You’ll Need iDOS 3: What Is It?
TheiDOS 3 appis based on the free and Open Source DOS emulatorDOSBox.
So the first thing you gotta do in this process is buy the app, and install it.
Getting Your DOS Games on iPad
The next step is getting your game files on your iPad.
you might use all sorts of file setups with iDOS, such as game disk images.
However, the easiest way is to simply copy a game’s installation folder over to your iPad.
In this case, I used my GOG copy of Jazz Jackrabbit.
There are two modes for iDOS 3: portrait and landscape.
When holding your iPad in portrait mode, you’ll see a virtual keybaord and a faux period-appropriate computer.
So tap on the floppy drive and select “Folder.”
Now navigate to the folder where you saved your DOS game files, and select “Open.”
You’ll see a message that the game folder has been mounted as a virtual drive in iDOS.
Sydney Louw Butler / Epic Megagames / Midjourney
So next we want to change to that drive.
punch in “D:” using the on-screen keyboard and then tap on the Enter button.
In this case, that’s “Jazz.exe” but it depends on the specific game, of course.
Now the game is running, but how to control it?
Configuring Peripherals
Let’s be honest, touch controls aren’t great for playing video games.
However, for many games, you’ll want toconnect a Bluetooth game controllerto your iPad.
In my case, I used an Xbox Series X controller.
By default, the buttons and controls are bound to keyboard keys.
Then under “optional inputs” switch on the gamepad option.
That’s the least you oughta know to get a DOS game running on your iPad.
I couldn’t be happier!
