vgmu
iPhone · self-sideloading

Install vgmu
on iPhone.

vgmu for iPhone uses AltStore Classic or SideStore and your own Apple ID. Read the setup and refresh requirements before downloading.

v1.5.0Released Changelist Latest release on GitHub

Changelist

v1.5.0

New

  • Share as a text file: Share file now sends a plain .txt file that Discord and other chat apps can preview. Open it from a chat app or Files and choose vgmu. Older .vgmu files still open.
  • View custom covers full size: tap a custom cover on a playlist, folder, Liked, Offline, or Local Library page to see it full size, then hold it to save it to Photos or Files.
  • Discord sign-in banner: when Discord really needs you to sign in again, a small banner above the player says so, with Reconnect and a way to dismiss it.
  • See inside completed downloads: tap a completed batch to see its tracks, play one, or check its format, size, and when it finished. The Downloads tile in Manager also shows a count while downloads are in progress.
  • Maximum artwork storage: on iPhone, choose how much space online covers can use, from 100 MB to 5 GB. The oldest go the next time you leave the app, and Storage warns you when the cache is over the limit.

Improvements and fixes

  • Discord stays signed in: a short Discord outage or lost connection no longer signs you out on iPhone. vgmu retries by itself and renews the sign-in only when it's close to expiring.
  • Small logo on Android: the vgmu logo now shows on your Discord activity on Android.
  • Smoother on Android: sheets and the full player follow your finger even while vgmu is busy, a flick carries its speed, the player's cover no longer flashes on open, and switching tabs no longer rereads the Library.
  • Shared with You on Android: the list no longer slides under its header when you reopen it.
  • Covers after iOS updates: the mini player and Up Next keep their covers after an update, and Wi-Fi Transfer's imported music keeps refreshing without adding a second entry.
  • Better restores: restoring a backup keeps music already downloaded on the phone, brings back covers whose files are gone, and refuses a backup file with unsafe contents before changing anything.
  • Safer shared files: a shared file can only bring in covers from the catalog, and a cover that's stuck or very large can no longer hold up your downloads.
  • Tidier storage: cut-off Wi-Fi uploads clean themselves up, temporary exports are removed, Storage now counts backups and temporary files, and two local files with similar names can no longer share one stored file.
  • Music and device backups: downloaded music stays out of iCloud backups, so after an iCloud restore those tracks stream until you download them again. Android device backups no longer include vgmu, so keep your own backup file.
  • Pink by default in PictoChat: PictoChat now starts in Console's pink. Sky and the other DS colors are still in Look.

v1.4.0

New

  • Tracks in folders: add a single track to a folder with Add to folder. Folders now list playlists, albums, and tracks in labeled sections, with a Tracks filter, and folder search covers all three.
  • Official Discord connection: Connect Discord now uses Discord's own connection: through the Discord app on Android, and a Discord sign-in on iPhone. The older token method is still there under Use manual token (advanced).
  • New welcome screen: the first launch shows the logo and four things vgmu does.
  • Remove from playlist: in Console and PictoChat, a track's menu inside your playlist has Remove from playlist. The playlist and folder pickers mark what already holds the track as Already added, with a Remove button.

Improvements and fixes

  • Pink by default in Console: Console now starts in the logo's pink. Wii blue is still in Colors.
  • Liquid Glass icon: on iOS 26 the app icon is built from layers, so it follows the glass, dark, tinted, and clear styles.
  • Clearer catalog errors: when an album or list can't load, vgmu says what went wrong in plain words.
  • Emoji in every interface: emoji in titles and playlist names now display properly in Clean, Console, and every PictoChat font.
  • Shorter download details: Download History no longer lists the internal name of the saved file.

v1.3.2

New

  • Colorful tab icons: Console and PictoChat can give Home, Search, Library, and Manager each their own color. Turn it on in Console's Colors or PictoChat's Look.
  • Hide catalog sections on Home: Latest, Top 40, and Most Favorites can now be switched off in Settings, like the other Home rows.

Improvements and fixes

  • Recently Added is newest first: Liked Tracks, Offline Library, and playlists now list your newest tracks at the top, and folders sort by when each album or playlist joined.
  • Smoother recap GIF: the music notes on a shared GIF move more slowly and smoothly, in a longer loop.
  • Dated recap files: a shared recap image or GIF is named vgmu_stats with the date.
  • No light gap on iOS 26: pages, the Sound Lab, and Now Playing no longer show a gray or black strip at the top while they slide in.

v1.3.1

New

  • Listening time on the chart: the Stats summary shows the time above each bar; in Month, tap a bar to see that day. Top tracks now lists up to ten.
  • Folder covers travel too: Include the cover now works when you share a folder as a file, like it does for playlists.
  • Share progress and confirmation: making a recap image or GIF shows its progress on the preview, and a notice confirms when it's shared or saved to Photos.

