Water
Emulators for a low-end PC
A low-end PC plays NES, SNES, Game Boy, PS1, N64, DS and PSP games well: their emulators ask for little. It can play PS2 games too, depending on the game, if it meets PCSX2’s minimum and keeps the picture at the console’s own resolution. GameCube and Wii do best with a graphics card of their own, and the PS3 asks more than any of them.
What plays on almost any PC
A low-end PC here means an older processor, graphics built into it instead of a card of its own, and 4 to 8 GB of memory. These consoles play well on one:
- SNES and NES, Game Boy, Color and Advance and DS: they play on any PC Water runs on, Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit.
- PS1: DuckStation’s makers ask for a processor with SSE4.1, which, they say, every Intel processor made after 2007 and every AMD one made after 2011 has.
- PSP: PPSSPP’s makers say it plays most PSP games on almost any PC made in the last 10 years.
- N64: the Nintendo 64 core Water uses in RetroArch, Mupen64Plus-Next, asks for graphics that run OpenGL 3.3.
Which emulator plays each of these consoles, and why Water picks it, is on the best emulator for each console.
The consoles that ask for more
These consoles ask more of a PC. This is what their emulators’ makers publish:
- PS2
- PCSX2’s minimum is a processor with SSE4.1, two cores with SMT (four threads) and a PassMark single-thread rating of 1500 or more, 8 GB of memory, and graphics such as Intel’s UHD 630, which is built into many Intel processors. Its makers call their next level Moderate: four cores with AVX2, a single-thread rating of 2000 or more, and 16 GB.
- GameCube and Wii
- Dolphin’s makers want four cores or more, and highly recommend a graphics card of its own over Intel’s built-in graphics; Intel graphics older than the HD 4000 aren’t supported.
- Xbox
- xemu’s makers ask for graphics that run OpenGL 4.0, and say most recent graphics built into a processor will work.
- PS Vita
- Vita3K’s makers ask for 4 GB of memory at least, and graphics that run OpenGL 4.4 or Vulkan 1.0.
- PS3
- RPCS3 needs 8 GB of memory at least; its makers recommend 6 cores and 12 threads with AVX2, and 16 GB. The PS3 asks the most of the consoles on this page.
The first time, Water draws PS2, GameCube, Wii and Xbox games at three times their size, which graphics built into the processor may not keep up with. Each emulator on this page is made by its own team; Water isn’t affiliated with any of them.
PCSX2 on a low-end PC: what to set
PCSX2’s makers say the work its graphics do depends mostly on two settings: the internal resolution and the blending accuracy. Water sets the first to three times the PS2’s resolution the first time a PS2 game starts, then leaves the picture to you, so what you lower stays lowered.
- In a game, press Esc, or Back and Start together on a controller (View and Menu on an Xbox one, Share or Create and Options on a PlayStation one), to open PCSX2’s pause menu. Choose Settings.
- Press the right arrow key, or right on the D-pad, until the title reads Graphics Settings (three pages along), and set Internal Resolution to Native (PS2). Games look as they did on the console, and the graphics draw a ninth of the pixels they drew at three times.
- Leave Blending Accuracy on Basic (Recommended), PCSX2’s default: each level above it costs speed.
- Leave Graphics API on Automatic (Default), as PCSX2’s makers advise when in doubt; they note that Vulkan and OpenGL can be unstable on Intel graphics.
These settings ease the graphics, not the processor. PCSX2’s makers say the games that pushed the PS2 hardest struggle even on a Moderate processor, while some early and 2D games may run on processors with a single-thread rating as low as 1200.
On a laptop or an older PC
- Plug a laptop in, and set Windows’ power mode to Best performance (on Windows 11, Settings › System › Power & battery). PCSX2’s and xemu’s makers both ask for it.
- Install your graphics driver’s newest version, from its maker. PCSX2’s and PPSSPP’s makers both recommend it.
- Keep games on a drive inside the PC. PCSX2’s makers advise against USB drives, whose delays slow the emulator down.
- Close what you don’t need while you play: xemu’s makers suggest checking Task Manager for background programs using up the PC.
What Water checks for you
Settings › PC Specs in Water compares your PC, console by console, with what each emulator asks of a PC: Plays well, Lighter games or Too slow, and what your PC is short of. When it falls short, that console’s game pages say so under Install, before you install. They never stop you, since a light game can still run.
- On a laptop with built-in graphics and a card of its own, Water sets Windows to run each emulator on the card, unless you already chose.
- PC Specs says when a laptop is on battery, and when a newer NVIDIA driver is out or an AMD or Intel driver is six months old or more, with a link to its maker’s page.
Try it on your PC
Your first install is free: Water installs any one game, PC or console, and it stays installed. Start with a light console, or with a PS2 game to see how your PC does: Water sets up the emulator and your controller, and you press Play.
