Hackers have finally completely torn apart the PS3's few remaining lines of defense against running unauthorised code.
George 'Geohot' Hotz, famed for cracking the iPhone platform and making way for the infamous Jailbreak, has decrypted the so-called "root key" of the PS3 and posted it onto the internet for everyone to work with.
This new development basically means that the homebrew and piracy scene will now essentially be able to create anything they like, from homebrew apps and games, to PSP-style custom firmware and, unfortunately, pirate games, without restriction.
Similarly, another hacking team by the alias of 'fail0verflow' has decrypted and reconstructed the tools needed to sign code in the exact same only Sony should be able to, and released these tools on the internet. This means that any unofficial executable file created for PS3 can be made to appear as a Sony-authorised program even to entirely unmodified PS3s.
What's more, these signature keys operate at the core of PS3, meaning this cannot be fixed simply by releasing a new firmware. Sony, to put it bluntly, has lost this fight.
'Geohot' described the fundamental flaws with PS3s security in a presentation at a recent event. Check it out through the link but get your professor hat on. It gets technical.
Comments
99 comments so far...
Frogster8 on 4 Jan '11 said:
...Amazing. Well, gotta hand it to them, so people really are good at this stuff. Sorry Sony, maybe this will reduce game prices a bit if they fear piracy. I know for a fact that personally for myself (I have a PC but recently switched to PC gaming, get my computer parts on thursday) the simple fact that Steam has such good prices on games is the reason why I think its pointless. If its getting up to the £45 mark (like some shops sell PS3 games) I can see why people may pirate, whereas Steam sells games from £3 - £30. Its great, I recently got Borderlands with ALL DLC for £15, same with Fallout 3, same with Oblivion. Maybe Sony will lower some rates....
Still, I'm all fine with the "threat" of piracy causing them to lower a few prices, it doesn't mean I condone it. Scare tactics is all it should be, don't want game developers being put off making great titles.
I have a feeling I'm going to be mis-read as a piracy condoning d**k and flamed.
*puts on fireproof blanket*
stonecold77 on 4 Jan '11 said:
Well I hope the sad spotty little f**kers will be happy....
KMakawa on 4 Jan '11 said:
It'll be those sad spotty little individuals... that will be within your call of duty game session, or your assassins creed multiplayer session and even your killzone game running around max-speed, max-health, max-ammo etc.
This is essentially what that breakthrough can now do, the content will appear as Sony-authorised, thus allowing that player to enter online sessions and rip it apart.
Good game Sony. Good game.
Even with the intensive attack on constantly updating the system they still fall short.
yourmumwasfun on 4 Jan '11 said:
Now, when it's hacked they'll sell more consoles and because every ps3 sold brings profit there's no loss. Remember ps2 or 1?
Frogster8 on 4 Jan '11 said:
I just watched the presentation where they revealed it and those guys REALLY know their stuff. Hell, apart from very basic things like "This allows us to do this" and the funny "Trophy" moments I had no idea what was going on. However, you are all jumping to conclusions condemning them because fail0verflow themselves have stated that they are only interesting in things such as linux. Below I have quoted from the interview.
A woman asked
I know a majority will go "Yeah thats what they SAY" etc etc and try to just be paranoid, but they're pretty much just against compulsory firmware updates with no ability to rollback (excluding PS3 Jailbreak on firmware 3.50 and before) and the removal of linux even though its obvious the system is capable of it.
360_Fan on 4 Jan '11 said:
Well EA can kiss good bye to the extra revenue they were hoping to get by porting mass effect 2. I know a lot of greedy little pricks at my local swap meet are going to be rubbing thier hands together with this news. Only good news about this is console numbers will sky rocket. Not good for the game industry though.
julioaragon on 4 Jan '11 said:
gee and i thought the ps3 was suppose to be this powerful system that nobody can match....well people found their weak link..free downloads,free games,etc...sonys gonna lose alot of money with this big issue,like ive said every console has its problems and its finally hitting the ps3 hard...wish sony luck they need it
sparced on 4 Jan '11 said:
I paid £15 for Borderlands GOTY for PS3 last week. Big deal.Also got the Lunchbox edition of Fallout 3 when it first came out for not much more. It's called shopping online.
If idiots want to walk into Game and Gamestation paying full retail then that's their own stupid fault.
julioaragon on 4 Jan '11 said:
and it wont sky rocket the console because of the price tag on the system... sony has yet to make profit on the ps3 if they drop the prices even further theyll go bankrupt in the next few years they cant afford to make another price drop...
Metagen on 4 Jan '11 said:
^Really? Because I'm pretty sure Sony has been turning a profit on every PS3 sold for a while now
monty_79 on 4 Jan '11 said:
Is it possible to do this for xbox? If so, why hasn't it killed off the the 360? I'm guessing it's because of the closed nature of xbox live?
