This week has been buzzing with exciting news from the team behind the PlayStation 3 emulator, RPCS3. They’ve made a groundbreaking announcement that RPCS3 now boasts stable, native support for the Arm64 architecture across Windows, macOS, and Linux. This achievement extends even to the Raspberry Pi 5, pushing the emulation capabilities of this small device to new limits. It’s quite a feat, considering that previous Raspberry Pi models have managed to emulate GameCube and, to a lesser degree, Wii games. Now, with the right tweaks, the Raspberry Pi 5 is stepping up to potentially handle PS3 emulation on entry-level Arm hardware.
Imagine running PS3 games on a Raspberry Pi 5—that’s what some are now daring to tackle. It’s like challenging the boundaries of PS3 emulation. With specific settings, PS3 games can be scaled down to a 273p resolution, similar to that of a PlayStation Portable (PSP), instead of the PS3’s native 720p. This adjustment opens up the possibility of playing certain 3D games, such as the HD versions of God of War and God of War II, Catherine, Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm, and more. While 2D games are naturally more accessible, the fact that 3D games from the PS3 era can achieve playable frame rates on a Raspberry Pi 5 is quite the unexpected surprise.
Switching gears to macOS, Apple’s Arm architecture is also making waves. Native support on Apple Silicon has resulted in significant performance boosts when playing PS3 games. By running games natively, rather than through x86 emulation on top of PS3 hardware emulation, users report framerate improvements ranging from 50% to 100%. This development is transforming Arm-powered PS3 emulation from a mere aspiration to an impressive reality.
In contrast to the scaled-down experience on a Raspberry Pi 5, emulation on Apple Silicon truly showcases the power of PS3 games. Titles like God of War III and Skate 3, known for their demand on hardware, are now surprisingly playable. These games, tougher to emulate than their PS2-to-PS3 HD counterparts, still deliver an impressive performance on capable Arm architecture hardware.
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