Emulation might be a dirty word to some, but it lets fans play older games that aren’t easily accessible. Whether it’s official re-releases or the more questionable forms of emulation, gamers have more ways to play these classics. That’s why it’s quite shocking to hear that PS3 emulation is being developed for Android devices.
A post on the SBCGaming subreddit has confirmed that RPCS3 is officially being developed for Android devices. It still hasn’t launched, so fans will have to wait a bit more before emulating Infamous on their phones, but we’ll get there soon. Being able to play these games on your phone seemed like a pipedream but it’s slowly becoming a reality.
It’s not just limited to phones, as several devices from retro companies like Anbernic and Retroid can run Android. This means that some of these systems might be able to handle PS3 emulation. It will take a while before these devices will be able to run heavy-duty games like God of War 3 but this is a positive first step.
Technically, there was a PS3 emulator for Android that was announced a while back called aPS3e. However, since it was based on the popular RPCS3 and the creator was asking for money this emulator’s release was considered controversial by many. Considering the questionable legality of these emulators, most creators release them for free. It’s not a surprise to know that the aforementioned Android emulator has since been removed.
Sony’s PlayStation 3 was a frustrating console to make games for, due to how complicated the hardware was at the time. It’s been close to 20 years and the tech has become a bit easier to emulate, though not easy enough to make its bigger games easy to play. To this day, something powerful like the Steam Deck has trouble running titles like Infamous.
Here’s hoping that PS3 emulation becomes more accessible to gamers, regardless of the legality behind it. A ton of these games are becoming lost to time, so we see no issue in emulating these classics on Android or other devices.
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