shadps4-emu/shadPS4
PlayStation 4 emulator for Windows, Linux, macOS and FreeBSD written in C++
Build with Backblaze B2
SDKs, agent skills, IDE extensions, and reference pipelines from Backblaze Labs. All open source.
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Where it stands
Rank, growth pace and release cadence relative to everything GStars tracks.
Ranks #491 of 2,845 repositories GStars tracks this week (top 17%).
4 releases in the last 90 days, the latest today, with 223 contributors on GitHub.
The biggest single-day gain in the last year, +291 stars on Mar 19, coincided with release Pre-release-shadPS4-2026-03-18-f245cf76a7663a5dc434c0a45a0cf3fd4ce3c5f8.
Use Cases & Benefits
- Emulates PlayStation 4 games on Windows, Linux, macOS, and FreeBSD using a C++ core.
- Offers cross-platform PS4 emulation with support for Vulkan, SDL3, and advanced shader compilation.
- Use for running PS4 games on non-console hardware for testing or gameplay.
- Use for developers needing a PS4 emulator core to integrate with custom GUIs or tools.
- Use for researchers analyzing PS4 firmware and game compatibility on multiple operating systems.
Should you depend on it?
License terms, project hygiene and risks, from GitHub metadata and GStars' snapshots.
License
GPL 2.0
Copyleft: distributing software that includes it generally requires releasing your source under the same license.
Community files
- README: present
- Contributing guide: present
Watch-outs
- GPL-style copyleft: including it in distributed software generally requires releasing your source under the same license.
General guidance from repository metadata, not legal advice. How we score
From the README
shadPS4 is an early PlayStation 4 emulator for Windows, Linux and macOS written in C++.
If you encounter problems or have doubts, do not hesitate to look at the Quickstart.
To verify that a game works, you can look at shadPS4 Game Compatibility.
To discuss shadPS4 development, suggest ideas or to ask for help, join our Discord server.
To get the latest news, go to our X (Twitter) or our website.
You can donate to the project via our Kofi page.Currently, the emulator can successfully run games like Bloodborne, Dark Souls Remastered, Red Dead Redemption, and many other games.
This project began for fun. Given our limited free time, it may take some time before shadPS4 can run more complex games, but we're committed to making small, regular updates.
Daily snapshots
Stars gained per day, and how forks and open issues moved, from GStars' daily snapshots
Forks
2.7K+415
Open issues
258+61
Compared with peers in iOS
Fastest-growing repositories GStars tracks in this cohort for the week of Oct 11, by 7-day star growth
| Repository | Stars | +7d | Health | Last release |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| flutter/flutter | 180.2K | +1.1K | 45 | — |
| agalwood/Motrix | 57.0K | +499 | 75 | 2 days ago |
| huanfeng/WindInput | 1.2K | +207 | 60 | 2 days ago |
| invoke-ai/InvokeAI | 28.7K | +201 | 75 | 5 days ago |
| dortania/OpenCore-Legacy-Patcher | 18.7K | +189 | 75 | 16 days ago |
| shadps4-emu/shadPS4 | 33.5K | +0 | 75 | today |
| Category median | 28.7K | +207 | 75 | — |
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