PS3 emulator RPCS3 showcases its Big Picture Mode

As a cutting-edge emulator of a newer home console, RPCS3 of course has a large user base of controller and handheld PC users—and now, after having teased the update, the latest RPCS3 video upload is showcasing all the new features added to its "Handheld Experience", which makes virtually all settings accessible from ingame. The settings tweaks available are exhaustive and can have a major impact on performance as well, with a clear inspiration from both Steam Big Picture's cross-platform controller UI and Steam Deck's specific SteamOS hardware controls. 

The showcase is aimed primarily at Steam Deck users, but also includes footage of Skate 3 running on an Asus ROG Ally X. Desktop and handheld users can now also add RPCS3 game shortcuts to Steam directly from the RPCS3 desktop interface, as promised prior. There's tons of attention to detail here, too—Steam game shortcuts use the original XMB artwork for the PlayStation 3 game in question, and even the desktop UI now autoplays audio and video from a specific game on hover, just like PS3's XMB UI once did. It goes a lot farther in this regard than RetroArch's XMB clone does, that's for sure, but until now the two were nowhere close in terms of controller support beyond basic in-game functionality. Not only has RPCS3 closed the functionality gap, but its new UI will be a natural fit for SteamOS/Big Picture users, down to the shared color scheme.

It's a great time to be a fan of PlayStation 3 emulation, especially on the handheld PCs these devices are targeted at. Sony may be reining in its PC ports, but the initial wave's appeal for devices like Steam Deck, arguably the true successor to the PlayStation Vita, was undeniable to the point that even its former CEO got in on the fun of running God of War (2014) on his Steam Deck LCD. While Sony is rumored to return to standalone handhelds with a next-generation PlayStation 6 handheld, it's hard not to see Steam Deck and its wave of competitors as direct successors to the home console-in-a-handheld class of experiences targeted by PSP and PS Vita*. PSP and PS Vita were both more powerful than their direct counterparts (Nintendo DS and Nintendo 3DS), and PS Vita was even the first gaming handheld to flaunt an OLED screen. Until the eventual release of the Nintendo Switch OLED in October 2023 and the Steam Deck OLED in November 2024, there was no handheld with a screen more premium than the original PS Vita release. Even later Vita revisions axed it in favor of a cheaper LCD panel.

*Nintendo Switch also counts, of course, but unlike Steam Deck did not play any PlayStation games.

For a more detailed look at the update in question, just check out the original video above. Alternatively, if you already have RPCS3 installed or are now interested in installing it, the updates are already on the stable release and ready for you to enjoy.