Xbox Series X|S Runs PS2 Games Better Than PS5

Licencing would be an issue for selling many of these old games but having the console simply play the discs through emulation wouldn't be an issue in that regard. They could just enhance those that they are able to sell, similar to how Xbox do, PS3 would be out of the question but I see no issue for PS1 and PS2 games

Luckily I have a 60gb PS3 so I'm covered for every generation between that and PS5

Well... wow... I am impressed by the pure power of that monster. Now I need to try to calm down a bit because of this unbelievable achievement. MS has done their homework. Who needs Halo Infinite and such when it can play PS2 games better than a PS5 and all that for 500€. Just wow!

I had no clue Retroarch was a UWP app. Really quite cool, my PS1 and PS2 games are backed up on a hard drive somewhere so I do have experience with Retroarch.

OG Xbox versions of GTA were far better from the start. Not surprising they perform better with bc.

You know Sony and Nintendo won't let this carry on for long. Also its emulation so many of the games don't work or are buggy to the point of unplayable. And you have to pay for dev mode and cant run both at the same time so its hardly ideal. I think I stick with my phone for emulation lol.

@Loftimus there is no bc for the og Xbox GTA games

@God_of_Nowt Surely an in built emulator would bypass these licensing issues as they aren’t being resold, just that the original discs would be able to be played?

Just curious how many of you have old PS2 discs lying around!

@nessisonett It is but seems to struggle with alot of games on Xbox wich is very wierd that they run on my phone fine. But it won't matter as knowing Nintendo this will be ended soon as its illegal and on a competing platform.

I'm super sure the problem is licensing, I'm okay with digital BC only since most people don't have their ps1/ps2 disc anymore. It will be cool if digital ps1/ps2 games that I purchased on ps3 can carry over to ps5.

@mrbone It dosent play disks mate. I have kept my favourites from the PS2 but giving up hope with Sony and back compat.

@carlos82 well san andreas got remastered for 360 but it is the same game.

I would happily buy the Series S or X or whatever if I could turn it into a PS2/3 emulator.

I just bought a B/C PS3 on eBay since mine took a dump but who knows how long it’ll last!

@Max2574 That’s because the app is in no way optimised for an Xbox. As with most things, it’s done for the sake of it rather than creating a workable product. It’s nothing to do with the specs of Xbox.

that sensationalist title of this article brought me little heart attack. It says XSX and PS5 can play PS2 games. Rather choose little more accurate titles next time guys...

@carlos82 i've read it properly now.

@djlard Some PS2 games run on PS5 like Jak and Daxter and GTA. They’re barebones emulation running at a terrible but authentic resolution. Since this is Retroarch, these games could push 4K with more work put into the app, hence running better than on PS5.

@nessisonett Yh true do you think Sony and Nintendo will step in.

@nessisonett I've red that story, but title is similar to say "PS4 runs PS3 games" while it actually cannot play PS3 discs or PS3 versions, but only ported (and again buyed) ones. Ergo only PS4 games.

Why can't Sony just release a disc support emulator and give Devs and publishers the possibility to release legal digital disc images (Iso's) to make an extra buck on nostalgia, of course with Sony receiving a fair share for offering it on the ps store. That way little of the work and investment load is on sony and old games can be accessed in a legal fashion.

@God_of_Nowt The only thing I can think of is if they just sell the emulator and select titles they can get the license for on their store, with other games available if you own the disc. The Playstation Classic was a similar concept and as much as they basically stole the emulator and it wasn’t great, with improvements they’ve already done/stole the groundwork at least for PS1. The PS5 can absolutely do PS1 and maybe around 90% of PS2 just due to Emotion being really really strange. I do think there’s a market for it and people would buy select titles for nostalgia’s sake. The Vita, PSP and PS3 had great selections of older games which just came to an end with PS4.

@Max2574 Retroarch doesn’t include emulators, you have to download cores so it bypasses a lot of the rules put in place. I don’t think there’s much they can do.

@djlard Actually, PS3 games on PS4 were ports. Not emulation. PS2 games on PS4 are emulated therefore the code is literally the PS2 code. It’s the same game. PS4 ports of PS3 games are rewritten to an extent and are separate full releases.

