PS5 Owners Get Thousands Of Free PS3 Games Without PlayStation Plus

The PlayStation 5 might just be worth it now that PlayStation 3 can be played without that horrendous cloud-streaming gimmick.

Modern PlayStation consoles have a bit of a compatibility problem as while the OG PlayStation titles are well-supported the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3 offering is nothing short of dire.

It’s not like Xbox which supports backwards compatibility with both the OG Xbox and Xbox 360 titles, many of which can be played with your own physical disc rather than through digital means.

The PlayStation 3 especially is sorely underrepresented as while you can play a good few of its games through PlayStation Plus Premium they’re only available through cloud-streaming, which simply isn’t worth the premium price point in our opinion.

PS3 Games Can Now Be Played On The PS5 Without PlayStation Plus

Everything has changed since it was discovered PlayStation 5 consoles could be modded to run Linux.

It unlocked an abundance of possibilities namely emulation, as gamers around the world are unlocking the full potential of their consoles by running RPCS3 on it.

For those who don’t know RPCS3 is a PlayStation emulator and your ticket to playing thousands of PlayStation 3 games without a subscription.

Gamers have been sharing footage on X of their PlayStation 5s running RPCS3 like Speed-007 who captured gameplay of their Killzone 3 playthrough.

Killzone 3 is an excellent example to use as it’s a PlayStation 3 game not supported on the PlayStation 5 by any other means. No backwards compatibility nor a re-release.

PS5 liunx RPCS3 emu [ Killzone 3 ps3 4k ] pic.twitter.com/oZANj0pfAf

— Speed-007 (@zombie_round) April 30, 2026

It’s actually been a real eye-opener as for the longest time it was believed PlayStation 3 games were unsupported on the PlayStation 5 because they don’t run well. As you can see from the above gameplay it’s more than possible, so why hasn’t it been done sooner?

Speed-007 also managed to get Grand Theft Auto IV working on the PlayStation 5, another game that’s not currently supported but is available via backwards compatibility on Xbox Series X/S.

my ps5 linux [ 4.xx ] 🔥

i tested first steam game GTA IV working very well
4k high setting pic.twitter.com/EqLR7WdYkq

— Speed-007 (@zombie_round) April 29, 2026

If anything this new Linux compatibility makes the recent hardware price-hike a little easier to swallow. With a bit of work your PlayStation 5 can be transformed into a gaming PC, though performance of some games could definitely be smoother.

Steam Machine No Longer Needed

PlayStation 5’s unofficial Linux support has also led to the discovery that Steam can be run through the console too.

PepeCobain shared an image of the Valve’s storefront being supported through the console and it almost makes you wonder what’s the point in the Steam Machine?

Seeing Steam on PS5 even before a Steam Machine is a joy to the eyes.I think we’ve finally reached what gamers have been hoping for for years, especially at the right moment considering the heavy limitations and DRM they try to impose. Thanks @TheFlow0 for making this dream real pic.twitter.com/E4Z0toVxQs

— PepeCobain (@PepeCobain95) April 30, 2026

Valve’s new console aims to deliver a PC-like experience for home console enjoyers but if Steam can work on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox’s next-gen console is a PC hybrid anyway will the Steam Machine actually be worth picking up?

If you’ve been on the fence about it you’ve got plenty of time to decide as while the new Steam Controller is just a few days away the Steam Machine seems to be having commitment issues, though hope still remains…

READ MORE: Steam Machine Release Date Gets Positive Update Following New Valve Hardware