KytyPlus

KytyPlus is a KytyPS5-based PlayStation 5 emulator for Windows, macOS, and Linux. This repository is a standalone project derived from KytyPS5 (itself based on Kyty), with additional work focused on iGPU optimization, build stability, firmware parsing, and a unified PS4/PS5 dispatch (iGPU behavior is not yet verified; see iGPU status).

Caution

Early-development software. Many games still crash, hang, black-screen, or render incorrectly. “Boots further” is not the same as “playable.” Do not expect AAA titles to run well.

See it in action

Video of Dead Cells booting to the main menu on KytyPlus v1.8 (i7-9700K, RTX 4060 Ti, external HDD). Tested and recorded by @CorpseSlayer.

▶ Watch on YouTube (CC-BY 4.0 — reuse with credit to @CorpseSlayer) ▶ Watch on Google Drive

Footage of a commercial game reaching menu — the project's first confirmed boot-to-menu result. Past-menu state has not been tested.

Disclaimers

Affiliation and trademarks

KytyPlus is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to Sony Interactive Entertainment, PlayStation, or any Sony subsidiary.
“PlayStation,” “PS5,” and related marks are trademarks of their respective owners.
This project is an independent community emulator.

Legal use only

KytyPlus does not include games, game dumps, or Sony system firmware.
Use only game files you have obtained legally.
Do not ask maintainers for piracy links, firmware dumps, or copyrighted sce_module SPRXs.
Distributing copyrighted dumps or firmware with this software is illegal.

Firmware / modules

KytyPlus uses an HLE-first approach: many titles do not require external low-level firmware modules to start.
Optional firmware / package parsing: KytyPlus can parse official PS5 firmware update files (.pup) via --install-firmware and Sony package files (.pkg) via --install-pkg. The PUP parser reads the SLB2 container, extracts the inner payload, and detects encryption — validated against a real Sony firmware file. The PKG parser reads the big-endian header and extracts the inner PFS image; a full PFS filesystem parser then walks the filesystem (inodes, directories, indirect blocks) and extracts individual files. Decryption of encrypted PUPs/PKGs requires a user-supplied keys.bin and remains untested.
Firmware is not included with the emulator. Download it directly from Sony: https://www.playstation.com/en-us/support/hardware/ps5/system-software/
To install: use the Install Firmware (.pup) or Install Package (.pkg) button in the launcher, or run kyty_emulator.exe --install-firmware <path-to-PS5UPDATE.PUP> / --install-pkg <path-to-file.pkg> (Windows) or ./kyty_emulator --install-firmware <path> / --install-pkg <path> (macOS/Linux). The parser reads the official Sony .pup/.pkg; decryption of encrypted files requires a user-supplied keys.bin placed next to the file (the emulator never provides or links to keys).
KytyPlus does not distribute, include, or link to any Sony copyrighted material.

No warranty

Provided as-is, without warranty of any kind.
Builds may break saves, drivers, or performance expectations. Use at your own risk.
Binary releases must remain accompanied by (or clearly linked to) the corresponding source under GPL-2.0.

What this project is / is not

Is	Is not
A compatibility-oriented KytyPS5 derivative	An official Sony product
iGPU optimization + unified PS4/PS5 dispatch	A claim that games are “fixed” or playable
Windows / macOS / Linux + Vulkan focused	A finished, stable emulator
Tester-oriented (logs welcome)	A place to request illegal files

Current status

Windows, macOS, and Linux. Vulkan 1.3 required (MoltenVK on macOS).

Upstream KytyPS5 can already boot a range of 2D/3D titles (UE4/5, Unity, custom engines). KytyPlus inherits that capability and adds an optimization/tooling layer on top — see the "Features exclusive to KytyPlus" section below for what's genuinely new.

Features exclusive to KytyPlus

These are not in upstream Kyty or KytyPS5. Each is implemented, compiled, and wired into a real code path. Game-level benefit is not yet validated on real hardware — that is what testers are for.