My 15 year old pc can't run fortnite or Minecraft but the ps2 emulator runs fine so this is really a huge achievement. I would expect a brand new next gen system to be more powerful than a 15 to 20 year old pc. Also ps5 wasn't designed to play ps2 games through emulation so this is a non story, and it's also illegal 😂😂😂

@mrbone
I have many PS1 and PS2 discs in my collection. It was a time before digital after all. Would I play them? Of course not. Much better games around now that I won’t have time to try if I replay all my old ones!

how many people actually care about this, I don't imagine there are very many PS2 games that have ages well

@supergurr Emulation isn’t illegal, the procurement of illegal ISOs is. If your ISOs are legit or you’re playing from discs, it just plainly isn’t illegal. It’s just not.

@nessisonett code may be same, but if you put PS2 disc into PS4 it won't run. That is my point. And if you read PS5 runs PS2 games, you immediately think about putting your PS2 disc into your PS5 in hope of running.

@get2sammyb The article has the total wrong end of the stick regarding the legalities.

Microsoft have since the One console supported 3rd party app development. Theres nothing new about this. MVG has just shown how it runs on the series S.

Retroarch, a melting pot for emulators has worked since then.

There's nothing illegal whatsoever about emulators. Only sharing ROMs.

Cease and desist won't and can't happen.

The problem with Sony releasing their own emulator is ensuring compatibility. Which, as with nearly all emulators is a issue with some titles.

@djlard .....no. No. Your point is in a word, pointless. The PS5 runs PS2 games through emulation. That is true, that is what the article is referring to. You can’t put a PS4 disc into a PS5 Digital Edition. Does the PS5 not play PS4 games?

Not really related but I have two Fat boy PS3's both backward compatible to PS2, a PS4 and PS5. The PS3s and all my old games have been sitting in storage for years now. Have no need to give them a go with all my PS4 games outstanding. You must really love the oldies if you still want to play them

@nessisonett we are in circle of demagoguery. We can settle on "Yes, but actually No"

@Bad-MuthaAdebisi my 3/4 of PS2 disc collection are against this statement.

I couldn't care less, I don't want to play PS2 games. They've aged badly and never live up to your memories of them. Even playing some PS3 games I feel disappointed by them.

I don't know if I am in the minority here or not? I assume I am but I just have no interest in playing older games anymore.

@God_of_Nowt could they just sell the emulator on the Playstation store? then sell the PS1 and PS2 classics that are currently available on the various stores and PS Now but also make it able to read discs. I'd imagine there are still a lot of games from the likes of Capcom, Konami, Square and Activision that could easily make their games available. Sure there'll still be hundreds that can't but for those you simply run it off the disc

@HMazzy111 Isn't Demon Souls one the big hitters on PS5?

@nessisonett while you are correct you can not play a ps2 game legally on an xbox it's a violation of the terms and conditions and also the licensing agreements that Microsoft hold. If you legally acquired the emulator and roms and ran it through a Sony console or pc then you will be most likely be ok but playing Sony games on a Microsoft console without consent is illegal.

@supergurr No.

@nessisonett if you say so.

Shame, though, most of PS's best games were PS1 & PS2 era, even though the graphics have aged far from gracefully. The new stuff is "bigger" and "more cinematic", sure, but that doesn't necessarily make a better video game.

@God_of_Nowt Thank goodness there's another whole platform catering to the niche that values such things, then, eh?

@supergurr I’ve had to explain why to many people on this site. It’s tiring. The point is, you’re wrong. Retroarch is in no way illegal, it doesn’t matter if you run it on a calculator, an Xbox or a PS5. It doesn’t change legality depending on if you play retro games on the same company’s console. That just plainly isn’t true.

@Bad-MuthaAdebisi

Some have, some haven’t.

The ratchet and Clank titles have aged very well. MGS 2 and MGS 3 have aged gracefully as well.

@supergurr Nah, you can legally play backups on an emulator on PC which would most likely be Windows which is obviously a MS thing.

And as for this article, it's not really news. PCs have been emulating console games better than they run on consoles for a couple of decades now. Sony's PS2 thing for PS4 is basically running the games in what would be called software mode in an emulator. That's what you'd run it in if you have an unusually terrible PC. For years you've been able to play PS2 games in 4K with AA, anisotropic filtering, etc. You can play BotW in higher res and at 60fps on PC if you like. It does make console remasters seem a bit underwhelming unless they add new stuff like .hack//GU did. The PS4 and 5 could run them way better too if they made a non-software mode emulator.

