RPCS3 is capable of running on many different hardware configurations, so long as the recommended hardware requirements are met.
Expect good performance for desktop and laptop PCs running on any of the supported operating systems and recommended hardware.
See the PC Requirements section for more details.
Expect decent emulation performance on Macs with high-end Intel CPUs and variable performance with Apple Silicon running macOS 12.0 or later.
See the For Mac section for more details.
Expect highly variable performance for handhelds with less than 6 cores or 16GB of RAM. Using Linux is highly recommended.
See the For handhelds section for more details.
RPCS3 supports a multitude of inputs ranging from Xinput, Dinput, SDL and proprietary Sony APIs.
RPCS3 performs well when running on powerful Intel and AMD based laptops. We recommend laptops with a CPU that has at least 8 cores with AVX-512 as well as a GPU with vulkan compatibility. Expect highly variable performance on laptops with less than 8 cores or low-power chipsets.
We recommend using a laptop that fits within the following criteria:
Here are some examples of performant mobile Intel CPUs for use with RPCS3:
Here are some examples of performant mobile AMD CPUs for use with RPCS3:
RPCS3 is capable of running on powerful handhelds, but expect highly variable performance for handheld devices with less than 8 cores.
We recommend using a handheld that fits within the following criteria:
Here are the hardware specifications for this handled:
Here are the hardware specifications for this handled:
Here are the hardware specifications for this handled:
Here is a quick and basic overview of the RPCS3 user interface.
Some PlayStation 3 games come in the form of package files, specifically PlayStation Network games, game updates or applications in general. .PKG files must be extracted using RPCS3's package installer found under File > Install Packages/Raps/Edats (or drag and dropped onto emulator window)
Blu-ray disc game data should be placed in \games located in your RPCS3 root folder or anywhere else except for \dev_hdd0\game\ and can be booted from File > Boot Game if not present on the game list.
Note: PlayStation Network games must be placed in \dev_hdd0\game\
Note: PlayStation Network .rap files must be placed in \dev_hdd0\home\00000001\exdata\ (or drag and dropped onto emulator window)
PlayStation 3 save data is specific to each game you have installed. It's easy to import a save from a real PlayStation 3 or outside source by simply dragging and dropping it into the save data directory.
Here are the locations where save data is stored per operating system:
For Windows users, save data files can be managed in \dev_hdd0\home\00000001\savedata\
For Linux users, save data files can be managed in ~/.config/rpcs3/dev_hdd0/
For macOS users, save data files can be managed in ~/Library/Application Support/rpcs3/dev_hdd0/home/00000001/savedata/
For FreeBSD users, save data files can be managed in ~/.config/rpcs3/dev_hdd0/
Game updates are handled the same as PlayStation Network .PKGs. Simply install using RPCS3's package installer found under File > Install Packages/Raps/Edats
Note: Game updates must be the same region in order to work. Cross-mixing game regions may create irreversible damage to the game.
Here's a list of known compatible Blu-ray drives that are capable of reading PlayStation discs for use with your computer.