PlayStation 3 emulators

PlayStation 3 emulators

Top: Original PlayStation 3 (2006) Center: PlayStation 3 Slim (2009) Bottom: PlayStation 3 Super Slim (2012)
Developer	Sony Computer Entertainment
Manufacturer	Sony, Foxconn, Asus
Type	Home video game console
Generation	Seventh
Release date	JP: November 11, 2006 NA: November 17, 2006 PAL: March 23, 2007
Discontinued	PAL: March 2016 NA: October 2016 JP: May 29, 2017
Predecessor	PlayStation 2 PSX
Successor	PlayStation 4
Emulated	✓

For emulators that run on the PlayStation 3, see Emulators on PlayStation 3.

The PlayStation 3 (officially called shorthand PS3) is a seventh-generation home video game console released by Sony in late 2006 and retailed for $499 ($797 in 2026) for a 20GB HDD model and $599 ($957 in 2026) for a 60GB model. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it began development in 2001 when Sony partnered with Toshiba and IBM to create the Cell Broadband Engine. The console was launched a year after the Xbox 360 and around the same time as the Wii. While it was debatably the most powerful console of the seventh generation, it was also difficult to develop for, as its architecture was significantly more complex than its competitors.

The Cell Broadband Engine consists of a 3.2 GHz Power Processing Element (PPE) and seven Synergistic Processing Elements (SPE), and the system contains 256 MBs of XDR DRAM main memory at 3.2 GHz and 256 MBs of GDDR3 video memory at 650 MHz for the Nvidia/Sony RSX Reality Synthesizer GPU. The GPU runs at 500 MHz and has to communicate back and forth with both RAMs. The complexity of the SPEs bogged down development of most PlayStation 3 multi-platform games, as developers had to go through the process of learning the SPE architecture before they could use it. As a result, many developers didn't make effective use of the SPEs, with the consequence that a considerable number of multi-platform titles run with lower framerates or worse graphics compared to the Xbox 360. 88,159,116 units were produced from October 2006 to June 2016.

The number of units sold worldwide was about the same as the Xbox 360. The PlayStation 3 initially included a feature called OtherOS, but once it was removed shortly after the PS3 Slim model was released citing "security concerns", fail0verflow had a jailbreak detailed in 2010, giving way for modders to downgrade firmware on a specific version and install a custom firmware, something Sony would patch in newer updates until an exploit was released for 4.82. Emulation only started gaining traction in the late 2010s, as RPCS3 had made strides in improving its largely HLE-based emulation. It has since become the emulator of choice.

Emulators

Before editing, review the Getting involved and Recommended pages. See system requirements page for performance demand of the emulators.
See tables for arcade variations, enhancements, hardware features and peripherals.
For more details such as licensing, programming language, emulation method, visit each emulator’s dedicated page.

Name	Platform(s)	Latest version	Active	License	Compatibility	Recommended
PC
RPCS3		Nightly 0.0.42 Alpha Older builds for obsolete hardware	✓	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	78.11% 2847 out of 3645 reported titles	✓
ChonkyStation3		git	✓	GPLv3 (Copyleft)	2 games working	✗
Nucleus		0.1.0	✗	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	N/A	✗
PS3F		0.1	✗	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	N/A	✗
Short Waves		0.0.2	✗	Proprietary	N/A	✗
Mobile
RPCSX-UI-Android		v20250425	✓	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	16.67% 2 out of 12 reported titles	WIP
Andstation 3		alpha	✓	Proprietary	?	!
aPS3e UNVERIFIED • CAUTION		2.39 PlayStore Free Version PlayStore Donation Version	✓	?	?	!
ARMSX3		0.9.8	✓	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	?	?
PSX3IOS		beta 0.2.6	✓	?	?	?
RPCS3 iOS		0.7.1	✓	?	?	?

Comparisons

RPCS3

RPCS3 is an open-source hybrid approach emulator for 64-bit Windows, GNU/Linux, BSD and macOS and it stands as a remarkable feat in PlayStation 3 emulation, successfully tackling the intricate PlayStation 3's complex architecture through innovative techniques. While it isn't anywhere near as compatible as Dolphin is for GameCube or Wii, it has still made immense progress compared to its early days, when development was slow and seemed like it wasn't really going anywhere. Some of the SPU intensive titles have insufficient performance which requires top-notch single-thread performance of CPUs. As of now, all known titles now load, and initialize properly, without crashing the emulator. Beyond this, RPCS3 supports some enhancements and system features, peripherals. As of April 13, 2022, builds for macOS have started being officially distributed for Intel and ARM Macs.

