Faster ARM64 code and broader upstream fixes
ARMSX3 0.9.9 is an Android emulator based on RPCS3, bringing PlayStation 3 emulation to ARM64 devices. The release is available as several Android APK variants, including armv8.2 and legacy armv8.1 builds, with different Android SDK targets. The project identifies this build as 0.9.9r, published on September 15, 2026.
The most direct performance change is in the SPU recompiler for ARM64. A frequently emitted byte-swap operation now uses one instruction instead of two, and the emulator no longer generates x86-oriented code on this platform. The project credits this work to Whatcookie. ARMSX3 also incorporates upstream changes covering save-state handling, memory allocation, user-memory reservations, audio output, UTF-8 filenames, file-attribute reads and loading older software built against SDK versions below 2.00.
Shortcuts, frontends and package discovery
Launching a game from an Android home-screen shortcut or an external frontend now resolves it through the same library entry used for normal launches. This prevents the shortcut or frontend from creating a separate game identity without the correct serial, and means the launch uses the library entry’s title, cover art and settings.
The update also moves older settings forward when a title gains a serial and its settings key changes. Instead of silently falling back to global values, the previous game-specific settings are brought over the first time the game is opened.
Uninstalled package files placed in the ROM folder can now appear in the library with the title and cover art stored inside the package. Selecting one starts installation and offers an option to remove the package afterward. This gives the library a clearer path for handling packages that are present but not yet installed.
Audio and recommended configuration
Audio receives fixes from upstream for output configurations where some games could start without sound. Shared-memory handling for the audio system has also been updated. The release additionally restores sound for trophies, dialogs and the on-screen keyboard, whose core audio callback was previously empty.
Trophy sounds have their own file selector in App settings, along with a test button and a separate volume control. There is no bundled default sound file, so this feature requires the user to provide one.
First-run setup now offers RPCS3’s recommended settings configuration database. It contains game-specific recommendations for titles that may require a particular setting before they boot. User-defined settings take priority, and the database can be disabled in App settings. Existing installations are not changed by this first-run option.
Touch controls and display settings
Multi-touch input is corrected for high-resolution displays that render the app smaller than the physical screen. Previously, pressing a second on-screen control while holding the first could place that second touch incorrectly. ARMSX3 now uses the touchscreen’s actual dimensions to calculate the position. The release reports confirmation on a Samsung S25 Ultra at 2340 by 1080 pixels.
Portrait Render Position now keeps the selected value instead of discarding it, and the control is also available from the in-game menu. The landscape version of that option has been removed because a 16:9 game displayed in a 16:9 window has no unused horizontal band to reposition.
Display Resolution, labeled HW scaler, now preserves the selected value. A mismatch between the units used when reading and writing the setting previously caused every choice to return to Screen. OSD Size also works correctly after the duplicate controls were corrected; the previously inactive control is no longer the one users need to rely on.
Library and progress feedback
Settings now show readable folder names rather than raw storage identifiers, making storage locations easier to recognize. Installing a sequence of updates that must be applied in order also reports actual progress instead of appearing stuck at 100 percent.
Save states now include the time at which they were created, which makes multiple states easier to distinguish. This metadata change is separate from a more significant compatibility warning: the save-state format was changed upstream, so states created before ARMSX3 0.9.9r will not load.
Important save-state warning
Games, ordinary save data and settings are not affected by the format change. However, older save states are refused rather than being interpreted with the new format, so a state used to resume a game may no longer be available after updating. The release recommends not treating save states as the only copy of progress when major upstream changes are involved.
Running ARMSX3 requires PlayStation 3 firmware, which is not included with the project. The supplied Android packages are intended for ARM64 devices; the project lists arm64-v8a support and provides separate APK variants for newer and legacy Android targets.