@ORO_ERICIUS loved the sarcasm lol
This was bad news for Sony if it played PS2 cds from case, but from emulator it doesn't impress me, my terrible old pc plays PS2 games emulated too lol

@nessisonett when you use a calculator do you agree to the terms and conditions? Retroarch isn't illegal and I have not said it is at any point but playing Sony licensed games on an xbox is a violation of the terms and conditions maybe you should read them. And if was perfectly fine and to do this why does it invalidate the warranty on your xbox. Xbox and playstation have license agreements and specific terms around software use on their consoles. The emulator may not be illegal but as soon as you run sony games on it on an xbox one it violates the terms. Anyway have a nice day

@AFCC thank you. It was written by the biggest Xbox Fanboy before they managed to disappoint me that much and made me a sonypony. Now I am so happy to be here and at home with my new haptic feedback dubai tower baby. I love the PS5.

@Matroska finally someone who knows what they're talking about.

@supergurr no it doesn't your talking utter nonsense. Putting your Xbox in UWP mode does not invalidate your warranty. It's just an app that MS allows you to toggle on and off. It's literally there to let homebrew and indie developers create apps, games and other services without having to pay for a dev kit.

Running retroarch using UWP and running PS2 games, N64 or Amiga games doesn't violate any Microsoft warranty or terms and conditions.

The only terms you may violate is the game software itself. That's got naff all to do with Microsoft and good luck to Sony or Nintendo doing anything to you if you've ran a LEGAL!! And I can't stress that word legal enough, ROM (providing you own the game) on a different platform.

Honestly your not adding anything to the discussion other than talking complete jobbies.

@Bad-MuthaAdebisi its amazing how good ps2 era games can look through emulation, n64 etc look excellent with the resolution increased...

impressive how people are breaking the barriers these companies seperated us with, imagine one console or system that has all the games you wanna play at high resolution and high frames instead of having this playstation xbox switch pc tribalism

Pretty misleading title, it's not that it can play PS2 games better, just that it can play PS2 games with a hack.

@Richnj It is and you've just said why....because its now on PS5. Would even 5% of these people who are playing it now be playing the PS2 version if it hadn't been remade?

Just buy a PS2 on eBay for less than £50 if you want to play old games, then sell it again once you're done. It will probably cost you £15 to have a year of PS2 gaming, I would guess you won't need that long to want to sell it but who knows?

They still sell books from hundreds of years ago, and music and movies from well over 50 years ago. It's not hard to imagine people may want to play some old classic games. Some are going to be very niche but clearly there is a market for older games. Crash trilogy sold more than 4, granted there is a price issue there, and Mario 3D All Stars is doing well. The classics are still worth playing today. It would be nice to have the option legally.

@djlard what does that have to do with the vast majority of humanity and the majority of playstation console owners that definitely don't care, nothing

Did not pay $500 to play PS2 games.

Can barely find time to play all the new games coming out but somehow making time to play ancient stuff.

@ORO_ERICIUS 300. Series S.

Also, you sound jealous

It's great to know that no one's interested in older games.

I guess rom sites get cease and desist as a pity thing and not because a large amount of people download games from them to play them. Good to know!

@HMazzy111 It's a PS3 game BTW. But, by all accounts it's very faithful to the original title.

So my question now is, if people can play and very much enjoy a faithful remake, why would they not be able to enjoy the gameplay of the original?

The best way to play PS2 games is on a PS2. It's not like you cant find them on ebay. Sometimes you have to fix your own problems not depend on some company to do it for you.

@Richnj My bad, never played it. I'm sure it is but with it being a PS3 game (now I'm aware) its obviously not as much of a difference as most PS2 games. However my argument is still that nobody (extreme minority) would be going back to the PS3 and playing the original Demons Souls at this point right now. The only reason people are playing it or replaying it now is because its on PS5 with all its upgrades and improvements.

This is the very reason that they do these remakes because so few people want to go back and re visit these older games with relatively (compared to next gen consoles) poor graphics/game controls/ accessibility options etc.

For me a great example is some of the original Assassins Creed games, even the PS3 version of Black Flag, which is a reasonably modern game, having gone back and played that on the PS3 after playing Origins, it felt so shonky and unwieldy.

