Gamers Reveal How To Hack Playstation Classic, Add More Games

The PlayStation Classic, the mini version of Sony’s original console, has only been out for a few days but hackers already found a way to crack it. Users who are able to successfully hack into the PlayStation Classic can play games that are not part of the 20 preinstalled titles in the system.

Console hackers yifanlu and madmonkey1907 discovered that the most sensitive parts of the PlayStation Classic’s codes are signed and encrypted using a key that’s embedded directly into the console. This means the key that unlocks the console’s software lock is buried inside the console instead of being held by Sony, as first reported by Ars Technica.

“There really isn’t any security on the device at all,” yifanlu told Kotaku. “Sony managed to accidentally include their firmware update private keys on every console.”

Consoles typically have encrypted codes that run in the system to prevent people from tampering with them. But on the PlayStation Classic, the necessary tool to decrypt the system’s codes is already available in the console’s system and all a user has to do is copy it to their PC.

The PlayStation Classic has mostly received mixed reviews from critics, but one thing that a lot of people can agree on is that its limited selection of games out of the box is disappointing. The PlayStation Classic does come with fan-favorites, like “Metal Gear Solid,” “Resident Evil” and “Tekken 3,” but it’s also missing games like “Crash Bandicoot” and “Spyro the Dragon.” Now that hackers were able to crack the mini console, users can play other games that are not part of the original 20 preinstalled titles on the PlayStation Classic.

For users who are tech-savvy enough, they should be able to play more games by simply plugging in a USB into the mini console. They could also try loading up other games and programs that aren’t supported by the original PlayStation since Sony’s classic mini console doesn’t have any security checks that prevent that from happening.

There are already other developers who have managed to find a way to add games to the mini console. One such example is the program called BleemSync. The program is able to temporarily add games into the PlayStation Classic using a USB drive, but it removes access to the original 20 games that are preinstalled, according to Digital Trends.