How to play playstation 2 games on my computer

According to the official PCSX2 website, the recommended settings are as follows:. Note : These requirements may vary from a game to another. For instance, light games may not require all that power to run at a decent speed. You could have a blast with i5 k paired with GTX TI if you are just going to play games like Maximo for instance.

After you have finished downloading the emulator, launch the setup. A window will show up like the one above you. Skip the plugin selection part and jump straight to the BIOS selection. The BIOS can be either downloaded online or dumped using your own console. Then, browse to where the files are located.

After that, choose the BIOS you want. After you have finished setting up PCSX2, configuring your controller comes next. Playing PS2 games with a controller is your best choice.

A window will show up and from that destination, it should be quite easy to advance. The screenshot above shows the button mappings. PCSX2 also allows up to 4 controllers so you can have fun with your friends. This one basically is easy and in my opinion, you can just leave it like that, unless if you encounter some issues which will I show you how you can fix them. When this happens, this means your CPU is bottlenecking or something is wrong.

It is linked to your GPU. In that section, you can either disable or enable frame limiter as well as frame skipping. Though, I highly recommend not using Vsync as it might create some unusual slowdowns in certain games. This method will really come in handy once you get used to it. This basically controls your CPU usage. It will either improve some games or make them far worse. If you have a processor with more than 4 cores, then why not enable it? This section is for games that have certain issues.

By hovering your mouse on tabs, you will notice a text will popup up informing you what benefits the game fixe may provide. If you are still not sure what you are doing, check the wiki site I provided.

Sometimes upscaling can introduce a few minor graphical glitches, but these can be easily fixed with simple tweaks. Check the information below.

A small window will pop up with several options. Each option you pick has its own features. See below. In this section, you are able to optimize your games to run at any resolution you want. Either p or p or even at 4k. Not only that, but PCSX2 also has anisotropic Filtering which can reach up to 16x if your hardware is capable of course. Otherwise, you can put it on 2x and the game will look better than the real thing. Some games on PCSX2 used to run at 15 frames per second due to how demanding they were back then.

A fine example is Shadow of The Colossus. Luckily, with PCSX2 this is not an issue. HW Hacks used with Speedhacks can boost the performance by a mile compared to the original hardware. But once again, it is recommended reading this to check the wiki before attempting to do anything on the emulator.

The quality of an emulator stems from stability. Not all emulators are the same. Some will allow for smoother gameplay, while others won't even run the game you want to play. Most gaming emulators are personal projects that attract other developers.

The projects rely on the input, development, and programming skills of volunteers. The PCSX2 team continues working on the emulator, issuing frequent updates that fix bugs, make performance tweaks, and ensure you can play through an entire PlayStation 2 game without fault. While this tutorial uses the latest stable version of PCSX2, the developer's version page features the latest updates.

You should also keep in mind that most emulators are console specific. First thing first: head to the PCSX2 website, then download and install the latest stable version of the emulator. You'll meet a window with multiple dropdown menus, like so:. These are PCSX2 system configuration plugins.

Ignore these for now. Fiddling with the plugins can cause stability and performance issues unless you know what the setting does. It does illustrate the extensive range of customization options available to PCSX2. The program to do so is located on the PCSX2 website. Use the link provided at your own risk. BIOS files for the PS2 range from nation to nation, year to year, console manufacturing date, console updates, and more.

This is the default directory for your BIOS files. To change this directory to one of your choosing, uncheck the Use default setting option and select your directory.

Once the archive finishes copying, extract the archive contents into the BIOS folder. Right-click the archive, then select your ZIP program and extract.

Unsure what an archive and a ZIP program are? Read our guide to extracting files from common archives, then continue with this tutorial. Sony recommends an internet connection of 5Mbps or higher, although the faster your broadband speed the smoother games will play, so we'd actually recommend a connection of at least 10Mbps to be on the safe side.

If you're not sure how fast your internet connection is, there are a number of broadband speed-checking websites, such as Speedtest.

If you're not reaching 5Mbps then PS Now won't be for you — but if you want to consider changing broadband providers check out our best broadband deals round-up.

If not, you'll need to sign up for one on Sony's official PSN website. You'll also need to subscribe to PS Now. To do so, head to the PlayStation Now website and click 'Start your trial'.