Fully wired, validated where noted:

Shader / pipeline disk cache — compiled Vulkan pipelines persist to _Cache/vulkan_pipeline_cache.bin and reload on subsequent launches, skipping work for shaders that haven’t changed. A compatibility check rejects stale caches. (First in the PS5 scene. Game-level benefit unvalidated.)
FSR 1.0 upscaler — edge-adaptive spatial upscaling (EASU + RCAS), works on all Vulkan GPUs (AMD / NVIDIA / Intel). Configurable via the launcher (method + sharpness); auto-enabled on iGPUs. Falls back to a plain blit if the GPU can’t handle it. (First in the PS5 scene. The upscaler runs; the internal-resolution-reduction / bandwidth-saving half is not yet wired.)
Configurable present path — present mode (VSync / Mailbox / Immediate), present filter (Nearest / Linear / Cubic), and aspect ratio (Stretch / 16:9 / 4:3 / Integer). (First in the PS5 scene.)
PUP firmware parsing + installation — parses official Sony .pup firmware update files via --install-firmware; loads installed modules at boot. SLB2 parsing, inner-payload extraction, and encryption detection validated against a real Sony firmware file. Decryption + module extraction require a user-supplied keys.bin (never provided by the emulator) and remain untested. (First in the PS5 scene for PUP parsing.)
PKG package parser + full PFS filesystem parser — parses Sony .pkg package files (PS4/PS5 digital games / updates) via --install-pkg, extracts the inner PFS image, then walks the full filesystem (PFS superblock, D32/S32/S64 inodes, directory enumeration, indirect block traversal, PFSC/zlib decompression, AES-XTS decryption with user-supplied EKPFS keys). The plaintext/uncompressed case is complete; encrypted + compressed cases are structurally complete but runtime-unvalidated. (First in the PS5 scene.)
Launcher GUI install buttons — "Install Firmware (.pup)" and "Install Package (.pkg)" buttons in the launcher, so users no longer need the command line to install. Fixes the discoverability gap where users previously couldn't find the install path.

Wired, validated only as mechanism / spec, not on real games or hardware:

iGPU auto-optimization — detects integrated GPUs (e.g. Radeon 780M-class) via the Vulkan device type and automatically enables FSR 1.0 + a texture LOD bias to cut bandwidth. force_igpu_mode lets you opt in on a discrete GPU for testing. (First PS5 emulator to focus on iGPU optimization. Game-level benefit unvalidated.)
UMA heap detection — detects unified-memory architectures (device-local + host-visible + host-coherent). Detection is live; the staging-bypass itself is not yet wired.
Bandwidth-aware adaptive LOD bias — monitors frame timing and ramps texture LOD bias up under bandwidth pressure / down with headroom, invalidating stale samplers via a generation counter. (First in the PS5 scene. Mechanism self-validatable; game-level benefit unvalidated.)
MMIO bus + NVMe LLE foundation — a real address-range router for memory-mapped devices (registered in the boot path) plus an NVMe controller rewritten as an MmioDevice talking to the real MMU. (First LLE infrastructure in the PS5 scene. Not yet exercised by games — groundwork, not a working storage path.)
Unified PS4/PS5 dispatch — auto-detects PS4 vs PS5 from the game ELF and dispatches PS4 titles to an embedded shadPS4 subprocess, reparenting its window into KytyPlus with unified saves. (Only unified PS4/PS5 emulator. Wired, not yet tested with a real PS4 game.)
Native DualSense HID driver — replaces SDL-only input with a native HID driver (buttons, sticks, L2/R2, gyro/IMU, touchpad in; rumble, lightbar RGB, adaptive trigger effects out), wired into the real pad path. (First in the PS5 scene. Spec-accurate, not validated on a physical DualSense.)
Extended CPU instruction emulation — software-emulates 15+ x86-64 instructions that fault on hosts lacking them (RDTSC/RDTSCP, CPUID hypervisor leaves, XGETBV/XSETBV, RDMSR/WRMSR, RDPMC/RDPRU/RDPID, CLZERO, WBINVD/INVD, MWAIT, descriptor-table/status-word ops). (Extends upstream’s MONITORX/MWAITX + SSE4a + SHA-NI baseline. Strictly additive, no-regression.)
EXIT diagnostics — 24 highest-impact unimplemented-path guards upgraded from raw condition strings to descriptive messages, so tester crash logs say what opcode/register/syscall was missing. (No-regression.)
Config validation — case-insensitive parsing, deprecated names transparently migrated (e.g. Fsr31 → Fsr1), invalid values rejected with a clear log message.

Note

All of the above are implemented, compiled, and wired in. Game-level benefit is not yet validated on real hardware — I don’t have a PS5 to dump games myself, so I can’t test the optimizations on actual games. That’s why we need testers to be able to test these features, so that together, we can build a better emulator.

