Remote play turns ARMSX3 into a two-device experience
ARMSX3 1.2 adds remote play for multiplayer sessions. One person runs the game on their Android device, while a second player connects from another device and takes the player 2 role. The joining player receives a stream of the host’s game and does not need to have the game installed locally.
The feature works either on the same Wi-Fi network or online. Nearby hosts appear automatically when both players are connected to the same network. For online sessions, the host can provide a six-character code. If the code service is unavailable, the two players can exchange invitation messages and paste them into the app instead.
A host starts a game, opens the in-game menu, selects Friends, and then chooses Host on this Wi-Fi or Invite online. The other player opens Remote play from the game library menu. When somebody connects, the host’s game pauses and displays an approval prompt. Streaming begins only after the host accepts the request.
Direct connections keep the stream between both players
ARMSX3 sends the remote-play stream directly between the host and joining device rather than routing it through a server. As a result, the project says the experience depends on the quality of both internet connections and the distance between the players. For online sessions, the host’s router is asked to open a port when it supports that process, which can help with networks that otherwise block incoming connections.
The second player receives the game’s rumble feedback and can use either a physical controller or touch controls. The joining interface includes an exit button, customizable touch-control layouts and skins, stream statistics, and an optional Wi-Fi quality-of-service marking setting for networks that prioritize traffic using those markings. The host also receives messages when a friend joins or leaves.
Requirements and Android-specific details
Both devices must run ARMSX3 1.2 for remote play to work. Hosting requires the Vulkan renderer, so the host cannot use the OpenGL renderer for this feature in ARMSX3. On Android 17, a same-network session requests the Nearby devices permission.
The release notes also state that the same remote-play feature is planned for the next ARMSX2 development build. ARMSX2 will support hosting with both OpenGL and Vulkan, according to the project’s release information. That separate compatibility detail applies to ARMSX2, not the ARMSX3 1.2 hosting requirement.
LittleBigPlanet freeze fixed on Snapdragon 8 Elite hardware
The update fixes a freeze in LittleBigPlanet at the water wheel in the first level on devices using Adreno 830 graphics hardware, including Snapdragon 8 Elite devices. This is the release’s specifically documented game-related fix and should remove that interruption for affected hardware, subject to the project’s stated compatibility.
Translations and licensing information receive cleanup
ARMSX3 1.2 corrects translation errors across all 19 languages. The cleanup includes button and menu labels, making the interface wording more consistent regardless of the selected language.
The About section now includes an open-source licenses page listing the libraries included in ARMSX3 and their licenses. The project is based on RPCS3 and uses its upstream ARM64 improvements. ARMSX3 is an Android application for emulating PlayStation 3 software; using it requires PlayStation 3 firmware, which is not included with the project.
The application is about 10 MB larger
The new streaming functionality increases the application’s size by around 10 MB because ARMSX3 now includes the library used for remote play. The release provides Android packages for several ARM64 configurations, including armv8.2 builds targeting SDK 30, SDK 33, and SDK 35, plus a legacy armv8.1 package targeting SDK 30.