I'm a bit thick when it comes to such things..
voodoo341 on 4 Jan '11 said:
Wouldn't someone running round with max-speed, max-health etc on COD be just a little more than an indicator that that person is using a hacked console? I'd imagine that person could expect an IP ban from PSN similar to the way Microsoft deal with modded consoles on XBL now.
buckylovin on 4 Jan '11 said:
Monty, I dont believe it is possible to do with xbox (correct me if im wrong ppl). I know you can run copied games on Xbox by flashing the disc drive but not sign your own code and run homebrew apps. Its pretty much made it exactly like the wii.
Bad news for Sony however i look forward to seeing what the hackers create now (im not talking about piracy or condoning it).
I beleive that they only started trying to hack the PS3 like this when they removed Linux. They said in their Keynote that it only took one year from Linux was ripped till they cracked it. Thats the same time frame it took them to crack the Wii.
carlos928 on 4 Jan '11 said:
Im so sorry to hear this.. that is why I propose a Game-Offender Registration Act to be proposed! Together we will bring down the tyranny of pirates and their illegal trafficking of games! We will not surrender to their demands (if any) Every hacker from full scale glitches down to copying save files will be arrested and made to register and branded a 01 symbol to represent their crimes to the world online! If a repeat offender is caught he will have his console(s) destroyed or sold for settlement to the developers cheated out of their money (even Activision, even though they screw with us).
People of the gaming community, in all seriousness, we all feel it in our hearts that the beginning of the end is starting, a war between developers and pirates will ensue but alas our casualties will be the greatest. This is the beginning of desperate times and I for one want to prepare before the first strike is give, if it hasn't been given by the terrible news we have received today. Thank you gamers of all over the world and heed my words!
Carlos -out!
monty_79 on 4 Jan '11 said:
Cheers Bucky!
MattyR95 on 4 Jan '11 said:
So? It's been happening for years on PC & 360, sony has done extremely well to last 4 years. Besides, hackers will just be banned if they play online, if they're cheating anyway.
monty_79 on 4 Jan '11 said:
I do feel for Sony to an extent, and also the developers but at the same time but I can't help but feel that if the publishers weren't such greedy pricks to begin with, people wouldn't turn to piracy nearly as much.
One thing that slightly puts me off the 3DS is the fact that it is going to cost £35 per game which is pretty shocking for a handheld.
Agree with the above poster. It does feel like the beginning of the end for Sony a bit. They have a reputation for releasing expensive and needlessly complicated stuff. The PSP2 isn't going to stand a chance against the 3DS but in their typical arrogant fashion, will release it anyway and lose millions.
FinalBillybong on 4 Jan '11 said:
So is geohot part of fail0verflow then? I didn't see him mentioned in the source article.
Athrun888 on 4 Jan '11 said:
Great, guess I won't be taking my ps3 online for a while, Sony will no doubt retaliate with a bunch of pointless, time wasting, updates.
Still, I don't really know who to blame, the hackers for, well, hacking, or Sony for not being the slightest bit pro-active with the console, striping out features and not including them to begin with, thus creating the temptation to hack it in the first place.
boskersrevenge on 4 Jan '11 said:
I am genuinely considering not taking the PS3 online when I buy one. I know I will probably ends up doing so, but I can help think that it'll be a misery.
Dewin on 4 Jan '11 said:
Hackers don't create s**t. They port a few old homebrew apps and a few crappy emulators that have run on a gazillion other systems. Hackers don't create, they destroy. In this case a whole platform. And just for their ego.
WHERESMYMONKEY on 4 Jan '11 said:
Sony really did bring it on themselves though. Putting Other OS on the machine was a master stroke because it kept the hackers off thier back. Why crack an already relatively open system. There's no fun to be had there. But after they locked it out. They basically Drew a huge target on thier head and yelled take your best shot. LAst news i heard was that not only have the hackers gotten other os functions back on some machines, but that they've managed to take off the restrictions sony put in place on it and got it working on slim models.
From the article what sony should really be worried about though is the ability to get unoffical code to run on unmodded machines. That opens up the potential for boot disks to run HDD loaders and like off Unmodded consoles.
El Mag on 4 Jan '11 said:
I'd like somebody to hack the hackers, just to give em a taste. Start simple, like whenever he leaves his mums basement to get money out a cash point it says he has none. Then move up and start messing with his apps, something like putting a slow puncture in his girlfriend....sorry, life size blow up xena warrior princess doll. Then to finish it off you wipe his Warcraft characters, turn up at his house and take all his hidden cartoon fapping material and burn his prized storm trooper costume.
This hack will just make the stupid tossers that ruin multi-player games already into even bigger tossers, so luckily it'll mostly be Call Of Duty that's affected.
yourmumwasfun on 4 Jan '11 said:
Hackers, great movie, Angelina looks hot there.
only_777 on 4 Jan '11 said:
Who you have no idea what you'r talking about.
1) This hack only allows homebrew/emulators, so you can't play copied Blurays.
2) You still wont be able to use cracked saved files because the game discs can't be moddifed.