Compatibility is still early. A title that no longer hits one known crash will often hit the next unimplemented feature. Always test with a fresh build and attach logs when reporting.

Help test KytyPlus: share your results or file a compatibility report. Browse existing results in the compatibility list.

Have a question or need help (firmware install, config, a game not booting)? Open an issue — it's not just for bug reports. I read every one and reply. Questions are welcome, even if it's just "how do I install firmware" or "does this work on my GPU." Better to ask than guess.

iGPU status

This project started on an integrated-GPU machine, so several defaults and allocator choices were made with iGPUs / UMA in mind. That is a design intent, not a verified result.

KytyPlus has not yet been confirmed to boot or run on any integrated GPU.
An iGPU result would be a meaningful differentiator and is actively sought.

If you have an iGPU system (e.g. Radeon 780M, Intel Arc iGPU) and legally obtained game dumps, a boot/menu report with logs and a rig description would be extremely valuable. Please share it in discussions or as a compatibility report. Until such a report exists, treat iGPU support as unproven, not advertised.

Press / Coverage

KytyPlus

GameGaz (大人のためのゲーム講座, JP) — has tracked KytyPlus releases since v1.9:
- GameGaz Daily 2026.8.16 — KytyPlus v2.7 (iGPU auto-detection, unified PS4/PS5 dispatch)
- GameGaz Daily 2026.8.3 — KytyPlus v2.0 (enhanced caching)

Upstream KytyPS5

These links cover the upstream KytyPS5 project (the lineage KytyPlus is derived from), not KytyPlus itself. Listed for context only.

GameGaz Daily 2026.8.4 — KytyPS5 2026-08-03-e8752ac

Coverage links are external and not affiliated with this project. They are listed for community reference only.

Screenshots

Screenshots below are from the KytyPS5 lineage and illustrate early boot capability — not KytyPlus playability guarantees.

Disgaea 6	Dreaming Sarah
Neptunia ReVerse	SILENT HILL: The Short Message
Hellboy Web of Wyrd	Paleo Pines

System requirements

Runtime

Windows 10 (1803+) or Windows 11, 64-bit (Vulkan 1.3)
CPU: x86-64
macOS 12+ (Vulkan 1.3 via MoltenVK)
Linux (Vulkan 1.3)
GPU: Vulkan 1.3 capable, with current drivers (AMD / NVIDIA / Intel)
RAM: 16 GB minimum; 32 GB recommended (especially on iGPU / UMA systems)

What you need to run a game

A legally obtained dumped game or demo directory, typically containing:
- eboot.bin (Prospero ELF; sometimes named .elf)
- Supporting files (sce_sys, data folders, etc. as required by the title)
KytyPlus expects Prospero / FreeBSD-OSABI ELFs. Generic homebrew SDK ELFs with System V OSABI are often rejected (elf is not valid / EI_OSABI != ELFOSABI_FREEBSD).

Important: Before using KytyPlus, please read our Legal Disclaimer regarding trademarks and the legal acquisition of guest system files.

Install options

Option A — Download a Release build (testers)

Open the repository Releases page.
Download the latest install zip (full _Build/windows/install tree — not a lone .exe).
Extract somewhere writable (example: C:\KytyPlus\).
Run launcher.exe or kyty_emulator.exe as described in Running.

Important

Under GPL-2.0, redistributed binaries must be paired with corresponding source availability. Prefer official project Releases that point at a git tag/commit.

Option B — Build from source

Windows

Build dependencies

Dependency	Notes
Git	Submodules required
CMake 3.12+	On PATH
Ninja	On PATH
Visual Studio 2022 or Build Tools	Desktop C++ + C++ Clang tools for Windows (`clang-cl`)
Qt 6 (MSVC 2022 64-bit)	Widgets, Network, Concurrent (e.g. `C:\Qt\6.10.3\msvc2022_64`)
Vulkan SDK	Provides `glslangValidator` (required at configure time)

cl.exe alone is not supported — use clang-cl.

