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RPCS3 - General Guide

Rpcs3 logo

RPCS3 is a multi-platform open-source Sony PlayStation 3 emulator and debugger.

⚠️ Bleeding-Edge Emulator ⚠️

This emulator is under rapid development and considered bleeding edge. It may be unstable, may not operate at maximum performance across all hardware configurations, may lack certain standard features available in other components, and may be incompatible with portions of the supported game library.

Resource Link
RPCS3 - Github Link
RPCS3 - Quickstart Guide Link
RPCS3 - Save States Link
RPCS3 - Webpage Link
RPCS3 - Wiki Link

Where to put the games?

PS3 games comes either as a Blu-ray rip directory with a bunch of different files or a digital PSN title that needs to be installed (see guide on this page).

PS3 games should be put under the retrodeck/roms/ps3/ directory.

What file formats are supported?

File Format Description
.desktop Desktop entry file (Recommended)
.ps3 / .PS3 PlayStation 3 Directory
.ps3dir / .PS3DIR PlayStation 3 Directory (alternative)

Does RPCS3 require BIOS or Firmware?

Yes, the PS3UPDAT.PUP firmware needs to be installed in the emulator.

How-to: Install the PS3UPDAT.PUP firmware

There are two ways to install the firmware:

Install PS3 firmware from RetroDECK Configurator

  1. Open RPCS3 RetroDECK Configurator - RetroDECK: Tools - Install: RPCS3 Firmware.
  2. Press OK and this will download the PS3 Firmware and open RPCS3.
  3. You will get a prompt asking if you want to install the firmware from the /tmp/ directory, say Yes
  4. Wait for the installation to finish
  5. Exit RPCS3 from the GUI under File → Exit

Manual Download

  1. Download the latest PS3 firmware PS3UPDAT.PUP from Sony here
  2. Open RPCS3 RetroDECK Configurator → Open Emulator → RPCS3.
  3. In the RPCS3 interface navigate to File → Install Firmware.
  4. In the file browser navigate and select the file PS3UPDAT.PUP file.
  5. The firmware should now be installed.

Directory structure

Type Directory Comment
Captures retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/captures Debug captures
Config ~/.var/app/net.retrodeck.retrodeck/config/rpcs3/ Various config .yml and system directories
Dev_bdvd retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_bdvd
Dev_flash retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_flash
Dev_flash2 retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_flash2
Dev_flash3 retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_flash3
Dev_hdd0 retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_hdd0
Dev_hdd1 retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_hdd1
Dev_usb000 retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_usb000
Patches retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/patches
ROMs retrodeck/roms/ps3/
Saves retrodeck/saves/ps3/rpcs3/
States retrodeck/states/ps3/rpcs3/
Trophy retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_hdd0/home/00000001/trophy/

How-to: Get games to show up inside RetroDECK

There are two methods of adding the games. For more details read here: ES-DE RPCS3 Guide

This method can be used for all types of rips/dumps, directories, isos and installed digital titles. It's the default method for RetroDECK.

  1. Open RPCS3: Open RPCS3 from the RetroDECK Configurator.
  2. Add the game to RPCS3: Click on File in the menu bar, select Add Game, and browse to the location of the game you want to add.
  3. Verify the game in RPCS3: The game will now appear in the RPCS3 game list.
  4. Create a desktop shortcut: Right-click on the game in the RPCS3 game list, select Manage Game, and click on Create Desktop Shortcut.
  5. Move the shortcut to the roms/ps3 directory: This will create a shortcut to the game on your Desktop. Move that shortcut into the retrodeck/roms/ps3 directory.
  6. Restart and Launch RetroDECK: If RetroDECK was previously open, restart it to ensure corrected file paths are applied during startup. The game will then appear under the PS3 category.

Note: Encrypted .iso

A encrypted iso image needs to be decrypted with it's corresponding .dkey or .key file next to the game inside retrodeck/roms/ps3.

Example: retrodeck/roms/ps3/Hockey World.iso & retrodeck/roms/ps3/Hockey World.key

This method can only be used for directory type game dumps. To get the games to show up, you need to rename the directory to end with a .ps3 file extension.

Prerequisite: You will need to change the ES-DE Settings from RPCS3 Shortcut (Standalone) to RPCS3 Directory (Standalone) in ES-DE.

  1. Open RetroDECK and access ES-DE settings: Launch RetroDECK and in the ES-DE Frontend, navigate to ES-DE Configurations.
  2. Modify the PS3 emulator settings: Go to Other Settings, select Alternative Emulators, and choose PS3.
  3. Change the emulator type: Change the value from RPCS3 Shortcut (Standalone) to RPCS3 Directory (Standalone), and exit RetroDECK to save the changes.
  4. Locate the game directory: Go to the retrodeck/roms/ps3 directory and place your directory dumps there.
  5. Rename the directory: Change the name of the directory so it ends with .ps3.
  6. Restart and Launch RetroDECK: If RetroDECK was previously open, restart it to ensure corrected file paths are applied during startup. The game will then appear under the PS3 category.

Example

You have a directory dump of a Blu-ray PlayStation 3 game called Hockey World.

The directory is named Hockey World. To get it to show up, you need to rename it to Hockey World.ps3.

The game will then appear in RetroDECK.

How-to: Install DLC or patches on disc based games

If you want to install some DLC or patch you can do that through RPCS3 itself.

Important Note on Installing Game Updates

Game updates must be installed incrementally and in release order. For example, updating from version 1.00 to 1.03 requires installing 1.01, 1.02, then 1.03.