I would go as far to say that the type of gamers who care enough about games and have played them since their youth are also the same people who care enough to follow websites like Push Square and comment on stories. This means that these are the people who get their opinions across more widely regarding backwards compatibility and such things, where as I think the majority of the millions and millions of people who play games and own consoles or PCs may very well not care enough to voice the fact that all they wish to play is the latest FIFA/COD every year plus a couple of AAA games now and then. So sometimes we get a very skewed vision of what most gamers actually care about.

@mrbone I have hundreds of PS2 and PS3 games. I have some PS2, PS3, Wii, Wii U, Ds, 3ds and PS4 games on display in my living room right now, ready to play. I have a 4k tv and a CRT next to each other.

Variety is the spice of life. I do understand I'm in a pretty small minority, but we are passionated and we spend a lot of $$$ on gaming.

I know they won't do it but Sony should take the opportunity for the next couple of years to release 1 or 2 PS2 classics on the PS4 each month. With a platinum trophy, these would sell enough to be profitable.

It's also almost criminal that there are no PS1 classics on the PS4. I mean, Sony, just dump what you already have on PS3 on PS4. It shouldn't cost a lot of licensing / resources to do.

@God_of_Nowt
How complicated is it to make an emulator? It seems like random people online do it for free in their spare time - couldn't Sony get a few people to do the same? The demand is low but vocal, and it seems like Sony could add it with relatively little cost.

God hand is meh.

@HMazzy111 Demons souls isn't even a ps2 game and considering at least 3500 of the consoles are collecting dust and people can't even get the system, more than 5% already had played it.

@Royalblues Until Sony actually officially does something it'll be what it is. If they made some way to emulate the older games it'll be the best thing since sliced bread and if they say they're permanently moving away from ps3 and under games it'll be no big loss.

Very sad reality indeed

This is clickbait. And most of you got caught.

If the "hobbyist" made similar emulator for ps5, it'll probably perform similarly.

@Friendly wait... what?! The Series S can emulate PS2 games aswell? Holy cow!

@soy better because of the PS Controller directly working without any adapter or so.

@ORO_ERICIUS just as well as series x.

@soy it requires almost no extra steps to do so on a xbox series though. Almost anyone can do it.

@mrbone I got loads. Also old Commodore 64 cassette tape games

@HMazzy111 "This is the very reason that they do these remakes because so few people want to go back and re visit these older games with relatively (compared to next gen consoles) poor graphics/game controls/ accessibility options etc."

No, the reason they do remakes is specifically because so many people do want to go back and play these games. If no one wanted to play these games again, companies wouldn't risk their money by remaking these games.

And as I was pointing out the only real change to Demon's Souls is the graphics. This isn't a Black Flag vs Origins type of deal. Demon's Souls plays near identically to the original. Anyone that looks at Demon's Souls in PS3 and Demon's Souls on PS5 and sees a huge difference between the two products are placing way too much importance on graphics as a way of measuring a game's worth.

We had a near endless supply of remasters and HD ports during the 8th gen, and all the money and effort MS put in to their BC programme. All of these weren't done because "nobody plays old games".

Why I've kept my PS3 and Xbox 360 but I am considering a Xbox 1 x before they go out of sale so I can have an all on one better emulator as I know my 360 will die it's an original 60gb model. Drive doesn't sound to healthy on it personally

Who cares about ps2 games. All that matters is so far ps5 plays everything else better. They have no good exclusives and so far third party games are better on ps5. But don't be glum at least they have ps2 games.

Expect Sony & Nintendo and other ip holders to get this stopped. This won't last

Xbox Series X|S Runs PS2 Games Better Than PS5 ? I know that it runs PS2 games thanks to PCSX2 but better than PS5 ? Really? I don't see PS2 games on PS5. Am I missing something ?

I use ps emulation on my Sony TV have done for years and nintendo titles as a curiosity its great, but I've found the majority of titles look dreadful on a modern TV and the gameplay is very frustrating god knows how my younger self managed to complete many games ,more patience id wager ,they're mainly crap and games are usually not like you remember, imagination is wonderful and cruel.

Once Sony catches wind of this, It will be stopped in an Instant. SO enjoy it while it Last.

Does this count as XBox exclusives??????

@JapaneseSonic I am pretty sure you can buy adapters to make them work on any TV. Just looked yup even Walmart has them $10. Anyone that want something bad enough will find space for it.