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Delta, a retro game emulator that recently topped the App Store charts, has been forced to redesign its logo following a legal threat from Adobe.
The software giant claimed Delta's logo, a stylized broken triangle resembling the Greek letter delta, infringed on its own "A" logo.
Delta’s game emulator, built by developer Riley Testut, evolved from his earlier app, GBA4iOS, which allowed users to run emulated games on iOS without jailbreaking their devices.
GBA4iOS saw millions of users before Apple shut it down by closing the loophole it exploited.
Now, under regulatory pressure, Apple began permitting game emulators in April, opening new opportunities for developers like Testut.
Seizing this opportunity, Testut launched Delta, which quickly became the No. 1 app on the App Store, maintaining a top position for weeks and garnering millions of downloads.
Delta remains popular, currently ranking as the No. 33 app overall on the U.S. App Store. The No. 5 slot is now held by another game emulator, PPSSPP (a PSP emulator).
However, Delta’s rise to prominence has attracted legal challenges. According to a post on Mastodon, Adobe threatened legal action over Delta’s logo, claiming it resembled Adobe’s own.
Delta’s logo featured a broken triangle, akin to the Greek letter delta, while Adobe’s logo is a thicker, red and white “A” that stretches to the edge of the app icon.
“Adobe is threatening legal action because they think our logos are too similar — so we changed it,” the post explained. “This new icon is an inspired design by Caroline Moore (@[email protected]), we hope y’all love it as much as we do,” it read.
Despite the significant differences in their logos and market spaces — Adobe provides tools for creatives, while Delta offers retro game emulation — Adobe’s legal team claimed Delta’s icon infringed on its trademark.
Delta received an email from Adobe’s lawyer on May 7, requesting a change to avoid violating Adobe’s rights. Shortly after, Adobe asked Apple to take down Delta’s app for trademark infringement.
To avoid legal issues, Delta updated its logo, replacing it with a new design that resembles a broken triangle.
This redesign, while less simplified and clean, is temporary. Testut plans to update the logo again with a final version in the upcoming Delta 1.6 release.
Testut commented on the situation, stating, “…We’re planning to update the icon again to a ‘final’ version — also designed by Caroline — soon,” adding, “we’re not too worried about brand impact in the interim.”
