You’re our first priority.
TechUnder1000 is supported by its audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission at no cost to you. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
You want to play Sony PlayStation 1 games but you don’t have a console? Yes, you can purchase one but these are old consoles meaning it will likely have some issues. In the best-case scenario, you will end up with poor disc reading capabilities. This translates to being unable to play most of the games and encountering all kinds of problems while playing. There is a better way. You can download free PS1 games and play them on your computer within minutes. We will guide you through the entire process.
Download an emulator
In order to play PS1 games on a computer, you need special software called an emulator. It basically mimics the operating system of another device. In this case, it will mimic the operating system of Sony PlayStation 1 on your PC. There are a lot of different emulators available online and they all work in the same way. Yes, they look different but they have the same purpose and operating one is straightforward.
The first step is to download the emulator. As an example, we will use the ePSXe. It is a simple emulator that has all the main features and can run on most computers. After you download it, extract the files and place them on your desktop. You will see the emulator icon which should be opened to run the software. Now move to the next step.
Download ROM files
They are called many names but ROM is probably the most popular. This refers to the actual games that are saved in this particular format. The size of a ROM file will vary and depend on the game itself. If you have a slow internet connection, make sure to leave this process for a longer period of time until it is completed.
Each ROM will be a separate file. You can create a folder with any name you like and place all the ROM files there. This will be handy later on. Once you have downloaded a game or two you can move to the next step.
Load a ROM
The next step is simply to load the game. Open the emulator and click on load or open (this will vary and will depend on the emulator you have downloaded). Once you are done, the game will start. Now, you can use the keyboard controls to start the game and play it.
Almost all emulator allows you to connect a gamepad and use it instead of a keyboard. To do so you will need to go to the settings menu and select configuration. An image of the controller will be displayed and you will see the controllers. Click on each one you want to change and assign a suitable button if you wish to change the layout. Confirm and you can start playing.
Opening a new game
Opening a new game
Yes, you can exit from the game and it is a recommended method if you want to save your data. If you don’t want to do this, you can simply close the emulator and the game will close as well. Now, run the emulator again and load a new file. Repeat this whenever you want.
The final word
As you were able to see, playing Sony PlayStation 1 games on a PC is extremely easy and free. The best part is the fact you already have all you will need after simple downloads. Don’t forget that you can find any game you like, even the rarest and the most expensive. After all, this is the main advantage of having something in a digital form.
