Someone just released a PS3 emulator for Android (Update: Testing and controversy)

Update (3:58 AM EST, February 18, 2025): The aPS3e PS3 emulator on Android has gained considerable notoriety in the past 24 hours, as new details about the developer and the emulator have emerged. We’ve also had more time to test the app, which requires a small trick to work with most games.

Developer Aenu has restored the aPS3e Github page, which is now the best place to download it. However, they also ask for donations in the readme, stating they will release the source code when donations reach $5000. That was later lowered to $2,000, but it’s still a bad look for a first-time dev.

To make matters worse, it appears that much of the project is based on the open-source RPCS3 emulator. It’s fine to use that code to fork your own project, but it’s not ok to make the new project closed-source. It also appears to use binaries from another open-source project, Termux.

The Android Authority team has performed further testing, and performance is surprisingly solid. However, in order to make games work you need to move the .rap file into the exdata folder in aps3e/config/dev_hdd0/home/000000001 (via Reddit user ghouleye). Once you boot the game, it will take a while to install, and some games may never get past this point.

However, lightweight games like Rayman Origins and 3D Dot Game Heroes ran smoothly on the Nubia REDMAGIC 10 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra. It’s still missing many basic features like controller support, but it’s the first PS3 emulator on Android that (mostly) works out of the box.

Original article (5:53 AM EST, February 17, 2025): While there has been a flurry of improvements for PS3 emulation via RPCS3, Android users have largely been left in the dust. The developer has explicitly said it won’t make an Android version, so the only way to emulate PS3 on Android was via a workaround like the Winlator tool. But now, there’s a new, native PS3 emulator on the block called aPS3e.

But first, a disclaimer: It’s not immediately clear who developed it or where it comes from, which should raise some red flags. If you plan on downloading and testing this, do so at your own risk. We only know it’s from a Chinese developer who goes by Aenu, who “missed the nine-year compulsory education, is unemployed, and now lives a life of idleness in the countryside” (via Google Translate).

For now, the app is very barebones, with a simple menu listing your library of games. Compatibility is also very limited, with none of the games Android Authority tested on newer flagship phones managing to boot. That said, other users on Reddit have managed to launch lightweight games like Terraria and Limbo, although performance lags behind RPCS3 on Winlator. The L3 and R3 buttons are also handwritten, for some reason. Unfortunately, it doesn’t support controllers just yet.

The app requires Android 7 or higher and Vulkan support, and you’ll need to supply your own ROMs and firmware. The emulator was briefly available on Github, but has since been removed. For now, you can only download it from a Chinese host.

Regardless of where this ends up, seeing PS3 emulation on Android move forward after being stuck for years is great. Most developers are working on two-layer emulation solutions via Windows or Linux containers, which is far more demanding than a native app like aPS3e. For now though, it’s best considered a work in progress.