time the .IPAs are not signed (I think) and to install these apps without jailbreaking is with some shady app that requires you to pay, and most of time it doesn't work. Which is frustrating. Jailbreaking iOS devices isn't something you should "advocate" for just to install some Ren'Py game, since there's the potential of bricking your device. There goes 500 dollars down the drain.

What makes making APKs so easy to install is that you don't even have to root your device to install one. You just need to change a few settings to install unknown apps and THAT'S IT! It works! No need to even root! And if you do need to root, don't use one-click root apps like KingRoot, because those apps have spyware. That's besides the point.

If you need to test your MacOS port, you can always use an emulator. I use VirtualBox because it's free, but I heard VMware is better (that's paid though).

Using iPhone emulators for iPhone apps is only if you're publishing it to the App Store, and to test if it works and it's suitable for the App Store. That's what I think, I don't have an iPhone. Most devs on F95zone usually make adult games, which of course isn't acceptable for the App Store.

And this is why people never package IPA files for distribution on sites like F95zone, itch.io, and other websites. This probably doesn't even contribute at all to the conversation, but these are my two cents.

 

[79flavors]

As an alternative, there's always RenPy Web.

Written by the RenPy Team, it's apparently able to run a full RenPy game using HTML5.

I've found two links for it though, and I'm not sure if either is correct.

You must be registered to see the links

You must be registered to see the links

Safari under iOS supports HTML5. So in theory, that's one way to get your iOS friends to play your RenPy game.
I've never used it and there's probably a good reason why it's not directly available on the RenPy SDK Launcher - so your success may vary. Especially since there's no direct mention of RenPy web on the renpy.org website.

 

[LightmanP]

it's not directly available on the RenPy SDK Launcher

It's available in the launcher under 'Web (Beta)' (for at least a few recent Ren'Py versions that I've been using) and is pretty easy to set up, but there are some limitations - Movies don't work, for example. In the current stable Ren'Py version, there's also an issue with web versions not working in Chrome and alike browsers, but I believe that's fixed in 7.5/8.0.

 

[Deleted member 4963437]

As an alternative, there's always RenPy Web.

Written by the RenPy Team, it's apparently able to run a full RenPy game using HTML5.

I've found two links for it though, and I'm not sure if either is correct.

You must be registered to see the links

You must be registered to see the links

Safari under iOS supports HTML5. So in theory, that's one way to get your iOS friends to play your RenPy game.
I've never used it and there's probably a good reason why it's not directly available on the RenPy SDK Launcher - so your success may vary. Especially since there's no direct mention of RenPy web on the renpy.org website.

I've never been able to play games using Ren'Py Web for some reason. I'm using Google Chrome. There's isn't any direct mention of any of the Ren'Py tools that allow you to distribute on other platforms at all kind of, like ReniOS, RAPT either. Maybe it's just me.

 

[Amahl Farouk]

OK then, thanks to everyone for your input. I will be putting that idea on the shelf!