3) The whole idea of emulation is clearly not for people like you. It's for people like me who still own and play retro games. I don't want to keep have to get out my old consoles everytime I want to play a game. If I can just have my PS3 out then thats great. Also You run into the problem of old consoles not connecting to HDTV's so emulation fixes that problem.
4) Name one console that has been destroyed through hacking, and don't say the Dreamcast because the PS2 killed that.
backcue on 4 Jan '11 said:
Isn't the 360 and PC already hacked? My mate has shown me him playing HalfLife Ep2 on the PC without Steam and Halo Reach Online on the 360 with a copied disc. Both are doing fine still, even with piracy? Can't help thinking people are making a bit TOO much of a deal out of this..... Unless I'm totally missing the point!
djreplay on 4 Jan '11 said:
So, let me get this straight, your a pirate. AAARRRGGGHHH
gogo65uk on 4 Jan '11 said:
Best part of these kinda people ran down their mothers legs. Pirates are the games community equivalent of pedophiles (next to fanboys) and should be shot on sight.
Tazadoobii on 4 Jan '11 said:
I really, really hope Sony has implemented security on their end so people modding cannot bypass their systems.. But I mean, unlike Xbox, this is softmodding, no contact to the board needs to be made.
At first, I didn't like this idea, and found it annoying when my friend kept telling me he'd only get a PS3 so he could mod it, but now I might be able to create my own apps, experimenting with a new platform. We could have done without this ability though..
All Sony will see now is piracy. They won't really care about anything else, as it's not losing them money. Although they'll be earning more in PS3 sales, the sales of games will probably go up for some good games, but for the experimental kind of, risky games, will probably flop..
Ah well, where's this download then...
Gaseous Snake on 4 Jan '11 said:
I like the fact that they're making a stand against Sony's stupid restrictions. However, if this allows pirating to begin, then I don't think it should be done, since it will cause more problems than it solves.
I hate pirates; why the bloody hell can't they just buy games legally and play those like everyone else? Are they poor? Get a f**king job (it's not that hard; I'm 15 and I'm working part-time). Do they think they're being scammed out of their money? Ask the local mental institution if they do collections (and don't buy anything from Activision). Is it for ego? Grow the f**k up, you idiotic, infantile, pathetic excuse for a human being (which already, by default, makes you pretty pathetic).
I hope some pirates read that, otherwise I typed it for nothing.
cam123 on 4 Jan '11 said:
Ok let me get this straight
People who hack consoles to get free games are either:
- Lowlifes
- Sadistic men who dont have a girlfirend so they spend their time on computers and hacking
- Genious'
- People who suck at life
laslowoodbine on 4 Jan '11 said:
I can't understand why stories like this are printed as it only increases the knowledge of such things. If no publicity is given then surely less people who don't go searching for this info are less likely to know, find or in fact use it!
krisbenei on 4 Jan '11 said:
Dont think this will affect game prices like some have suggested. Does't seem to have affected x box game prices and the ability to copy games has been around a while. Most new games retail at £39.99 and consiering how long some are played its not that unreasonable. I can see why people may wish to roll back to earlier firmware. Using lunix ect but it may ruin some online aspects of the games like someone said using it to basically cheat online. I'm not totally against it if used for personal use to create your own games and apps or use lunix. If it starts to affect other peoples use of online games then I think it will be a problem. Dont really understand why people are getting at sony over this. They have managed an almost impossible task of keeping hackers at bay since the machines launch. It was always gonna get cracked eventually. I think they've done well to hold them off this long.
Noobsaibot on 4 Jan '11 said:
Incorrect. Sony we're losing $200 per console over the first two years of it's life. Even now, it continues to be costly. Yes, sony have made a lot of that cash back but certainly not through hardware sales.
James_Bond on 4 Jan '11 said:
So just exactly how does this hack somehow translate in Sony and Games Developers making or should make games cheaper - surely the more pirates stuff the more expensive normal games are - once both pirated and trade in games totally stop then will games become cheaper - or am I the only one with an ounce of inteligence when it comes to finincial and criminal activities......obvioulys our commeneter who commented first seams oblivious to the fact that pirated games makes legit games more expense.....
I think ive made my point and of course it is and will always be correct!
boskersrevenge on 4 Jan '11 said:
Except that you're wrong
WHERESMYMONKEY on 4 Jan '11 said:
Time to put on the tin foil hat and Goggles. I've got a conspiracy theory for you all.
The Console manufacturers don't actually care about piracy in fact they use it as a tool to boost hardware sales.
The evidence is kind of compelling really.