Configure and build

Open an x64 Native Tools / Developer shell for VS 2022, then:

cd C:\path\to\KytyPlus

git submodule update --init --recursive

cmake -S src -B _Build/windows -G Ninja `
  -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release `
  -DCMAKE_C_COMPILER=clang-cl `
  -DCMAKE_CXX_COMPILER=clang-cl `
  -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="C:/Qt/6.10.3/msvc2022_64"

cmake --build _Build/windows --target launcher
cmake --install _Build/windows --prefix _Build/windows/install

Replace the Qt path with your installed version. After a successful install you should have:

_Build\windows\install\launcher.exe
_Build\windows\install\kyty_emulator.exe

(plus Qt/runtime DLLs staged next to them)

Visual Studio Code

A CMake Tools setup lives in .vscode:

Install CMake Tools and C/C++ extensions.
Set CMAKE_PREFIX_PATH in .vscode/settings.json to your Qt path.
Set --game in .vscode/launch.json for debugging.
Configure/build from an x64 VS developer environment.

macOS

Built and tested on macOS 15 with Xcode 26 and Qt 6.10.3 (clang_64). macOS uses MoltenVK to provide Vulkan 1.3; the CI build bundles libMoltenVK.dylib next to the binaries.

Build dependencies

Dependency	Notes
Git	Submodules required
CMake 3.12+	On PATH
Ninja	`brew install ninja`
Xcode 26 (clang++)	Command Line Tools or full Xcode
Qt 6 (clang_64)	Widgets, Network, Concurrent (e.g. `~/Qt/6.10.3/macos`)
glslang	`brew install glslang` (provides `glslangValidator`)
MoltenVK	Optional at build time; required at runtime. CI bundles v1.4.2

Configure and build

cd /path/to/KytyPlus

git submodule update --init --recursive

cmake -S src -B _Build/macos -G Ninja \
  -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
  -DCMAKE_OSX_ARCHITECTURES=x86_64 \
  -DCMAKE_C_COMPILER=clang \
  -DCMAKE_CXX_COMPILER=clang++ \
  -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="$HOME/Qt/6.10.3/macos"

cmake --build _Build/macos --target launcher
cmake --install _Build/macos --prefix _Build/macos/install

To run the built binaries, place libMoltenVK.dylib next to kyty_emulator (or install the Vulkan SDK). After a successful install you should have:

_Build/macos/install/launcher
_Build/macos/install/kyty_emulator

Note

The CI build targets x86_64 (-DCMAKE_OSX_ARCHITECTURES=x86_64). Apple Silicon users can run the x86_64 build under Rosetta 2; a native arm64 build is not yet provided by CI.

Linux

Built and tested on Ubuntu 24.04 with Clang and Qt 6.10.3 (linux_gcc_64). Vulkan 1.3 is provided by your system Mesa/NVIDIA drivers.

Build dependencies

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install --no-install-recommends --yes \
  clang lld ninja-build cmake git \
  glslang-tools \
  libgl1-mesa-dev libwayland-dev wayland-protocols \
  libx11-dev libxext-dev libxcursor-dev libxfixes-dev \
  libxi-dev libxrandr-dev libxkbcommon-dev libxss-dev \
  libasound2-dev libpulse-dev libudev-dev libdbus-1-dev

Plus Qt 6 (Widgets, Network, Concurrent), e.g. ~/Qt/6.10.3/gcc_64.

Configure and build

cd /path/to/KytyPlus

git submodule update --init --recursive

cmake -S src -B _Build/linux -G Ninja \
  -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
  -DCMAKE_C_COMPILER=clang \
  -DCMAKE_CXX_COMPILER=clang++ \
  -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="$HOME/Qt/6.10.3/gcc_64"

cmake --build _Build/linux --target launcher
cmake --install _Build/linux --prefix _Build/linux/install

After a successful install you should have:

_Build/linux/install/launcher
_Build/linux/install/kyty_emulator

Qt plugins and shared libraries are staged under _Build/linux/install/lib and found via an $ORIGIN/lib RPATH, so run the binaries from the install prefix directly.

Running

Update GPU drivers before reporting graphics bugs.

Graphical launcher

.\_Build\windows\install\launcher.exe

Open global settings and add a folder that contains your dumped games.
The launcher searches recursively for directories with eboot.bin.
Select a game and run it.

Command line

Game directory (loads /app0/eboot.bin):

.\_Build\windows\install\kyty_emulator.exe --game "D:\Games\MyDump"

Specific ELF / eboot.bin (parent folder becomes /app0):

.\_Build\windows\install\kyty_emulator.exe --game "D:\Games\MyDump\eboot.bin"

.\_Build\windows\install\kyty_emulator.exe --game "D:\Games\MyDump\something.elf"

See all options:

.\_Build\windows\install\kyty_emulator.exe --help

Tips

Keep dumps on a fast local disk; long paths and permission-locked folders cause avoidable pain.
For bug reports, enable logging as needed and attach the full log, especially the final --- Error --- block and stack trace.
iGPU / UMA systems: shared memory pressure is normal. Note: KytyPlus has not yet been verified to boot or run on any integrated GPU — iGPU-friendly defaults are by design intent, not confirmed behavior (see iGPU status).

