RPCS3 PS3 Emulator: Performance Boost for ARM Macs & Qualcomm PCs

March 25, 2026 Rachel Kim – Technology Editor Technology

PlayStation 3 emulation on the PlayStation 5 is now possible, with developers at RedoEngine releasing a game playable on Sony’s current-generation console. While still limited in scope, the development marks a significant step forward in bringing PS3 titles to the PS5, a feature long requested by gamers and currently addressed only partially through PlayStation Plus Premium’s cloud streaming service.

The first commercially available PS3 game playable natively on PS5 is Cloudberry Kingdom, released by RedoApps in December 2025. The company specializes in emulation, but unlike the open-source RPCS3 project, RedoEngine’s approach is proprietary and focused on a smaller selection of games. According to posts on Reddit, RedoApps acknowledges that RPCS3 is a more mature and comprehensive emulator.

The development comes as Sony’s own efforts to offer PS3 titles on the PS5 have been criticized for relying on cloud streaming, which many users find less than ideal. PlayStation Plus Premium subscribers can access a “Classics Catalog” of PS3 games, but the experience is dependent on a stable internet connection and can suffer from latency issues.

Meanwhile, the open-source RPCS3 emulator continues to make strides in compatibility. As of January 20, 2026, RPCS3 reports that 70.94% of PS3 games are now “Playable,” with another 26.19% labeled “Ingame” but exhibiting noticeable glitches. Recent builds have seen improvements to titles like Gran Turismo 5 Prologue. Developers have also added support for steering wheels and custom servers for online multiplayer in games that previously lacked them.

The difficulty in emulating PS3 games stems from the console’s unique “Cell” processor architecture. Even on powerful PCs, RPCS3 can be CPU-intensive, impacting framerates. Sony has partnered with Implicit Conversions, a retro gaming specialist, in an attempt to develop an official solution, but progress appears to be slow.

Recent optimizations to RPCS3 have expanded compatibility to devices with ARM processors, including Apple’s M-series chips and Qualcomm Snapdragon processors found in some Windows laptops. A March 22, 2026, post on Twitter from the RPCS3 team detailed new CPU emulation optimizations for ARM devices, leveraging ARMv8 SDOT/UDOT instructions to accelerate mathematical operations used in PS3 hardware simulation. This brings performance on ARM-based systems closer to that of x86 processors. More than 2,600 PS3 games are now officially compatible with the emulator.

The RPCS3 team has also integrated a feature allowing users to add games directly from Steam, utilizing Valve’s platform as a unified game launcher. This addresses long-standing complaints about RPCS3’s user interface, which some users find cumbersome, particularly on smaller screens.

The RPCS3 project has ceased development for Android devices to focus resources on PC versions for Windows, macOS, Linux, and FreeBSD, supporting both x86 and ARM architectures.