PS4 Emulation on Steam Deck Reaches Unexpected Step of Progression
As someone once said in a popular Atlus game, "Time keeps moving, and the era of a fresh ruler approaches." That ruler, in this case, is none other than the Steam Deck, which has been a hit with retro gamers since its launch in 2022. However, if you haven't been keeping tabs on the emulation circuit recently, you might have missed the exciting news that PlayStation 4 emulation is now functional on Steam Deck. And yes, it's looking rather promising.
It was only a matter of time before PS4 emulation found its way onto PC, but I must admit, I didn't anticipate seeing it in playable form on a device as moderately powerful as the Steam Deck. Even PS3 emulation is hit or miss (though some of that can be attributed to the PS3's Power PC-based Cell Processor, which complicates emulation). Yet, PS4 emulation is showing signs of confident advancement.
To prove this, here's a clip of the tragically non-remastered Bloodborne - a game that's never graced the PC world - running at roughly 30FPS on Steam Deck, courtesy of the Deck Wizard channel:
Despite a few dips below 30FPS, I'm honestly astounded by its playable state. You'll notice that even during the game's most chaotic moments, the framerate remains relatively steady. And consider that just a few months ago, the emulation gurus hadn't even managed to get Bloodborne past the main menu.
The magic behind all this emulation wizardry is the ShadPS4 project, a PS4 emulator for Windows, Linux, and macOS that's still in its early stages of development. However, in the second half of 2024, it's been making impressive progress at a rapid pace.
Currently, ShadPS4 boasts that Dark Souls Remastered, Red Dead Redemption, Journey, Transformers: Devastation (yes, finally!), Guilty Gear Xrd Rev 2, and other titles are now playable. However, more graphically demanding games with intricate graphics present more of a challenge. For instance, InFamous: Second Son barely reached "in-game" status in September 2024.
Yet, the possibilities are promising enough that the EmuDeck team has integrated ShadPS4 into its default suite of emulators that get installed. So, if you're willing to put up with some instability and eager to explore the cutting edge of PS4 emulation on Steam Deck, this excellent guide will help you set up and configure EmuDeck.
If you don't own a Steam Deck or prefer to run it on another OS, the project's GitHub page has instructions for setting up ShadPS4 on Linux, Windows, and macOS.
Despite the initial challenges, PS4 emulation on the Steam Deck has made significant strides, with games like Bloodborne becoming playable. This progress is largely thanks to projects like ShadPS4, a PS4 emulator that's now offering titles such as Dark Souls Remastered and Red Dead Redemption on the Steam Deck, although more graphically demanding games may still pose some challenges.
For those eager to explore PS4 emulation on their Steam Deck, an excellent guide is available to help set up and configure EmuDeck, which now includes ShadPS4 as one of its default emulators.