The wii is sold harwarewise at a profit and has been since it was first released. It was the first and easiest console to hack. All it requires is 20 mins and an sd card. Initially it took a soldering iron and a mod chip. Which was more difficult. However the means of modding the drive were provided by nintendo themselves in the form of a spare port on the back of the drive itself. Later solderless chips were released which meant you didn't even need to solder the board on just slip it onto the underside of the dvd drive. But it allowed the machines to sell by the bucketload in China and other countires where Piracy is rife. BTW in said countires if you buy a machine it's generally modded when you buy it and finding anything other than pirated software is incredibly difficult. As the ability to softmod and run Games via HDD came out, the drives have since been modified through various revisions which now no longer allow for the chips to be placed on the drives or dvdrs to be recognised by the new machines at all. Yes piracy has all but killed the wii software wise. But hardware wise its probably done it alot of favours. Not to mention if you like trying to make games, you can use your wii as a dev kit.
Likewise the 360 this is the interesting one for me. The 360 has been hacked for a couple of years now via a method of removing its dvd drive and flashing the drive to ignore copy protection. Since a couple years back every year there has been a wave of bannings on live to remove modded consoles from the service, however this happens not randomly. As and when they are detected. but just before christmas. When the new iterations of the hardware are generally revealed. This leads to MS getting mega sales from not only new purchasers but from the pirates who now can no longer gain achievements or go online. This year MS revised there security protection on the discs to automatically ban anyone it detects. However what is interesting about this new protection is that it's only been used on 3 games thus far and none of them have been kinect games, makes you wonder. You'd think they'd want to protect the software from thier shiny new bit of kit most of all. But no. Just Fable 3, NFS: hot pursuit and Assassins Creed Brotherhood. It's no surprise that it's now been circumvented. But did lead to alot of people buying legit copies rather than risk the ban while a workaround was being constructed.
And now the PS3 has finally been blown wide open in such a way that unlike MS and Nintendo who have managed to put up a damn good fight against the hackers and pirates have completely screwed the pooch. The keys to the whole kingdom are on the machine. There's nothing they can do to fight it, if they cahnge something it'll lock out everyone legit or not using the machine. However they could of maintained a relavtively hack free console. How? By leaving well enough alone. As my previous post in this thread stated.
Sony played a masterstroke at keeping thier console secure At the beginning of its life simply by not making it a target at all. Most legit hackers (ie not pirates which tend to come along later) want two things. 1) the ability to run an alternative operating system on a machine. 2) the ability to play games from another region (especially in PAL territories) Sony satisfied both of these criteria strait out the box. You could have lynux if you so desired, and the machine is region free so you can play all the kwirky Japanese games that never get a relase over here to your hearts content.
However with the removal of the other OS because someone used lynux to alter a few minor things at the back end of the PS3 and it was bloody hard to do to, in other words no use or particular benefit to anyone really other than to say i did it. They pulled a sharp u turn and removed it. This got the hackers in credibly interested and the rest is history. nine months later, they've hacked the thing wise open. Will this benefit sony on the hardware side. If other OS is back and now completely open, more than likely. The cell is something that lots of code monkies wouldn't mind playing with and if its as has been rumoured a lot of bedroom coders will now have thier own PS3 dev kits at a fraction of the cost. Yes pirates will come. They always do. But that doesn't mean that nothing of use won't come as well. If its anything like the wii the things the PS3 can do will be improved.
nologo on 4 Jan '11 said:
i disagree ...sony wont lose money because of this.
this is what sells systems... ps1 - i dont know anyone who actually bought a official ps1 game after a few years.
ps2 - less piracy but still it helped shift bucket loads of hardware.
xbox 360 - everyone and my dog could load a copied game from day 1.
psp - lol has it ever sold a real game?!
DS - sells millions because games are so easy to download and load onto a memory stick.
sony have done a good job at making this piracy protected... this is the longest i recall any modern system has been hacked. i think it will help sell loads of consoles..
i'll happily play piracy games of titles i never wanted to part cash with...
to all those saying how evil ppl are who play piracy games.. you are total fools.. playstation created the industy for popular gaming... literally EVERYONE had fake games. way back to the spectrum.. i had loads of dodgy tapes with games on..
DAEDALUS79 on 4 Jan '11 said:
Its a shame these hackers cant put their obvious talent to something worthwhile, rather than in the aid of free videogames.
Tazadoobii on 4 Jan '11 said:
nologo you 10 year old, If you want to enforce your opinion and want people to believe you, at least learn to spell..
gfanuk on 4 Jan '11 said:
I look forward to some home brew games that use Move. Shame Sony don't allow people to do it legally.
Anyone remember that black PS1 that let people create games? That was cool
lwill on 4 Jan '11 said:
I'd be willing to bet that even a couple of years down the line, there'd be no evidence of the PS3 being hacked to the everyday user. IE, if it weren't for the article, none of you would ever see any issue.
