Sony’s PlayStation Classic Runs using an Open-Source Emulator

To some people, the emulation scene is seen as a den of pirates, while to others it acts a vital role when it comes to video game conservation, allowing games to be played long after disks/cartridges stopped being manufactured and the consoles themselves slowly make their way to silicon heaven. 

Even today’s console manufacturers are in on the emulation game, be it Microsoft’s Xbox/Xbox 360 emulation on Xbox One or recent retro console releases like the NES/SNES Classic Mini consoles or Sony’s new PlayStation Classic console. While some of these emulators are in-house developments, others are ripped straight from the Open Source community, with Sony’s PlayStation Classic using code from the PCSX ReARMed PlayStation Emulator. 

Kotaku pointed out that the PlayStation Classic’s menu contains lists the game’s use of the emulator, confirming that Sony took the easy approach when developing the PlayStation Classic. Beyond that, Sony’s Classic console also requires disk switching in titles like Final Fantasy VII, which shipped across several disks on the original PS1. This is done by pressing the eject button on the console, despite the fact that every game on the console sits on flash memory. While this can be seen as a novel way to emulate disk switching on this classic console, it is doubtful that modern gamers appreciate being forced to stand up, walk to the mini console and manually switch disks on a console that relies on solid state storage.