Improvements and fixes

  • Share GIF no longer crashes: a recap card with a photo sticker from an iPhone camera could close vgmu when shared as a GIF.
  • Shared files open every time: a .vgmu file opened from Files, iCloud Drive, or Downloads, or one with square brackets in its name, now opens instead of showing an error.
  • Clearer share links: a shared link now comes with a line naming the playlist or folder.
  • Already have every track?: adding a shared playlist or folder whose tracks are all in your Library asks first, from Shared with You and from its page.
  • Back from Shared with You: now goes to Library, not to a collection opened earlier from a link.
  • Smoother Stats: the summary no longer jumps while its numbers count up, and the count eases in and out.
  • Sound Lab spinner: stops with the play button once a track plays with its effects; while reverb is still being added, the Sound Lab says so.
  • Closing a recap share cancels it: reopening the sheet starts fresh instead of making the GIF again.
  • Renaming tracks in Edit: the title and artist fields stay above the keyboard.

v1.3.0

New

  • Manager tab: the Downloads tab is now Manager, with four tiles: Sound Lab, Transfer Hub, Backup, and Downloads. Sound Lab and Backup & Restore moved here from Settings.
  • Share playlists and folders: open a playlist or folder and tap Share to send it as a link or a small .vgmu file, which can carry its cover. Your friend opens it in vgmu to play it straight away, add it as a new playlist or folder, or merge its tracks into one of theirs. Only the track list travels; the tracks stream from the catalog.
  • Shared with You: the people button in Library collects everything sent to you, with who sent it and how much is already in your Library. A .vgmu file opens straight into vgmu from Files or Messages, and shows its track list as plain text on a phone without vgmu.
  • Wi-Fi Transfer: open an address on a computer on the same Wi-Fi to drop music files or folders into your Local Library, or download your albums and playlists: everything, single tracks, or the ones you tick, as one .zip or separate files. Plug in a cable for a faster direct address. It keeps running while you use vgmu, with a banner showing the code.
  • Export music: copy downloaded albums and playlists into any folder as files named and tagged for a computer's music player, with cover art.
  • Transfer Hub: every way music moves between your phone and a computer in one place: Wi-Fi Transfer, importing a folder, Export, and backups.

Improvements and fixes

  • Back goes where you came from: backing out of a page opened from another tab, like Transfer Hub from a share sheet or a playlist from Home, returns to where you were.
  • Clearer Stats: the chart labels its dates clearly, and tapping a top game opens its album and a top track plays it.
  • Recently Added in playlists: a playlist's Recently Added order now follows when you added each track, so streamed tracks sort in their right place instead of below downloaded ones.
  • Folders tidy the Library: Hide items already in a folder is now on by default.
  • Steadier playback: iOS no longer closes vgmu while it plays with the phone locked, and Sound Lab effects now fade in on slow streams instead of staying off.

v1.2.0

New

  • Sound Lab: change speed, pitch, and reverb, and shape bass, mids, and treble with a three-band equalizer. Pick Slowed + Reverb or Nightcore in one tap, or set it yourself. Open it from the sliders button in Now Playing or from Settings. Effects work on downloaded and streamed tracks and stay on until you switch them off.
  • Listening stats: tap the chart button on Home for a recap of your week, month, year, or all time: time listened, top games and tracks, your busiest day, longest streak, peak hour, and new games, plus a summary you can come back to. Your play history stays on your device and is included in backups.
  • Share your recap: turn your stats into a story-sized card in your interface style. Choose what it shows, add up to three photo or GIF stickers, and share it as an image or an animated GIF.
  • Eight pinned collections: pin up to eight albums, playlists, or folders in Library, up from four.
  • Album descriptions up front: online albums in Console and PictoChat show their description right on the album page.

Improvements and fixes

  • Smaller, faster backups: backup files are smaller, an automatic backup that matches the last one is not saved again, and restoring is faster. Backups made with 1.2 can't be imported into older versions of vgmu.
  • Covers come back after an update: album covers saved before reinstalling or updating vgmu show up again.
  • Fewer crashes: fixed a crash in page headers, and links to pages vgmu doesn't have now open a Page not found screen instead of closing the app.
  • Notices clear the Dynamic Island: Library and Downloads notices no longer sit behind the Dynamic Island in Console and PictoChat.
  • Honest backup export: Export no longer says it finished when you close the share sheet without saving.
  • Faster PictoChat artwork: pixelated artwork and its slider respond faster.