RPCSX-UI-Android

Android fork of RPCS3 is merged with RPCSX project.

aPS3e

aPS3e is a open-source PS3 emulator for Android which is largely based on RPCS3. However, unlike AndStation 3, aPS3e does not use any containers. Instead, it directly executes after being compiled into aarch64 instructions through LLVM.

Nucleus

A one-person project by Alexandro Sanchez (AKA 'AlexAltea', who is also one of the developers of the RPCS3 and Orbital projects) that aimed at low-level emulation, some AOT emulation, and portability.

Short Waves

Released in 2014 by InoriRus, who later returned to the emulation scene in 2021 as the developer of the PlayStation 4 and 5 compatibility layer Kyty. Short Waves could run a few complex tests that RPCS3 couldn't at the time it was released, but it hasn't been updated since.

PS3F

Made by Shima, the creator of SSF. More information can be found here.

Enhancements

Please only include recommended emulators in this table. Do not bump or spam GitHub threads, issues, or feature request pages.

Name		RPCS3
Controls	Disguise peripheral support through passthrough Tricking the software into think that the original controller was connected even those identify themselves with different device IDs. When a game tries to identify a connected 'nearly the same internally' controller, emulator will tell it that the equivalent original controller is connected instead, allowing it to work.	?
	Input lag-mitigating technique	✗
	Mouse injector	✓
	Real peripheral support (passthrough) Ability to passthrough USB HID devices or Bluetooth adapter for emulated system.	?
	Turbo button	?
Graphics	Pre-rendering anti-aliasing (MSAA, SSAA)	?
	Ray tracing (DXR, VRT and MRT)	Implementing ray tracing in an emulator is unfortunately quite challenging and unlikely to be feasible in the near future. However you can try "Screen-Space Ray Traced Global Illumination" shader using ReShade. See here and here
	Resizable internal resolution	✓
	RTX Remix	Implementing RTX Remix technology in an emulator is unfortunately quite challenging and unlikely to be feasible in the near future. Besides, RPCS3 already supports some of RTX Remix features. On top of that you can use ReShade for post-processing.
	Super-resolution techniques (DLSS, XeSS and FSR 2+)	Requires access to the depth buffer and temporal data like motion-vectors so it's quite challenging and unlikely to be feasible in the near future.
	Texture replacement	✗
	Ultra-widescreen hack Widescreen already supported on PlayStation 3 system. But there is no support by system for render games in other ratios such as 16:10, 21:9, or 32:9.	✓
Performance	Frame generation technologies (LSFG, DLSS-FG and SM, XeSS-FG, AFMF and FSR FG)	Implementing frame generation technology in an emulator is unfortunately quite challenging and unlikely to be feasible in the near future, however post-processing techniques such as motion interpolation is quite possible. Input latency will be a crucial factor, but its impact likely varies depending on the specific technique employed, it's recommended to use after applying the "Internal Framerate Hack". While AFMF or LSFG can be used with RPCS3, please be aware that some visual glitches and artifacts may occur at this time. See here and here. If you have a compatible GPU, you can also use Nvidia's Smooth Motion, see here.
	Internal frame rate hack	✓
	Overclock	✓
	Rendering latency reduction technologies (LatencyFleX, Reflex, Xe-LL and Anti-Lag+)	While most emulators offer frame pacing or framebuffer latency control options, implementing rendering latency reduction technologies isn't currently feasible. This is likely doesn't offer enough benefit to justify the development effort.
Post-processing	AI-powered filter (Freestyle)	?
	Filters	✗
	Inverse tone mapping compatible	✓ See here and here
