The latest version of the popular PlayStation 3 emulator, RPCS3, allows for greatly improved performance on low-end CPUs.
The team behind the RPCS3 project has released a new build of the PS3 emulator, version v0.0.32-16614, and the performance gains on lower-end processors are quite major. According to the team behind the project, C++ developer Elad Ashkenazi has implemented additional SPU optimizations, offering “great” performance gains. We’ve included some screenshots showing framerates within Demon’s Souls and Persona 5 running on a setup with a 4 cores/4 threads CPU below. As you can see in the screenshots, the performance gains are quite noticeable (101% performance gain in Demon’s Souls, and 30,4% in Persona 5). We’ve also included two videos of Twisted Metal and Armored Core using the new RPS3 version (courtesy of ‘Val’).
Those interested can download the latest version of the PS3 PC emulator here. The RPCS3 project kicked off back in 2011 and has since made great progress. At the moment of writing, the emulator is able to run over 2500 PS3 games (69,17%). Some months ago we covered that the emulator is able to run Gran Turismo 5 at 60FPS on PC. Aside from ongoing work on RPCS3, the team is also working on the RPCSX PS4 emulator.
We’ve included some info from the RPCS3 emulator’s FAQ below:
Can I play multiplayer games online with real consoles or other RPCS3 users?
Online multiplayer is something we’re thinking about and that already works on a very small amount of games with simple network code. We may not focus on it until RPCS3 is as stable and as accurate as possible. Playing games online with real PlayStation 3 systems will require the user to connect to a PlayStation Network server in many cases, thus requiring private PSN servers to be made first.
Can I play local-multiplayer games with RPCS3?
Local-multiplayer is completely supported. We support up to 7 concurrent controllers at any given time, just like original PlayStation 3 hardware on both Windows and Linux. The controllers can be assigned with a wide range of configurations. For example, one player can use a keyboard while another can use a compatible gamepad. To learn more about compatible gamepads, please refer to the Quickstart Guide.
Can I import my save data from my real PlayStation 3?
Yes, saves can be imported from a real PlayStation 3 system using the standard USB flash drive transfer method. Due to how the user account system works on a real PlayStation 3 system, in some cases, you may need to re-sign your save. For more information on how to manage your save data within RPCS3, please refer to the Quickstart Guide.