v1.1.0

New

  • Three interfaces: choose Console, PictoChat, or Clean in Settings under Interface style. They share one Library, your downloads, and every setting, so you can switch anytime. New installs start in Console, and people updating are offered the new looks once.
  • Console: a home-menu look after the Wii, Wii U, and 3DS system menus: covers in white bezels on a dotted shell, rounded type, gentle motion, and your choice of accent color (or any custom color), with a Background slider from darker to brighter.
  • PictoChat: vgmu drawn like the Nintendo DS chat app: pixel-cornered messages with name tabs, DS buttons and switches, pixel icons, and your DS color. Pick the DS menu grid or lined paper, the grid size, and a font (NDS12, DotGothic16, or M PLUS 1p), and optionally pixelate album art.
  • Now Playing backgrounds: Console can float music notes, roll the XMB wave, or drift Wii Menu style rings behind the player. PictoChat can fade the DS boot screen's squares or run a faint chat room of people typing and drawing.
  • A new Home: a greeting when vgmu opens, Continue listening with what's up next, Jump back in, New in your Library, Your Liked Tracks, Re-discover, Because you played, and Trending now, above the catalog. Turn each on or off in Settings.
  • Dark mode everywhere: Appearance can follow your device or stay Light or Dark in every interface.
  • A new logo and launch animation: a crisp redrawn logo, with its EQ columns filling with color as vgmu opens.
  • Haptics: light taps on playback controls, likes, and menus, with a switch in Settings.

Improvements and fixes

  • Faster play and pause: the play button responds the moment you press it, and pausing no longer slows the rest of the app.
  • Loading fills the page: pages show one spinner where their content will be instead of popping in piece by piece.
  • Tabs reset on a second tap: tapping the tab you are on returns to its first page, and albums opened from Home no longer pile up in Library.
  • Crop artwork to fill: covers fill their frames by default; turn it off to see covers that are not square whole.
  • Clearer online artwork cache: Clear online artwork cache now asks first and shows how much it frees.

v1.0.7

New

  • Artwork shows up instantly: covers you have already seen are kept on your device, so they appear right away when you switch tabs, open a playlist, or reopen vgmu, without loading again.
  • Online artwork cache in Settings: Storage now shows how much space online artwork uses, and Clear online artwork cache frees it. Covers download again the next time they appear, and downloaded covers, playlist photos, and imported artwork are never touched.
  • Website link in About: About now links to the vgmu website and the releases page.

Improvements and fixes

  • Local Library refresh keeps working on iPhone: Refresh now keeps access to your imported folders after vgmu is closed and reopened. Folders added before 1.0.7 need to be added again once with Add path, and your imported tracks stay.
  • All-Time Top 100 loads again: the All-Time Top 100 list in Browse works again.
  • No more false rate limit messages: a failed Browse load or Home refresh no longer blocks the next attempt, so Try again works right away.
  • Random Song works again: Random Song no longer shows an error when a random track is unavailable, and picks a track from a random album instead.
  • Discord Rich Presence is back on Android: the Android 1.0.5 and 1.0.6 builds shipped without Discord Rich Presence. It is available again in 1.0.7.
  • Cleaner theme picker: expanded themes no longer show a description line.

v1.0.6

New

  • Search now scopes what plays: when you filter an album or playlist with search, tapping a track plays just those filtered results, and Next Up follows the same filtered list instead of the whole collection.

Improvements and fixes

  • Album artwork stays put: cached covers no longer vanish after the first launch. Artwork already saved to your device keeps showing instead of disappearing on later launches.
  • Fixed an intermittent crash on track changes: resolved a rare crash that could happen while the lock screen and Now Playing artwork was being updated between tracks.
  • Backup exports confirm when they finish: exporting a backup shows a confirmation once the export has actually completed, so you know it worked.

v1.0.5

New

  • Add to a playlist from Now Playing: press and hold the like (heart) button in the full player to add the current track to a playlist. The heart pulses to confirm, then you pick an existing playlist or create a new one. A quick tap still likes the track as before.

Improvements and fixes

  • Go to source lands on the exact track: tapping the title or artist in Now Playing scrolls straight to the current track and highlights it, instead of stopping at the top of the album or playlist. It no longer overshoots on longer lists.
  • Folder, album and track navigation: when a track is playing from a whole folder, go to source opens the album that holds it inside the folder and highlights the track there. This also works for albums saved inside a folder.
  • Folder shuffle mixes every album: shuffling a folder that contains several albums interleaves all of their tracks, the first track included, rather than shuffling one album at a time.
  • More reliable Local Library imports: large folders of 1000 files or more import without crashing or running out of memory, and imports keep filling available space when storage is low.
  • Fewer skipped local tracks: audio files without duration metadata import correctly, with track length computed from the file where the tag is missing.