I find it hilarious people are knocking Sony. Its taken them 5 years to finally hack it! I think pretty much every other console gets/got hacked straightaway right? If anything, they deserve a fair degree of praise for it.
ste hicky on 4 Jan '11 said:
said it elsewhere already but never mind the potential for piracy,with a bit of luck homebrewers will re instate ps2 backwards compatibility,
i'm looking forward to homebrew multi region ps1/ps2 emulation in hd. odds on,it'll happen. i'll buy one then when i can run my old import ps1/ps2 games.
i'm waiting to see how this goes then i'll be picking a ps3 up and hacking it to pieces. i don't give a f*ck if anyone else agrees,i pay my money make my choice. the only ones who have a problem anyway are the ones who are too scared to hack the firmware and the idea of rolling back terrifies them in case they brick their ps3's.
i've got my head around the concept and have done for a while now elsewhere.
personally i want mkv playback and multi region ps1/ps2/ps3 capability,if i can add those features to a vanilla ps3 i'll consider it worthwhile then.
this is going to get interesting,to say the least.
El Mag on 4 Jan '11 said:
Yeah ste hicky is right, screw the jealous scared babies that are actually happy with what they have. I brought a mini metro but i really wanted the ferrari with cup holder, multi disc cd player and furry dice. So i took my mini metro and smashed it right into the car dealers, then sorry i admit i hacked....the managers knees off with a machete. Then i got the ferrari keys and took it because i paid my money damn it so i'm allowed, now i'm on my way to steal red paint because i got a blue one. Tomorrow i'm going to break into next door, move all their stuff, add some they never wanted and possibly take a dump in their pillow case.
ste hicky on 4 Jan '11 said:
yeah because as you could see my post was all about the potential for piracy.
sort your head out. as far as i can see i'll be able to add features to a vanilla ps3 that improve the console overall. others whining will make no difference to my outlook on this one. only ignorant people think homebrew is exclusively about piracy.
i've got import FF's,MGS1- 3,,DMC1,2,3,gran turismo 1-4,r-type final etc.. sitting there in my collection. i'd like to get them working on a ps3. they're all legit titles that i had flown in to the uk going on 15 years ago,in some cases, and has cost me well over a grand to put my collection together across the ps1 and ps2: my import FF collection alone cost me over 500 hundred quid and it guts me i can't use them on a ps3.
it's an ambition of mine to see my japanese Final Fantasy X: International running on the ps3,this news has brought that closer (potentially).
with that in mind if i can run brew and get them working on a ps3,that'll be worth the outlay and the hacking time.
El Mag on 4 Jan '11 said:
Where did i mention piracy?. I'm with ya i won't be happy until i have a toilet roll that can play mp3's, video, blu ray and every game ever. Fair enough it wasn't supposed to do all of that but if somebody somewhere is working on it then more power to him. Just most won't stop at playing the games they collected years ago will they, at worst it'll lead to cheating in multi-player games, piracy (first time i mentioned it yargggghhh) and attacks at the whole of the psn. But meh hack on, i just hope nobody ever breaks into your house and dumps in your pillow case.
NEO_SUPERMAN on 4 Jan '11 said:
I hate pirates! With their stupid wooden legs!
Big stupid beardy men!
ste hicky on 4 Jan '11 said:
so me modding a console to play legitimate stuff equates to breaking in to houses?
right....
i don't care what others do,i'm talking about how it could benefit me. i'm a bastard,aren't i. "mummy the hicky man has got features that i haven't,waaaaah!!!
if others want to steal,that's their bag. my hand went in to my pocket while most modern ps3 fans were still sitting in their own s**tty nappies,years ago.
the machine is hacked wide open now,no point complaining,it's done. now i'm going to see if i can get things running that i've always wanted to in hd.
i am not responsible for the decline in societal standards in the west,i'm just a gamer who knows how to mod a couple of machines and wants to play legitimate games that i've paid for long ago,on a ps3.
El Mag on 4 Jan '11 said:
I know times are difficult, people are out of work and starving in the world but i bet their all sitting in their mud huts thinking "Damn spare a thought for poor ste, he's got all those old games but he can't be bothered to get his ps2 out to play them. Lets have a whip round to get him a super all in one convenient machine, no umbogo you can't have water this month people need to play Parasite Eve on ps3". Just because you stop at a certain point doesn't make it better, but people will make excuses for everything. Now i'll say good day sir, i'm just off to get a chipped sky box because this freeview...it bores me and i see no benefit to keeping it.
ste hicky on 4 Jan '11 said:
i have no idea what you're on about,i don't think you do either tbh.
later.
only_777 on 4 Jan '11 said:
Actually no, emulation is not illegal if you own the cartridges/discs and machines in the first place, which I do!
http://lh4.ggpht.com/_Dyf4UfttGVE/TKYtbJHBGpI/AAAAAAAABP4/SaF40ZNqb18/s640/04160001.JPG
Also just so you know, modding/cracking consoles is NOT against the law in the UK. One thing which I would like to point out is that many modders/crackers are not pirates.
justforkicks101 on 4 Jan '11 said:
http://lh4.ggpht.com/_Dyf4UfttGVE/TKYtbJHBGpI/AAAAAAAABP4/SaF40ZNqb18/s640/04160001.JPG
wow. nice
El Mag on 4 Jan '11 said:
@ste hicky
WHOOOOOOOOOOSH but nevermind eh. Yes it's hacked, and yes your going to be using it for none threatening stuff. But this isn't a normal hack and others will go too far, they have has much control as sony now and can do what they like, write custom firmware, run what they like, dump in your pillow case. It'll ruin online multi-player on the ps3 and what's to say sign in details and credit card info won't be compromised. I wasn't having a direct go at you, but you did come off bad by saying you'll hack it to pieces you should have just kept it to yourself.