Reporting bugs

Search existing issues first.
Include: game title, serial/title ID if known, KytyPlus commit or Release name, GPU/CPU/RAM, OS.
Attach the complete log file.
Describe exact steps (boot → menu → crash, etc.).

Expect crashes and incomplete features. Actionable reports with logs help more than “doesn’t work.”

Contributing

Prefer focused changes that build on Windows with the documented toolchain.
Open an issue before large redesigns.
Keep PRs reviewable; include tests when practical.

Formatting

python -m pip install pre-commit
python -m pre_commit install --install-hooks

Formats staged .cpp, .h, and .inc files under src.

AI use

AI tools may be used for research and assistance. Contributors must review, understand, and test everything they submit. Disclose meaningful AI involvement in pull requests. Unverified generated dumps may be closed without review.

Developer map

PS5 graphics are AMD RDNA 2–based. Useful reference: RDNA 2 ISA Guide (70648).

Area	Path
Shader decode / IR / SPIR-V	`src/graphics/shader/recompiler`
Guest GPU (Prospero)	`src/graphics/guest_gpu`
Host Vulkan backend	`src/graphics/host_gpu`
Tests	`tests`

Renderer target: Vulkan 1.3.

License and credits

KytyPlus (like KytyPS5) is licensed under the GNU General Public License version 2 (GPL-2.0-only).

Upstream lineage

KytyPS5/KytyPS5 — primary upstream this tree is based on
InoriRus/Kyty — original Kyty project (MIT); see LICENSES/Kyty-MIT.txt
shadps4-emu/shadPS4 — reference for memory-model understanding and AVPlayer-related work in the lineage

Third-party components remain under their own licenses as included in the tree.

When publishing binaries, comply with GPL-2.0: provide Corresponding Source for the exact build.

FAQ

Can I run a raw .elf?
Yes, via --game path\to\file.elf, if it is a valid Prospero ELF. Homebrew SDK ELFs with the wrong OSABI are often rejected.

Do I need PS5 firmware?
Not for the intended HLE path. Do not request or redistribute firmware here.

Is game X playable?
Assume no until a tester confirms with a specific build. Prefer “boots / menu / ingame crash” labels over “playable.”

Why not ship only kyty_emulator.exe?
It depends on staged DLLs and data from the install prefix, and GPL requires source availability with binaries.

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
.github		.github
.vscode		.vscode
3rdparty		3rdparty
LICENSES		LICENSES
docs		docs
experimental		experimental
include		include
src		src
tests		tests
.gitignore		.gitignore
.gitmodules		.gitmodules
.pre-commit-config.yaml		.pre-commit-config.yaml
ASYNC_PIPELINE.md		ASYNC_PIPELINE.md
CMakeLists.txt		CMakeLists.txt
COMPATIBILITY.md		COMPATIBILITY.md
CONTRIBUTING.md		CONTRIBUTING.md
DISCLAIMER.md		DISCLAIMER.md
LICENSE		LICENSE
README.md		README.md
RELEASE_NOTES_v1.9.md		RELEASE_NOTES_v1.9.md
RELEASE_NOTES_v2.1.md		RELEASE_NOTES_v2.1.md
SECURITY.md		SECURITY.md

Latest commit

History

Folders and files

Repository files navigation

KytyPlus

See it in action

Disclaimers

Affiliation and trademarks

Legal use only

Firmware / modules

No warranty

What this project is / is not

Current status

Features exclusive to KytyPlus

iGPU status

Press / Coverage

KytyPlus

Upstream KytyPS5

Screenshots

System requirements

Runtime

What you need to run a game

Install options

Option A — Download a Release build (testers)

Option B — Build from source

Windows

Build dependencies

Configure and build

Visual Studio Code

macOS

Build dependencies

Configure and build

Linux

Build dependencies

Configure and build

Running

Graphical launcher

Command line

Tips

Reporting bugs

Contributing

Formatting

AI use

Developer map

License and credits

Upstream lineage

FAQ

About

Topics

Resources

Contributing

Security policy

Stars

Watchers

Forks

Releases

Packages

Contributors

Languages