PlayCover

PlayCover allows M1 Macs to sideload iPhone and iPad apps even after macOS 11.2.3, please see the main Sideloading article for other methods of sideloading.

Features

• Apps can be played in fullscreened, with keyboard and mouse (using Touch Assist and mapping), and controller
• Compatible with macOS Big Sur and Monterey

Nightly builds

• Nightly builds are now available, for free, from PlayCover's Github Actions

Install Instructions

1. Download the DMG file from PlayCover
2. Open the DMG file, and then drag and drop PlayCover.app into the applications folder.
3. Open PlayCover.app
4. Select the "Install" button under the "You need to install the Xcode command line tools" prompt (if the prompt doesn't appear, run xcode-select --install in a terminal
5. In the popup that appears, select Install (The time remaining is lying, it'll take around 10 minutes depending on your internet connection)
6. Drag and drop your decrypted IPA file into the PlayCover window.

Login Fixes

In the latest version, to fix login in some apps (like Genshin Impact) you must check PlayChain in the PlayCover settings.

Otherwise, mainly in older versions, an alternate fix is disabling the System Integrity Protection of your mac, however, it is NOT RECOMMENDED due to the security risks it entails, specially in older PlayCover versions:

1. Disable SIP (boot into recovery mode by holding power button when boot, login your account, open terminal, type csrutil disable, agree) (Note: doing this lowers system security, e.g. you may not be able to use google chrome or electron based apps, such as discord)
2. Restart
3. Open Terminal, type sudo nvram boot-args="amfi_get_out_of_my_way=0x1 ipc_control_port_options=0" (Note: this command lowers system security, e.g. you may not be able to use google chrome or electron based apps, such as discord)
4. Restart
5. Now captcha/login will work
6. after successful login, run the following command in terminal to reset your boot-args: sudo nvram boot-args=""
7. After successful login, you should enable SIP again: run csrutil enable from recovery mode. (Note: some apps, such as Netflix, will stop working after you enable SIP, so you may have to keep SIP disabled to use specific apps, although this is not recommended)

Note: If you have problems with csrutil command (failed). Go to System preferences, Privacy & Secuirity, disable FileVault, enable it and choose allow unlock disk from iCloud option. If you have multiple macOS installations, you should set the startup disk to the macOS install that you're changing SIP for.

Remapping keys

• ⌘+K Open/close keymapping editor
• ⌘+delete Remove element
• ⌘++ or - Setting size

To add a Keymap, simply click anywhere in the window, and select a type from the radial menu that appears.