Turns out, the Xbox Series X and S are better at running PlayStation 2 games than the PlayStation 5 - who would have thunk it? Using the Developer Mode that the Xbox Series consoles come with (it's also on Xbox One consoles, too), some clever fans have worked out how to run emulations of old PS2 games on the consoles.
As spotted by VG247, the Modern Vintage Gamer on YouTube has shown off this workaround in a handy video, so people can try it out for themselves. "Developer Mode is the ability to install development builds of software that utilise UWP or the Universal Windows Platform. This would also include emulators such as Retro Arch," says MVG as he explains how it works.
PCSX2 is the application running on Retro Arch that is making this possible; but as MVG says, it's still very much an active development project. Which is to say, it's by no means perfect right now. Apart from the bugs present in PCSX2, it's also limited to only 2GB in ROM sizes. There is a way to get around this problem, but MVG notes that it might not be legal so he leaves it at that.
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MGV goes on to show the potential of the emulation, giving us solid examples of gameplay from titles like Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, Jak and Daxter, Ico, and Ace Combat 2. When these games ran well, they ran incredibly well, but many of them saw texture issues. You can see in MGV's video (above) small problems with Jak's appearance, for example. But then, God of War looks fantastic.
All-in-all, we should definitely be keeping an eye on these development tools in the future. There is something funny about playing our favourite classic PS2 games on the latest Xbox consoles, but we're not complaining. Now, we just need to get our hands on a Series S to go alongside our X (review).
Featured Image Credit: Microsoft, KonamiTopics: Xbox, News, PlayStation