Installing DLC or Patches via RPCS3

  1. Open RPCS3: Open RPCS3 from the RetroDECK Configurator.
  2. Navigate to the installation option: In the RPCS3 interface, go to File → Install Packages/Raps/Edats.
  3. Select the file to install: In the file browser, navigate and select the file you want to install.
  4. Launch the game: The game can be launched via RetroDECK with patches and DLC already installed.

Optional: Using .ps3 Folder Structure

Some users may want to include their DLC or PATCH files inside the game directory for archiving purposes, or just to avoid having these contents spread in the RPCS3 filesystem. It's fully optional but to do so, follow these steps:

  1. Locate the installed files: The files will be installed inside a new game directory on the RPCS3 hard drive under retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_hdd0/game/GAMEID where GAMEID is unique for each game.
  2. Verify the installation: The patches or DLC should now be installed inside the GAMEID directory.
  3. Move the content: Move the content of the GAMEID directory into the games directory inside the retrodeck/roms/ps3/GAMENAME directory and overwrite & replace the files.
  4. Remove the old directory: You can now remove the retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_hdd0/game/GAMEID directory as the files have been moved.

Example

The game Hockey World.

  1. Install the DLC or patch: Follow this guide to install the files.
  2. Locate the new directory: The installation creates a new directory called BCA111111 under retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_hdd0/game.
  3. Copy the content: Open the directory retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_hdd0/game/BCA111111 and copy all of its content.
  4. Paste the content: Paste the copied content into the retrodeck/roms/ps3/Hockey World directory and replace/overwrite the files.
  5. Remove the old directory: You can then remove the BCA111111 directory in retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_hdd0/game.

How to: Install digital PSN titles

The procedure is almost identical to the procedure above.

If you want to install some PSN titles, you can do that through RPCS3 itself.

Installing Digital PSN Titles via RPCS3

  1. Open RPCS3: Open RPCS3 from the RetroDECK Configurator.
  2. Navigate to the installation option: In the RPCS3 interface, go to File → Install Packages/Raps/Edats.
  3. Select the file to install: In the file browser, navigate and select the file you want to install.
  4. Verify the installation: The file will be installed inside the games directory on the RPCS3 hard drive under retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_hdd0/game/GAMEID where GAMEID is unique for each game.
  5. Install patches or DLC: Install any patches or DLC for the game by repeating steps 2 and 3 for each file.
  1. Create a desktop shortcut: Right-click on the game in the RPCS3 game list, select Manage Game, and click on Create Desktop Shortcut.
  2. Move the shortcut to the roms/ps3 directory: This will create a shortcut to the game on your Desktop. Move that shortcut into the retrodeck/roms/ps3 directory.
  3. Restart and Launch RetroDECK: If RetroDECK was previously open, restart it to ensure corrected file paths are applied during startup. The game will then appear under the PS3 category.

Similarly to how it is written above with the DLC and PATCHES, the user can decide to move the digital games outside the RPCS3 filesystem. To do so:

  1. Move the digital games directory: After the game is ready, move the digital games directory from retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_hdd0/game/GAMEID to retrodeck/roms/ps3.
  2. Rename the directory: Rename the directory to the name of the game and add the .ps3 file extension to the end of the directory.

Example

  1. Install the digital game: You installed a file that contained the digital game Hockey World 2, which created a directory called BCA123456 under retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_hdd0/game.
  2. Move the directory: After that, you moved BCA123456 from retrodeck/storage/rpcs3/dev_hdd0/game to retrodeck/roms/ps3.
  3. Rename the directory: The directory BCA123456 is renamed to Hockey World 2.ps3.

RPCS3 and Save States

Save States don't work the same as other emulators you might be used to and are disabled by default in RetroDECK.

You can enable them but first read up on the latest information and how-to on RPCS3 wiki page.

Link: RPCS3 Save States

Known Issues

Failed to set RLIMIT_MEMLOCK size to 2 GiB

Some Linux distributions gets this error.

To solve it

  1. Edit this limits.conf file under

/etc/security/limits.conf

(You need sudo and can use a text editor like nano: sudo nano /etc/security/limits.conf)

  1. Add the following at the end of the file, save and exit.
*        hard    memlock        unlimited
*        soft    memlock        unlimited
  1. Reboot your device

Input Issues

Following the removal of evdev support in RPCS3 in recent updates, some users may experience input detection issues when using SDL-based controllers. In such cases, manual configuration of the input device is required.

  1. Open RetroDECK Configurator
  2. Navigate to: Open Component → RPCS3 → Pads → Devices
  3. In the Devices dropdown menu, select your controller manually for each player.

This ensures the correct input device is recognized and used by RPCS3.

Netplay Configuration Guide

Supported Titles

See the RPCN Compatibility List for a community-maintained overview of PlayStation 3 titles tested for RPCN netplay.

Global Configuration

  1. Open RPCS3: Open RPCS3 from the RetroDECK Configurator.
  2. Go to Configuration → RPCN → Account.
  3. Set Server to Official RPCN Server.
  4. Select Create Account and complete the username, password, and email prompts.
  5. Confirm the details when prompted.
  6. Retrieve the RPCN token sent to your email, paste it into the Token field, and confirm.
  7. Use Test Account to verify successful setup.

Game-Specific Configuration

  1. Open RPCS3: Open RPCS3 from the RetroDECK Configurator.
  2. Right-click the desired game and select Create Custom Configuration.
  3. Open the Network tab.
  4. Set Network Status to Connected.
  5. Set PSN Status to RPCN.
  6. Set DNS to 8.8.8.8, unless the game requires a different value.
  7. If required, enter custom server IP or host switches as documented for the game.