Hey folks! I’m back with another fun experiment – trying out PS2 emulation on the Raspberry Pi 4. I know, it sounds crazy right? That little Pi doesn’t have nearly enough horsepower to handle PlayStation 2 games. But I had to try it out for myself.
I loaded up the Pi 4 with 8GB of RAM, a nice fast 64GB microSD card, and the latest Android 12 custom ROM. Then I installed the hot new PS2 emulator AetherSX2 from the Play Store. I crossed my fingers and started testing some games.
Now, before we get into it, don’t get your hopes up too high. The Pi 4 definitely struggles with anything 3D. But surprisingly, some 2D PS2 games actually run decently! I couldn’t believe it when I booted up Marvel vs Capcom 2. With a few little hiccups here and there, it was very playable.
I’m telling you, emulation on the Pi just keeps getting better. Devs are squeezing every last drop of performance out of that modest ARM chip. Very impressive stuff.
In this post, I’ll walk through all the games I tried on the Pi 4, show you some gameplay footage, and let you know which ones are playable. Stick around to the end for my final thoughts on PS2 emulation on the Raspberry Pi. Let’s jump in!
Testing Setup
To get this party started, I decked out my trusty Raspberry Pi 4 with 8 gigs of RAM – the max it can handle. I also popped in a speedy 64GB microSD card to store the operating system and games.
For software, I loaded up the Pi with KonstaKANG’s slick LineageOS build. This bad boy is based on Android 12 and specially tweaked for the Pi 4. It’s got easy overclocking built-in, so I cranked the Pi up to 2GHz.
The LineageOS build also has OpenGL and Vulkan support. I was hoping to use OpenGL with the emulator but no dice – only Vulkan worked on this build. That’s alright though, Vulkan gets the job done!
With the Pi prepped, I hit up the Play Store and grabbed the hot new AetherSX2 emulator. Then I plugged in a USB 3.0 microSD card loaded up with PS2 game ISOs and we were off to the races!
Now the Pi 4 ain’t exactly a processing powerhouse. The developers recommend Snapdragon 845 or better for AetherSX2. But I figured with some tweaking we could get some games running decently. Time to find out!
3D Games – A Losing Battle
I started off testing some 3D PS2 titles, even though I knew the Pi would struggle with these. But hey, no harm seeing just how bad the jank gets!
First up was Crash Bandicoot: Wrath of Cortex. Now on proper hardware this game runs silky smooth 60 FPS. On the Pi? Ha! It was a slideshow at 10-30 FPS even with hacks enabled. Totally unplayable in my book. I gave it the ol’ college try but Crash wasn’t having it.
Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi was another 3D fighting game I attempted. With the hacks on, it managed around 30 FPS. Still way too slow for a fighting game though, where timing and responsiveness matters. I button mashed my way through a match but it just wasn’t an enjoyable experience.
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 has been pretty lightweight in my other emulation tests. But the Pi 4 couldn’t handle its rad 3D skating action. I got some heavy lag and skipping even with hacks. Bummer dude!
Lastly, I tried out Kingdom Hearts 2. I know, I know, probably unrealistic given the Pi’s wimpy specs. But I hoped the anime art style might help it along. Yeah right! Couldn’t get anywhere close to full speed on this one no matter how much I tweaked the settings. Sora wasn’t feeling the island vibes on the Pi.
The verdict? Don’t expect the Pi 4 to handle 3D PS2 games well at all. The lack of processing power and reliance on hacks just doesn’t cut it. These games were a lost cause. But the 2D story was a different tale…
2D Games – A Ray of Hope
After getting stomped on the 3D front, I turned to 2D PS2 titles. These tend to be less demanding, so maybe the Pi could handle them decently? Time to find out!
First up was the legendary Marvel vs Capcom 2. Now on proper hardware this runs silky at 60 FPS. I crossed my fingers and booted it up. Well slap me sideways and call me Sally! It was actually playable on the Pi! Don’t get me wrong, I got some slowdowns here and there. But with a little patience this fighter was totally enjoyable. Color me impressed!
Next I tried out the anime fighter Melty Blood. And would ya look at that – this one ran pretty dang well on the Pi! It was very playable with only minor hiccups. These 2D fighting games might be the Pi’s secret weapon for PS2 emulation.
Then I fired up the classic shoot ’em up Gradius 5. Now this genre isn’t too demanding, but still, the Pi 4 handled it shockingly well. It was smooth sailing and very playable. Man, what a difference from those 3D games earlier!
The verdict? The Pi 4 can actually handle less intense 2D PS2 titles. No, it ain’t perfect, but with some occasional slowdowns these games are playable and fun. I never expected the Pi to pull this off. The little board that could just keeps on truckin’!
Of course, the 3D stuff is still a bust. But for 2D games, the Pi 4 impressed me with AetherSX2. Pretty wild what we can emulate on a $35 board these days!
Wrapping Up My Pi PS2 Experiments
Whelp, that was a wild ride testing out PS2 emulation on the Raspberry Pi 4! I learned a ton and wanted to wrap up with some final thoughts.
Overall, I was really surprised that some PS2 games are actually playable on the Pi 4. I never expected that little board to pull off any PS2 emulation decently. The 2D fighting and shmup games running smooth was awesome to see.
Of course, the 3D titles were a bust. The Pi just doesn’t have the horsepower to run those properly. Hacky settings help a bit but still not playable. Ah well, can’t win em all!
I wouldn’t run out and buy a Pi just for PS2 emulation. It’s still pretty limited. But as a bonus feature alongside all the other cool stuff the Pi can emulate, it’s fantastic. Serious props to the devs behind AetherSX2 and the Pi ports of Android.
PS2 emulation on the Pi will only get better too. Maybe the Pi 5 will handle it even better whenever that launches. And the emulator devs are wizards when it comes to optimization. Exciting times!
Let me know in the comments if you have any other questions about PS2 emulation on the Pi. I had a blast geeking out and testing the limits of this little board. The Pi just keeps amazing me year after year. Can’t wait to see what we can emulate next!
#RaspberryPi #AetherSX2 #etaprime #Android
