The best PS3 emulator on Android just got a massive local multiplayer upgrade

ARMSX3 is the top PlayStation 3 emulator on Android, having received a steady stream of updates since its release earlier this year. One update in August brought online multiplayer functionality, but a recent update brings a major upgrade for local multiplayer.

ARMSX3 v1.2 was released a few days ago, and the app now supports remote local multiplayer functionality. That is, you can play as player two in a friend’s multiplayer game streamed over the same Wi-Fi network or online.

“Their game streams to your device and you play with your own controller or the touch controls. Only the stream runs on your side, so you don’t need the game,” reads an excerpt of the changelog. The changelog adds that this is a peer-to-peer connection between the two devices. Start a session on the same local Wi-Fi network as your friend, and they should see you automatically. Otherwise, the host needs to share an automatically generated six-digit code to play local multiplayer games online.

This is a pretty fantastic addition to ARMSX3 and means you can wirelessly play local multiplayer games that didn’t have LAN or online multiplayer to begin with. I also like the fact that player two doesn’t need a copy of the game, evoking memories of Download Play on Nintendo consoles.

There’s no shortage of local multiplayer games on PS3, either, such as Minecraft, various fighting and racing games, the LittleBigPlanet series, the Lego games, and Portal 2. So you’re bound to find something worth playing with a friend.