The talks about AetherSX2 have been going around for a while and finally the time has come when they have released the early access version for it. The app is lightweight itself but requires a few settings and timings before it properly works.
We will get to how to set it up later but first let us dive into the huge update this has bought for us and how this might be a starter stepping stone for Android gaming platform.
What is AetherSX2?
AetherSX2 is an emulator app made to emulate Sony's Play Station 2 on Android running devices. Now this might not sound like a lot, for basically every famous game out there on PS2 has got an Android version with improved graphics.
AetherSX2 is essentially a port of PS2 on emulator and going by how well it manages to emulate most of the PS2 games, it is pretty accurate. The only downside to this app is that you would need a mid to high range performance smartphone in order to run the games, specially heavier titles.
The release of this app also means end to previous emulators such as Damon emulator due to their old interface and un-updated application. Now that we have discussed the basics, let us jump to the System Requirments.
What are System Requirments for AetherSX2?
The specifications of hardware you would need to operate AetherSX2 would vary hugely but there is still a borderline specification told by the developers, Tahlreth along with a few advices that i would be mentioning below.
Recommended: A snapdragon 845, equivalent or higher level processor is adviced with 4 large cores (Cortex A-75 should do).
Minimum: Snapdragon 700+ series, Mali or PowerVR GPU with only two big cores. The app will also run on several other low specification devices but would suffer severe lag and might crash specially because it is early access version.
Devices that do not have Adreno GPUs additionally can not use Vulkan to render the game. Some of the points to keep in mind if you are trying a low specification or less compatible device are:
- Changing the Vulkan render to OpenGL render in the game settings.
- Underclocking the CPU by setting up the cycle rate to a negative number, and the cycle skip to a positive number in System settings, but this will cause games to lag internally at best, or crash at worst.
- Playing less heavy titles for now.
This might sound a little too blunt but as the app is in it's early stages, it is not capable of handling everything you throw at it and the developers have stated it is likely never going to be a perfect PS2 emulator so do not expect it to run everything.
- Using the correct BIOS.
The BIOS is not optional and is a very important setting if you want to play games. The developers mention that one should extract and use BIOS of their own console via special tools but the key takeaway is that whether you download a BIOS or make one of your own, do not use a corrupted or an incorrect BIOS file as it would likely crash your app.
- Using an uncorrupted game file and extension
The last advice is to download or export a game file only from trusted source and convert it (if needed) carefully. A corrupt file is not that hard to generate and would either result in your game not starting at all or crashing at a specific place, neither of which is pleasant.
You can find more about the development of AetherSX2 on the Reddit forums AetherSX2.
How to download AetherSX2 APK?
Downloading the APK from unknown sources is strictly not advised as the app is a complex one, so any tampering with it might be very well hidden. I myself witnessed numerous APK on internet of AetherSX2 before it was released, all filled with something suspicious.
The best method to download AetherSX2 is to head to Google's Play Store and get yourself an early access version app of it. The app size is quite small so this should take no time at all.
If you are having trouble finding it on Play Store, click on this link and it would take you straight to the download page:
How to play games on AetherSX2?
This is exciting, you have downloaded the app, set up the proper settings and configuration but now you have to download a game. Go on and choose a game, and do not be surprised as PS2 games are often more than 2 GBs in size. If you need a good site to download the ROMs you can try visiting:
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If you have set up the BIOS properly, the game should boot up with less or no lag. Happy gaming!
Stay tuned for more tunings and list of best PS2 games to run on AetherSX2!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
Q. Who developed AetherSX2?
A. The developer of AetherSX2 is Tahlreth.
Q. Can I play all PS2 games on AetherSX2?
A. At the moment, or anytime in near future it is not possible to emulate all of PS2 games on android as emulating a complex console such as PS2 is no east task.
Q. Where can I download AetherSX2 from?
A. You can download AetherSX2 from Play Store via the link provided above.
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