Development Update and Public Third Alpha Announcement!
I want to give everyone a small update about the project and what is going to happen next.
The project will continue. Remember that everything started because of LairLauncher, and I am not going to let it die. This is something I really care about and something I have been building for a long time.
Also, I want to clarify something important: I am not Usagi, and this Patreon is not exclusive to iiSU. This Patreon exists to support any development I do for dual-screen devices, including all my forks and side projects. That doesn’t change. I am not going anywhere, and I will still be here releasing builds, improving things, and doing technical reviews later in December.
From my side, what I promise is a launcher with as many features as I can possibly deliver. I will keep pushing it forward.
But for now, nothing social will be added until we see what is going to happen next with the team and the overall direction.
Here are a few important points:
Joining the Discord will be paused for a while. I don’t manage the Discord server, so I can’t control anything there at this moment.
I will speak with the rest of the team to see what actions will be taken moving forward.
Today a public alpha will be released (Mexico time, probably around 10 PM). More than 70 commits since the last alpha want to see the light!!!
Because of the Discord situation, I will be more active here on Patreon.
For now, I was the only one developing the Android frontend, and while the iiSU team decides what is going to happen, I can confirm that I will continue being the only one developing the launcher for a while.
Remember that supporting this Patreon is supporting me as a developer. It is not exclusive to iiSU. Later on, the iiSU team will decide if new donations or something similar will open, after Usagi decided to leave the project.
I do not support any comments that discriminate any person.
And one more thing: this time the alpha will be public. I want everyone to be able to see that the launcher development is very alive and progressing fast.
But I also want to clarify that future alphas will return to being exclusive for paid Patreons, until the launcher is ready.
The free version that was mentioned before is exactly the one I am developing right now:
the launcher without any social features, the standalone experience only.
That is the version that will be available for everyone once it reaches the point I want.
The project will keep moving, my work continues, and I appreciate everyone who is supporting me and the development of dual-screen Android experiences.
- Sapphire 💙
Comments (62)
Hi! Maybe it's just me but Retroachievements isn't working properly. Up to a few days ago some achievements were only appearing in offline and I could sync them (despite having good internet) and now they won't sync my current game, Pokemon Ranger Shadows of Almia. So far I have 9 offline that just won't sync :(
Sapphire Lair The Cemu Android v31 sopport Single screen at Android Smartphone?
Yup!
is work on retroid pocket 4pro
Yup!, enable wide screen mode
Thanks for all the help to this project also I was just wondering how long do you think it'll take to make a stable release, 2026 Q4?
Hi! I don't think it will take that long for the launcher, but maybe for social features!
Keep trudging. You got this.
How we can donate and support, besides the Patreon, can we donate more to help then the subscriptions?
You can donate to me as a developer here, and later we will implement a proper donation system for iiSU.
Nothing changed here but the name in front of the project. https://bsky.app/profile/cochu.bsky.social/post/3m6ph6zmeak2k
so,what time is it gonna be out in CST
30 minutes until its released
plz dont be a virus
Don't worry, it isn't!
hey, do you know where you access the alpha? Sorry im not a paid supporter yet im planning on becoming one for the actual project in the future.
I will make a post here!!!
I can't wait to see what you've done, Sapphire!
will the alpha work with normal android phones too or only on the dual-screen devices? Much support, hopping iiSU will grow bigger then ever!
Normal phones too!
your amazing and thank you for all your hard work and efforts.
well that's stupid reason to fire someone
I'm disgusted at the flip they have done on Usagi just for what he said. he apologized, and in my opinion, he did nothing wrong. sad he left.
This isn't the place for discussing that.
Glad to know this isn't going to die with him and that there's is still good people working on this
Uh entonces se puede unir al discord que me llamo la atención iisu
Sip, solo deja que se calmen las cosas
So. Are you a part of the iisu team? Or are you just a fork for two screen focus? I know that's how it goes for melon DS and I did see that at least some of your stuff got merged so it's just kinda getting the dual screen stuff early before it gets merged.
I am the one who has been doing all the launcher work, which was first Lair Launcher and got merged with iiSU.
So if someone upgraded where can he find the alpha builds? And thank you for your work 🙏
Mostly on GitHub, but I will make a post here!
can you send the link to the server?
Yup, it's getting up soon again!
Glad to see the project isn't dead, though it's unfortunate that things turned out the way they did.
Glad to see the project is still going forward and thank you for keeping us up to date, take care of yourselves:)
Awesome project. This must stay alive!
agreed with him i have no doubts about its success.
will there be info for how to update to latest alpha from the current version a person is using? also will this latest alpha already have all the icon art from what was already released to the public?
Just install the new APK! We've got an easy install built into the launcher!
Good to hear the team is still strong, question tho, where will the free alpha be released?
Patreon, GitHub, maybe Discord, in every place we can!
is the iisu server still up?
I recommend turning the discord into a view only to view updates, announcements and etc. like, remove all text channels, just leave the announcement one. There's no benefits of having people talking on the Discord.
Gracias por tu trabajo, te sigo desde que adquirí una Pocket DS en indigogo tus desarrollos con Melón, estoy deseando probar la Alpha en mi Thor y en mi Pocket DS. Aquí te mando todo el apoyo. Come On Saphire, gracias por tu trabajo.
Im about to get the DS Early Tester. Just want to make sure early acces is avaidabe in this package
Yup!
If I upgrade, will I get the iisu early access?
IiSU early acces?, in discord?
Ayy this is great news, thank you so much for all your hard work, Sapphire! Please make sure to rest and look after yourself as I understand it isn't easy. Stay awesome ✨
Pog
thank god. hope to see iisu come to light.
Oh thank God lol! Sapphire lair for the win
MVP
Thanks for all the hard work and frequent updates! Me acabo de enterar que eres mexicano o vives en México, por cierto (soy nuevo en tu Patreon). Muchas gracias por mantenernos informados y mucho éxito en este y todos tus proyectos Sapphire.
Sip justo, soy de México!, y muchas gracias por tus palabras!!!
Looking forward to seeing where this goes. I've been using Waydoid (Linux container for Android apps) and I like how solid iiSU looks already
Estare esperando con muchas ganas ver tus progresos y ver como el launcher toma forma, gracias por tu gran trabajo
Please tell the team to not rush any other conclusion or statement about the project and all the situation in general. Y'all take some time to understand the whole situation and work out the best possible solution. We all want what's best for the project🧡
I could do without the social element. What i want is the functionality of the frontend. Might be a bummer to miss out on thr Shopii feature but as long as the frontend works as shown in the presentation my contribution will be well worth it
Even if my main focus was especially iisu, i think it wouldn't be a problem to support you as a dev in general tbh I have interest in buying an ayn thor in the future anyway, so it would be nice to see you developing apps specificly made to those types of devices
What happened for those of us out of the loop? I just checked UsagiShade’s YouTube page and all of the iiSu videos are missing.
I just found some screenshots from Bluesky. Crazy.