v1.0.4

What’s new

  • Queuing large albums, playlists, or folders now loads tracks in batches instead of all at once, making it faster and more reliable to queue very large collections
  • The queue screen shows a "+N more tracks" indicator and clearer totals when a large queue is only partially loaded
  • Clearing the queue lets you choose between clearing just what is loaded or the entire queue
  • Lowered the confirmation threshold for queuing a large number of tracks at once, so you get a heads-up sooner
  • Updated the in-app Help documentation with more detail on rounded artwork, theme preview, and folder play history

v1.0.3

What’s new

  • Added an in-app update check that shows a badge and a banner in Settings when a new version is available, with a reminder to back up before installing
  • Added Auto Backup, which saves periodic backups on a schedule you choose, restorable right from Settings
  • Playlist, folder, and Library sort choices are remembered across app restarts instead of resetting every time
  • Recently Played tracks the specific playlist, album, or folder you played from, instead of sometimes crediting the wrong collection
  • Fixed shuffle so it picks a random starting track for a whole album, playlist, or folder, instead of always starting from the first track
  • Fixed list screens (Search, Downloads, Library, Collections, album tracks) occasionally showing blank rows after navigating back until scrolled
  • Tightened the spacing around the mini-player across several screens

v1.0.2

What’s new

  • Added a searchable, A-Z sectioned picker with artwork thumbnails for adding albums, playlists, or downloaded items to a folder, replacing the old flat checkbox list
  • Folder editing tracks unsaved item changes, resets on discard, and shows a summary of items added and removed
  • Playlist and folder creation and renaming blocks duplicate names, case-insensitively, with a clear alert instead of allowing silent duplicates
  • Added a Folders filter chip to Library, plus a "Hide items already in a folder" setting to declutter the main Library list
  • Long-pressing Play on an album or folder confirms and queues every visible track at once
  • Renamed sort labels for clarity: Library uses "Recently Played," while playlist, folder, and album track sorting uses "Recently Added"
  • Layout polish: added spacing to list content, album track lists always show a proper empty state, and the mini-player got more breathing room
  • Improved search pagination reliability and reduced redundant network requests when browsing catalog results
  • Updated the in-app Help documentation to reflect all of the above

v1.0.1

What’s new

  • Added backup and restore, exporting and importing playlists, folders, liked and saved tracks, custom artwork, and settings as a portable file between app installs
  • Replaced the back button with a vector icon across the album, browse, settings, and track screens so it renders consistently and supports iOS 26 Liquid Glass
  • Rapid track skips collapse into a single load, which stops the audio engine crashing
  • Fixed lock-screen metadata so it clears stale album art when the next track has none
  • Fixed a race that dropped source artwork for cached images loading early
  • The catalog parser decodes HTML entities and collects multi-credit fields for composer, publisher, developer, and platform
  • A missing artist reads as "No Artist" instead of leaving a dangling separator
  • The library long-press menu no longer offers Delete on the Liked, Offline, and Local collections

v1.0.0

What’s new

  • The first complete public release.

News and announcements · Every release on GitHub

Before you begin

You need an iPhone with a passcode, your own Apple ID, storage for the app and saved audio, and a computer for setup. Published testing covers iOS 26.3 on iPhone 16 and 17. Pick one store: AltStore Classic needs AltServer on a Mac or Windows computer for every refresh; SideStore is set up once with iloader and then refreshes on the phone. If one breaks after an update, switch to the other.

With a free Apple ID, sideloaded apps expire after seven days and only three can be active at once, including the store itself. There is no App Store installation path.

Set up and install

  1. Set up a store. AltStore Classic: follow the macOS or Windows guide. SideStore: install LocalDevVPN on the iPhone, then use iloader on your computer to install SideStore, following the SideStore install guide .
  2. Download and verify the IPA. Use the official vgmu release below. Do not enter your Apple ID or credentials into this website or a support report.
  3. Import it in your store. Open My Apps → +, choose the downloaded IPA, and sign with your own Apple ID. AltStore needs AltServer reachable; SideStore needs LocalDevVPN connected.
  4. Refresh before expiry. Use Refresh All in My Apps under the same conditions. See AltStore’s refresh guidance or the SideStore FAQ . To switch stores, export a backup first, then install vgmu from the other store with the same Apple ID.

Verify your download

Confirm the publisher is KYLEKHAI/vgmu-releases and the version matches the release notes. Compare the file’s SHA-256 hash with the release checksum file before installing.

On macOS use shasum -a 256 filename; on Windows PowerShell use Get-FileHash filename -Algorithm SHA256. Replace filename with your downloaded file. If the hashes differ, stop and download again from the canonical release.

First listen

Open vgmu, browse or search for an album, and play a track. To listen without a connection, finish saving audio first and check your Offline Library.

Read the getting started guide →
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