It’s been more than 15 years since Sony has released its revolutionary PlayStation Portable. Now that the video game market is dominated by sophisticated role-playing games, real-time strategies, and VR titles, some people find it strange that classic gamers are yearning to play the games published for the vintage PSP console. You also may be surprised to learn that classic titles are making a rapid comeback in the second decade of the 21st century, and lots of people are scouting for PSP ROMs or PSP ISOs for their emulators, programs that enable you to run old-school games on modern computers and smartphones. If you’re a fan of the PSP or just want to try your hand at retrogaming and decided to start with PSP games, you’ll find today’s article particularly helpful.
A Few Words About the PSP
Before we dive into the emulation world and review the tools that can help you play PSP games on modern platforms, let’s recall what made the PlayStation Portable so popular with video game fans.
Sony had a ton of the video game market in the early 2000s thanks to the PS1 and PS2. That truly was the first time when video games have seen Nintendo pushed down by another company. No wonder Sony believed they could do the same in the handheld market. Thus, in 2003, the PSP was officially announced. It was referred to as the “walkman of the 21st century” by the CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment Ken Kutaragi foreshadowing the console’s success. The next year, in 2004, on the first day of the PSP’s release, over 200,000 were sold. Just a year later, in 2005, the PSP went overseas to the United States and sold 500,000 units in only the first two days. This is where people realized the PSP was the first handheld to outperform the Nintendo DS.
The new console was capable of doing things that an iPod Touch or iPhone could do a few years before they were even released. Needless to say, now we take these commodities for granted, because of how good the technology is, but back then listening to music and watching movies on a device designed for playing video games was a very big deal. In contrast to their competitors that used cartridges as storage medium, Sony introduced UMDs (universal media discs) in the attempt to prevent piracy and improve their games’ productivity. Another feature was the ability to replace the battery if it broke.
The PSP’s advanced features and mega fun games earned it the reputation of one of the best-selling handhelds of all time. No wonder, presently, so many retro gamers strive to emulate PSP games on modern platforms. But no emulation is possible without the PSP ISOs (also known as ROMs, which we’re going to discuss in detail below.
What is a PSP ROM?
As you know, Sony discontinued its PSP long ago. Nonetheless, this doesn’t mean that you cannot play your favorite games in 2020. There are special programs at your disposal that allows playing any classic game you can think of. There are also PSP games that come in the form of ROMs or ISOs, which allows playing virtually on any device running a modern OS. You can get a PSP ROMs download from dedicated retrogaming websites that boast a vast collection of classic titles for any vintage console, including your favorite PSP. We recommend checking out such websites as Freeroms-download and Romshub if you’re desperate for high quality PSP games.
Among the best PSP games abandonware websites usually offer to avid retro gamers are God of War: Chains of Olympus, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, Wipeout Pure, Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops, and many others. You can get these and other ROMs from retrogaming sites, too.
Best PSP Emulators
Now that you know where to look for the best PSP ROMs, it’s time to learn more about the emulation tools that can make your retrogaming quest possible.
Currently, there are not many stable and reliable PSP emulators available on the market. But we’ll help you select the best ones for your platform.
Windows supported PSP emulators
ePSXe, pSX, PSXeven, and PCSX-Reloaded are the best PSE emulators that can run a vast collection of commercial games on the Windows platform. They boast improved productivity, user-friendly interfaces, customizable settings, and cool graphics.
- All these emulators are also fully compatible with a Mac PC.
Linux supported PSP emulators
Among the most famous and reliable emulation options you may want to try on your Linux computer are PCSX-Reloaded and PPSSPP. These emulators can ensure the best possible emulation quality of your favorite PSP games.
Android supported PSP emulators
Portable devices continue making massive inroads in our lives. So, it comes as no surprise that there is a wide selection of PSP emulators for your Android device. You can play tons of PSP ISO and CSO files using such emulators as PPSSPP-PSP Emulator, PSPlay, Damon PS2 Pro, Rapid Emulator, and PPSSPP Gold. These tools are famed for its advanced features that include the ability to automatically save game states, use cheat codes, and play your favorite games at decent speed speed smoothly on your high-end smartphones. What’s more, with such an emulator as Damon PS2 Pro, you can even use the original PSP memory card to store the new games.
iOS supported PSP emulators
Looking for a stable emulator for your iPhone or iPad? It’s not a problem. Set your sights at such options as good old RetroArch, a powerful yet a bit complicated cross-platform tool with tons of settings and features, PPSSPP, which is already familiar to you, and Happy Chick, another multi-platform emulator renowned for its stable and high-speed emulation and a whole host of handy features iPhone users will definitely appreciate.
Choose the emulator to your taste, download the best PSP games, and dive into retro gaming headfirst!