retroDE_ps2/references

PS2 Reference Notes

This folder is a planning-oriented reference bundle for the retroDE_ps2 core. It is not meant to be an exhaustive PS2 encyclopedia; it is meant to collect the implementation details that are likely to matter when we turn this into an FPGA project.

Files in this folder:

• hardware_overview.md: PS2 subsystem map, memory map, and boot flow notes.
• software_and_emulators.md: Open-source SDK, graphics libraries, and emulator projects worth mining for behavior and test ideas.
• implementation_workstreams.md: A subsystem-by-subsystem map of what the project would need to account for, plus an ao486 comparison.
• source_log.md: Source list with URLs and short notes.
• supplemental/: Second-pass additions (Claude). Primary Sony manuals, PSX-on-FPGA prior art as methodology templates, academic / community feasibility material. See supplemental/README.md.

Suggested reading order:

1. hardware_overview.md
2. implementation_workstreams.md
3. software_and_emulators.md

Notes:

• These notes favor primary or near-primary technical sources where possible: emulator source trees, SDK/toolchain repos, and low-level hardware references.
• Some PS2 knowledge still lives in community documentation rather than official Sony publications. Where that is the case, the source is called out clearly.
• I did not find a credible open-source HDL PS2 core during this pass. The public material that surfaced is overwhelmingly emulator, homebrew SDK, and reverse-engineering documentation.