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PS2 games run in WebAssembly after ahead-of-time recompilation

github.com 11 min read Editor score 8/10

The project translates PlayStation 2 machine code to C++, then compiles it to WebAssembly; Gran Turismo 4 reportedly runs at 50 fps in Chrome on an integrated GPU. Its recompilation approach and performance make it a useful case for engineers working on runtimes and compatibility.

What: PS2 Web Recomp runs PlayStation 2 games in a browser by statically recompiling them rather than using an emulator.
How: eerecomp translates game machine code into C++, which is compiled to WebAssembly and linked against a PS2 system and hardware reimplementation.
Why it matters: Preserving CPU quirks, vector timing, and hardware behavior shows the compatibility work needed to run complex legacy software on a browser stack.

The recompilation pipeline turns PS2 game code into browser-executable WebAssembly rendered with WebGPU. Sketched from the article's own text.

Read on github.com → Hacker News · 148 comments

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