WHERESMYMONKEY on 4 Jan '11 said:
Wow that is a fine collection only 777. Also i agree whole heartedly, Most hackers and modders are not pirates but people that want to get the most out of thier consoles.
You can be a self riteous sheep orrrrr you can realise your machines full potential. I know what i'd rather do.
ste hicky on 4 Jan '11 said:
el mag,i just didn't get how you were trying to take a moral highground with me when i was talking about apps that would enable legitimate play.
monkey and only 777 hit it on the head. the main reason i didn't get a ps3 is because sony cynically removed bc from later models so they could charge new money for old rope with the hd re releases that are on the way like sotc/ico. i already own them,imported them too.
as for coming off bad,hey free world man. i'll pay my money and make my choices. that's my right.
others may not like it and i can't help that. i'll say this though,some strange scaremongering there: stolen credit card details?
the wii has been hacked since day 1 (well,nearly) i've seen nothing like that there.
i just opened usb loading,multi region wii/cube playback for the uncut no more heroes/project zero 4,etc..,installed a media player,etc... and the wii i own now is 10 times better than the one i bought off nintendo.
i can play my original ntsc cube imports in 480p,there's mods available for games,i've got a certain 64dd game emulated on the system menu,i'm gonna try starfox 2 from the snes next and see if that works(it never came out but there's a rom flying around).
aside from the potential for piracy,there's a lot of decent stuff on the homebrew scene.
i'd advise most to not be scared and see what comes. you may be surprised at how good amateur coders can be.
El Mag on 4 Jan '11 said:
Just to be clear i see nothing wrong with you and only 777 wanting to play those massive collections because you own them, paid for with your hard earned. It's the ones that'll download them without ever having them i have no time for, i was just trying to lighten the comments the pedophile one by somebody earlier was a bit strong. I only own a few old games so won't be doing it personally
ste hicky on 4 Jan '11 said:
missed the pedo comment tbh,the ps3 boards can get a bit nasty at times and i tend to swerve them unless i'm really interested in the subject.
it is what the users make it,unfortunately. same for the 360 boards too tbh.
i get you though,it is going to make piracy go through the roof on the machine. it's just i'm interested for other,more benign reasons and really don't want to have to buy everything i already own,again in a hd re issue when i bought them at the us/japanese launch on the ps1/ps2.
peace.
nuggit3000 on 4 Jan '11 said:
This isnt a good thing. And anyway, games are getting too big for a DVD so, you wont be able to burn them onto disk without buying a BD-writer.
Count me out.
ricflair on 4 Jan '11 said:
Every person I know who has had a modded console has used it for piracey. And I'm a nice middle class boy with nice middle class friends! They're not going mental and downloading everything (apart from a few people with the R4s), but it happens.
I have no doubt that some people like ste and only777 will get their legal uses out of it; and the modders have done it for the challenge and whatnot, but lots of people will exploit it. I think the people on gaming sites who want to turn their consoles into a substandard PC are vastly outnumbered by people who want s**t for free. It happens with films and music, and games will be no different - if you give people an easy 'free' option, lots of people will take it.
I'm not going to judge anyone on what they chose to do, it's their decision. But pirates will be the main winners from this.
nologo on 4 Jan '11 said:
my spelling is fine thanks.
i didnt enforce my opinion any more than the next person. i simply stated the facts.
psp sells loads?why?because its easy to hack.
DS...easy to hack
Xbox...easy to hack.
ps1/2...easy to hack.
all big sellers
thedriffter50 on 4 Jan '11 said:
Does anyone know that we can get PS2 emulation from this ?
Looks like Sony didn't remove emulation just disabled it and waned us to buy the HD classics.
only_777 on 4 Jan '11 said:
You didn't read the article did you!
The Bossman on 4 Jan '11 said:
Of course this was always going to happen. As already mentioned, the PC was ruined by this many many years ago, although being able to enter a specific server helps to avoid those hackers. Bit more tricky on the 360, and now it's happened to the PS3. Ain't sh*t that can be done now, so just if it happens to you, and you see loads of hackers in a game, just write down their names and report them on Sonys PS forum. Maybe even film it with a handheld camera too, or capture card, if you know how it works.
