How to play PS1 games in your browser: emulator vs cloud streaming

Two ways to run a PlayStation in a tab

The first way is a local emulator. RetroDeck PS1 compiles the PCSX-ReARMed core to WebAssembly, so the console runs on your own CPU inside the browser. Your disc image and BIOS are opened locally and never uploaded; it works offline once the page is loaded, and save states live in browser storage. Emulator Hub does the same for thirty-one other systems.

The second way is streaming. RetroDeck Live runs a real emulated console on a server and sends the picture and sound to your browser over WebRTC, the same technology video calls use. The point is the second seat: a friend anywhere opens an invitation link and gets the other controller, with spectators and room voice on top. It costs a hosting key because each room occupies a whole console on the server.

What you need for either

• A disc image of a game you own, dumped from the CD. CHD is the best format: compressed, single-file and fast to load. PBP, ISO, BIN/CUE and ZIP also work.
• The BIOS from your own PlayStation, usually a 512 KB .bin file. Emulators cannot boot without it and TabSpawn does not distribute it.
• A current browser. Chrome, Edge or Firefox on desktop for the local emulator; any modern browser for streaming.
• Optionally a USB or Bluetooth controller. The keyboard works, but the pad is nicer.

On the legal side: dumping a disc you own for your own use is the accepted practice these tools are built around, while downloading images of games you do not own is not. Neither RetroDeck site hosts or links to game files, and both ask you to confirm ownership before starting.

Step by step: RetroDeck PS1 (local emulator)

1. Open RetroDeck PS1 from its TabSpawn page.
2. Drop the disc image into the Game image box, then choose the BIOS file.
3. Start the console. The video panel switches from idle to the boot screen.
4. Play with the keyboard map from the player guide, or press a button on a connected gamepad.
5. Use save states from the toolbar; they are stored in the browser, so export before clearing site data.

Step by step: RetroDeck Live (streamed, two players)

1. Generate a 24-hour hosting key with your email, then unlock hosting with it.
2. Upload the disc image and BIOS for this session.
3. Start the console and copy the invitation link, which is valid for fifteen minutes.
4. Send the link. Your friend opens it in their own browser and takes controller two.
5. Talk over room voice; spectators can join with the room link and queue for a seat.

RetroDeck Live PS2 works the same way with PCSX2 for PlayStation 2 discs, adds a passphrase-protected library so your uploads persist between sessions, and runs one room at a time.

Which one should you use?

Local emulation when you are alone, want the lowest latency, or are on a slow connection. Streaming when the whole point is playing with someone else, or when your own machine is too weak to emulate the console. Many people use both: practise locally, then host a room.

Questions