	Post-rendering anti-aliasing (FXAA, TXAA and MLAA/SMAA)	✗
	Post-rendering scaling (Sharp bilinear, Lanczos and FSR 1)	✓
	Shader chain	✗
Quality of life	Automatic emulated controller connect/disconnect Automatically connects or disconnects emulated controllers when a new or current controller is connected or disconnected.	✗
	Automatic updater	✓
	Big Picture Mode	~
	Built-in cheat manager	✓
	Built-in custom resolution/CRTSwitchRes For using this on Windows, you need CRT Emudriver. Another option is using EDID editor tool such as "Custom Resolution Utility".	✗
	Built-in mod editor and manager	✗
	Built-in patch manager	✓
	Built-in save manager	✓
	Command-line options	✓
	On-screen display Showcases messages, controller input state which is useful for speedrunners, performance data, active settings, and various notifications.	✓
	Index/Compatibility databases Many modern emulators incorporate database-driven per-game overrides to apply targeted fixes or tweaks for quality-of-life (QoL) improvement without requiring users to manually edit global config files for each title. This approach allows quick, centralized application of workarounds for specific games, such as graphics fixes, timing adjustments, or compatibility flags, while keeping the emulator's default settings intact. This auto fix feature shouldn't be confused with "Per-game profiles" enhancement feature.	✓
	Pause/Resume emulation	✓
	Per-game profiles	✓
	Portable and stealth Useful enhancement feature for non-personal computer use or plug-and-play scenarios. However, the software may still require the necessary prerequisites and dependencies for your operating system if it is not statically linked.	✓
	Streamable compression format	✗
	SDL backend support Provides controller plug-and-play and automatic input mapping through SDL GameController database.	✓
	Variable refresh rate	✓
TAS features	Fast forward/Turbo speed	✗
	Macros/Scripts/Lua	✗
	Movie recording/playback	✗
	Rewind	✗
	Save states	✓
Misc.	Ambient sounds simulation Simulation of audio from original hardware and environments, such as mechanical hard drive, floppy diskette, and optical drive noises (e.g., head seeks, spin-up/down, tray loading, disc spinning, and clicking), variable CRT flyback transformer whine (the classic high-pitched "coil whine" that dynamically changes pitch based on screen brightness and content), arcade cabinet effects (e.g., fan hum or button rattles), and other background ambient noises.	✗
	Debug features	✓
	EmuVR support	Exclusive to libretro cores. So there is no support at the moment.
	Free Look Free Look is a enhancement feature that allows manipulation of the in-game camera.	While freecam would be technically possible, it will require per-game patches. Said patches would require a significant amount of time to reverse the game's engine, which means that only someone talented with enough dedication to a single game could do it. Also there is a feature request for adding this enhancement feature to RPCS3 emulator.
	RetroAchievements	✗
	Rich Presence (RPC) Allows the emulator to share real-time game session details (e.g., current game title, level, boss, playtime, or custom status) with external applications. This enables features such as displaying what you're playing on your profile, inviting friends to spectate, or triggering join-in-progress functionality where supported.	✓
	Screen translator Using optical character recognition (OCR) and other techniques, this feature can provide live translation of in-game text, text-to-speech for visually impaired users, and more — either on demand or automatically.	You can use RetroArch's AI Service or the standalone offline bquenin's Interpreter.

Hardware features and peripherals

Please only include recommended emulators in this table. Do not bump or spam GitHub threads, issues, or feature request pages.