It's still annoying that it happened though. Just reminds me of a scene from The Sopranos. One of the characters brought a load of CDs over to a friends house, and said they were Xbox games for one of their kids. If the writers just included that after a brainstorm session, it proves that piracy is rife and is everywhere.
ste hicky on 4 Jan '11 said:
according to someone who contacted me earlier on after my comments on this board,it's already done drifter.
i'm just trawling the net looking for the correct model machine now and i'm away.
i'll be able to upscale my imports on a ps3? happy days.
some may not understand what i'm on about here but some older gamers will. here's how good homebrew can be: i've got f-zero 64dd installed to the system menu of the wii with tracks like firefield 2,silence 3,port town 2 and 3,big foot, etc... and a custom dxp track hack version made on the 64dd by the f-zero x world champion with courses like lake town,dark city,etc...
these games aren't available (same for snes starfox 2),in fact to my knowledge i'm the only person on earth with these games running on the wii system menu in 480p with wavebird compatibility.
i wouldn't have seen them if wasn't for homebrew and some rom hacking tools and i've been waiting since the n64 to play those new f-zero x tracks but nintendo never came through after the 64dd got canned in japan.
result.
only_777 on 4 Jan '11 said:
http://files.sharenator.com/Cat_fail_Fail-s446x354-10288-580.jpg
Hopefully more people will read this post because of the fail picture!
1) Don't cry about games being filled with hackers, thats not what has happened.
2) No, you can't use copied games with this hack. The BR PS3 keys have not been revelled, and I don't think Geohotz will show them. He only cracked the PS3 keys to run homebrew/linux, not to run pirate games.
3) Also don't hold your breath for PS2 emulation, that might happen but only if someone gets a linux PS2 emulator to run via the PS3. The first batch of PS3's had both the PS2 CPU and GPU, while the second batch only had the CPU, and emulated the GPU. Later, both were removed. Since the CPU has never been emulated on the PS3 by Sony, it can’t just be ripped and used on the slims, sadly.
KMakawa on 4 Jan '11 said:
This is not possible on the Xbox 360 no. And it is mostly due to the internal construction and live yes.
The only thing that can be done so far is modding games which allows you to play them for free. If you try it online however, your 360 is instantly barred. Your IP is also banned.
PS3 is the first to have it rootkey hacked.
ste hicky on 4 Jan '11 said:
i still wouldn't be surprised to see it turn up from the community eventually. we'll see on that one. now that people have got this level of access all kinds of custom code will be attempted,ps2 emu's will be the holy grail for a while with some i think. i can see it going far further than just snes 9x emulation and the like.
like i said to drifter though,apparently it's already been done in a fashion and i've just gotta sort the correct model to allow it.
i'll be doing more reading on that one.
as for br keys: what about potential usb loading,wouldn't that circumnavigate all that?
if i could just rip my ps1/ps2 imports to a HDD and play them from there it'd be better than putting up with a ps2 through rgb scart on a hdtv. it's unplayable and i'm really missing my us FFIX these days.
GaryStew1980 on 4 Jan '11 said:
Damn if ony there was a game worth getting a Pirate copy of. I buy all the multiplatform games for my 360 anyway so my PS3 is really only for the exclusives like KillZone, Uncharted and a s a bluray player the last game i played on PSN was FIFA 11 on release week when i rented it. I buy so few games for my PS3 and rarely buy them new anyway im not even sure if I could be bothered. Oh well just one more big expensive oh oh for Sony over the last few years.
thedriffter50 on 4 Jan '11 said:
@ste hicky - I think it was done a few months ago. Geohot released what he was doing and it said, '' PS2 emu unlocked ''
If this is the case thats 1 dirty trick trying to re-sell what is already in the system with these classics.
ste hicky on 4 Jan '11 said:
you're the 2nd to say this now. thx man.
this is fantastic news for me. it really is.
thedriffter50 on 4 Jan '11 said:
No problem
chamony on 4 Jan '11 said:
its strange people are saying you wont be able to run copies, because on a lot of other forums/sites, they are saying the opposite.
they are saying with these keys, you'd be able to digitally sign any ps3 homebrew/emus/apps and they will run on any official firmware on any ps3, and that will lead to an isoloader, and then isos that will load direct.
And with the same method they used to cracked the ps3 keys, they have also cracked the psp keys to do exactly the same thing - google it!! look up
screw it this is from psp-hacks dot com
geohotz isn't going to come out and say that this is for playing copies is he? but he knows what it will lead to, its the same as for the apple i's, who has a jailbroked ipad/phone/touch and hasn't got copied apps/games??
they said there is nothing sony can really do as the keys are in a chip called KIRK, not in the firmware
so pretty soon your gonna have a high tech blue ray player, with lots of crappy apps, homebrew games, and retro emulators, plenty of old copies to play.......... but will developers still produce new games for a machine thats got no piracy security?? dare i say think sega?
thedriffter50 on 4 Jan '11 said:
'' Later, both were removed. Since the CPU has never been emulated on the PS3 by Sony, it can’t just be ripped and used on the slims, sadly. ''
How do you know it was removed ? For all we know the emulation for PS2 is still probably there.