Name				RPCS3
Hardware features	Alternative display mode			✓
	Backwards compatibility	PlayStation 2 emulation (incl. PS2 Classics) PlayStation 2 backwards compatibility is possible thanks to (ps2_emu).		✗
		PlayStation emulation (incl. PSone Classics) PlayStation Classics from PSN (ps1_netemu), these titles should not be confused with PlayStation Classic emulation box.		~
		PlayStation Portable emulation (incl. PSP Minis and PSP Remasters) pspemu used for PSP Minis and PSP remasters.		✗
	Blu-ray player			~
	Connectivity	Bluetooth		?
		Ethernet LAN tunneling		✓
		PlayStation Network (incl. PlayStation Home and Life with PlayStation)		~
		Wi-Fi		?
	Controller	Motion sensor		✓ Perfect support. Emulator supports motion controls for DualShock 3, DualShock 4 and DualSense. Sony, Nintendo and Valve controllers can emulate DualShock 3 via reWASD application. Recently, mouse-based gyro emulation added.
		Pressure-sensitive inputs		✓ Perfect support for DualShock 3 controller which works with Official Sony driver and DsHidMini community driver. Emulator allows to assign one key to change pressure sensitivity. It's possible to have more variants with reWASD application which allows to assign keys or gamepad buttons to Virtual DualShock 3. Emulator supports DualShock 2, but only with special adapter emulating DualShock 3, RPCS3 does not support Bliss-Box API. Other controllers with pressure-sensitive buttons like Xbox controller or Steam Deck touchpads are not supported.
		Vibration		✓
	Dolby Digital, DTS, 5.1 and 7.1			✓
	System firmware	OtherOS		✗
		Trophies		✓
		VSH (XMB and apps)		~
Peripherals	Connectivity	PlayStation Portable		~
		PlayStation Vita		✗
	Controllers	BD remote control		✗
		Buzz! controller		✓
		Light gun	GunCon 3	✓
			Top Shot Elite	✓
			Top Shot Fearmaster	✓
		Logitech G27		✓
		Music	Dance pad	✓
			DJ Hero turntable	✓
			Drums	✓
			Guitars	✓
			Keyboard	✓
		PlayStation Move	Motion Controller	✓
			Navigation Controller	✓
			Sharp Shooter An assault rifle-like gun attachment that has its own unique inputs.	✗
			Racing Wheel	?
		Rapala Rod and Reel		~ Only supported through USB passthrough.
		Rock Band 3 MIDI Pro Adapter		✓
		Skateboard		✓
		uDraw GameTablet		✓
	Headset			✗
	Keyboard			✗
	Mass storage device (USB flash drive, SD card, CompactFlash, Memory Stick, PlayStation Portable, Digital camera, Walkman, ATRAC audio device, etc.)			✗
	Memory card	PlayStation		✗
		PlayStation 2		✗
		PocketStation		✗
	Microphone	Rocksmith		✓
		SingStar		✓
		Standard		✓
	Mouse			✗
	Printer			✗
	Stereoscopic 3D			✓
	Toys-to-life	Disney Infinity Base		✓
		LEGO Dimensions Toy Pad		✓
		Rider Gate Portal (Kamen Rider Summonride)		✓
		Skylanders Portal of Power		✓
	Webcam		EyeToy	✓
			PlayStation Eye	✓
			UVC	✓
	Wireless Keypad			✗
	Wonderbook A book-like toy that has a barcode inside, which can be scanned in games that support them.			✗
Misc.	Development kits			~
	System lights			✗

LAN tunneling

Offline multiplayer gaming on the PS3 home console over a LAN (local area network) multiplayer games, just like System Link for XBOX systems. There are 104 games with the LAN feature for the PlayStation 3. To see if the game you want to play is supported see this page or look on the back of the game case.

• RPCS3 - XLink Kai Setup
• See Netplay#LAN tunneling programs for more information about other LAN tunneling solutions.

Trophies

PlayStationTrophies.org

PSNProfiles: PlayStation 3 Trophies

Trophies are PlayStation Network awards presented to players for completing specific tasks in a game. The feature is present in most PlayStation 3 games, and all PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 games. Trophies shouldn't be confused with RetroAchievements.

• RPCS3 supports Trophies notifications, progress and locking/unlocking etc. and also it has a dedicated built-in manager for trophies. If you want to use custom sound for notifications you need to change files from "RPCS3\sounds". Although there is no communication between PSN or RPCN with RPCS3 trophy system. See this page for more information about this.

OtherOS

Wikipedia:OtherOS

For Recommended Linux distributions, see Recommended Linux distros.

For Ports of the Linux kernel on consoles, see Homebrew and ROM hacks#Operating_systems.

For Running Linux on PlayStation 2 (using the PS2 Linux kit), see PlayStation 2 emulators#Linux for PlayStation 2.

OtherOS is a feature of early versions of the PlayStation 3 video game console, allowing user installed software, such as many distributions of Linux or BSD in a separate partition as long as they supported PowerPC. The feature was removed since system firmware update 3.21, released on April 1, 2010. Software running in the OtherOS environment has access to 6 of the 7 SPEs. Sony implemented a hypervisor restricting access to the RSX. However either through a security vulnerability before FW 2.10 or by using some form of OtherOS++ CFW full access to the RSX, and/or the seventh SPE and other system resources is possible. See Recommended linux distros#Multiplatform-focused or T2 SDE PS3 page for more information.

• RPCS3 do not support PlayStation 3 OtherOS feature at the moment.

Model Citizen PS3: YouTube, PS3Linux.net

PlayStation Portable connectivity

Using remote play (via the PS3 system's wireless LAN)

Copying games to play on a PSP system that can be played on either PS3 or PSP systems

Adhoc Party support, remote play (via the PS3 system's wireless LAN), copying games to play on a PSP system that can be played on either PS3 or PSP systems etc.

• RPCS3 do not support PlayStation Portable connectivity emulation at the moment. There is a feature request for this. Recently UsbPspCm passthrough support added to RPCS3.

PlayStation Vita connectivity

PS3 Remote Play with PS Vita

Connect PS Vita System Using Network

Remote play (via the PS3 system's wireless LAN), copying games to play on a PS Vita system that can be played on either PS3 or PS Vita systems etc.

PocketStation communication

Wikipedia:PocketStation#Compatible_PlayStation_games

PocketStation communication with PlayStation 3 system is possible with a memory card adaptor.

• RPCS3 do not support PocketStation communication at the moment.

Peripherals

PlayStation Move

The PlayStation Move is a controller similar to a Wiimote, shaped to be held into hand and play with motion detection. It is detected by the PSEye, the successor of the PS2's EyeToy. The PSEye is usable on PC as it benefits from unofficial drivers made by the community. It is not yet implemented in a PS3 emulator. RPCS3 had some first steps implemented for PSMove use, but the controllers aren't working yet.

The author of this preliminary implementation, velocityra, is a dedicated developer for RPCS3 and Vita3K. His own branch of the PSMove has advanced further, as the PSEye and PSMove controllers are already physically supported using the PSMoveAPI. A pretty old compatibility list can be found here. Some YouTube videos are also showing the work-in-progress functionality working. The author unfortunately stopped working on this implementation years ago.

Recently there is a this pull request for implementing Real PS Move Handler which will complete PS Move controller support/emulation.

Blu-ray Disc remotes

Wikipedia: Blu-ray Disc remotes

Just like PlayStation 2's DVD Remote Controller you can even play games with it other than multimedia functionalities: as long as the game recognizes controls for a D-Pad, you should be okay. Just hold the PS button to change the controller channel to 1.

Arcade variations

See feature requests and pull requests for implementation of arcade variations on RPCS3. Also see for information about hardware-based copy protection methods. RPCS3 was just added into TeknoParrot so you can now play PS3 arcade games via RPCS3 without all the setup, as Teknoparrot takes care of all of it for you.

Namco System 357

A fork currently exists for RPCS3 called Project OMED/RPCS357. The fork has two versions of itself, the Taiko/Fighting version (for Taiko no Tatsujin games and fighting games) and the Gun version (for the rail shooters, requires a lightgun to play). The latest public version is available here: https://pixeldrain.com/u/dfGaH2oX.

Demonstration
Official Project OMED YouTube Channel

Namco System 359

Namco System 359 (or 369 in some regions) is an updated version of Namco System 357 machine and was only for use with Tekken Tag Tournament 2. Project OMED/RPCS357 supports this game and is fully compatible with this machine.

Game-specific features

Name		RPCS3

See also

DualShock 3 and Sixaxis

References

Sony(edit)

• Consoles: PlayStation • PlayStation 2 • PlayStation 3 • PlayStation 4 (PS4 Pro) • PlayStation TV • PlayStation 5 (PS5 Pro)
• Handhelds: PocketStation • PSP • Vita • PS Portal
• Arcade: Namco System 10/11/12 • Capcom ZN-1/ZN-2 • Konami Twinkle • Konami System 573 • Konami Bemani System 573 Analog • Konami Bemani System 573 Digital • Konami GV & Baby Phoenix • Konami GQ • Taito G-NET • Taito FX-1A/FX-1B • Konami Python 1/Bemani Python 1/Python Satellite Terminal • Konami Python 2/Bemani Python 2 • Namco System 246 • Namco System 256 • Namco System Super 256 • Namco System 147 • Namco System 357 • Namco System 359 • Dissidia Final Fantasy Arcade variant