I think I'm going to try finding a 60GB PS3. I'm not re-paying for games I already own and I own at least 50 plus PS2 games do you think every single game will have HD classics ?
rip_it_up on 4 Jan '11 said:
The way i understand it is we now have the abilty to sign apps, custom firmware with sonys official private key,
so If someone made a usb loader for the ps3 and signed it with this key the system would thinks its official and let you do anything you wanted to.
Its worth noting that sony cant simply change this key because its hardcoded in the ps3 and if they tried to change it then everything singed with this key would no longer work.
Thay also found the psp private keys in the ps3 so youll be able to sign stuff for that to.
This is the worst thing that could of happen to sony, (all because a number which was meant to be random is infact not random at all) much worse than the wii and xbox360. (these require bugs/patches whereas the ps3 does not)
failoverflow found the expoilt which includes team twizzlers aka The homebrew channel wii.
I just think geohot wants the spotlight
rip_it_up on 4 Jan '11 said:
I want the dolphin emulator ported over!
ste hicky on 4 Jan '11 said:
chamony,the wii has just had it's best year for exclusives since launch and is the easiest to hack on the market.
also the likes of hotd:overkill 2,dragon quest X,the last story,zelda,fatal frame 2011,etc.. are still on the way this year.
it hasn't hurt it that much seeing as nintendo have just topped 80 million sales (not shipped units,that's erroneous spin from ms/sony to massage shareholders ego's).
also the ps2 (and the ps1) were hacked and soft/hardmodded out of sight years ago. i've still got a ps2 with a messiah modchip so i can run imports to this day. those machines certainly never suffered for support.
sega is an exception that proves the rule. they killed themselves in the hardware business imo and the lack of decent 3rd party support aligned with weaker first party games over the 16 bit days and a marketing massacre by sony is what sealed their fate.
though i agree the dreamcast was fair game for modders,it still never took off like it should. really under rated machine that.
Mmmmgrolsch on 4 Jan '11 said:
Unlucky Sony. I see that taking things away from me and others has back fired
Only got yourselves to be blamed for now. Roll on hacking my PS3 
markyR on 4 Jan '11 said:
Oh god, Sony how dare you! How dare you make such a crap system that I just HAVE to hack it to pieces to prove the point, how dare you make me make thousands of freeloading scumbags who will go forth and play COD etc etc with cheats galore and for free, how dare you make me damage the games and Playstation industry. I hate you....
The number of 'freeloaders' in this thread is pretty disgusting, I didn't know ripping businesses off was still the 'in thing' for 12 year olds? I hope most of you are joking....
Mmmmgrolsch on 4 Jan '11 said:
Hmmm would you kindly point out them to me as I only see one. I will be hacking my PS3 for the same reason I've jailbroken my iPhone.
Metagen on 4 Jan '11 said:
I'm willing to bet most, if not all the users in this thread who said they're not interested in modding their PS3 for piracy purposes are in fact interested in modding their PS3 for piracy purposes.
Mmmmgrolsch on 4 Jan '11 said:
If I was interested in Piracy I would have had a 360 for that but I don't. I have 60+ PS3 games all but 2 were bought brand new. Reason for not buying the pre-owned? To support devs.
I will be honest though I do pirate iphone apps, but thats because of Apple not making sure apps are not missleading or don't work. Then if they are legit and aren't a waste of my money then I buy it.
markyR on 4 Jan '11 said:
A fair few from reading the comments on here but either way I utterly despise people who selectively read into this what they want and believe it to be fine yet ignore this:
This new development basically means that the homebrew and piracy scene will now essentially be able to create anything they like, from homebrew apps and games, to PSP-style custom firmware and, unfortunately, pirate games, without restriction.
robkav1989 on 4 Jan '11 said:
@ ste hicky
Nobody cares where your games come from so stop constantly dropping the fact you have imported games into your comments. Other that than i support what you want to use the possible advantages of the hack for. i would to.
justforkicks101 on 4 Jan '11 said:
spineless
kayoss on 6 Jan '11 said:
It seems that for those who are condoning this so call "break through" is really missing the point. When you have a perfectly fine machine that is working the way it suppose to work but than all of suddenly get hacked and break wide open for any programmer to take a stab at it, you pretty much doom the machine. You most you talk about how Sony will be selling s@#t loads of hardware but what you are forgetting is that Sony is not making a profit on hardware sale even as we speak. The true profits come from software sales. With the PS3 hacked Developers will be hit hard. Once developers realized that they are losing money they will stop making great games and probably wont support the PS3. When that happens there wont be any more games from developers then you guys can just sit at home and play your Homebrews, emulation, go on linux with your PS3 (everyone in the 21st century that lives in america should have a PC that is capable of going on Linux), or just let a what use to be a perfectly fine machine sit there a collect dust.
@STE Hickey
Be honest dude, so what you are telling me is that once you hack the PS3 you will strictly use it to play your 15 year old ps1/ps2 games?? You know most of the games that you have now are released and are relatively cheap, or you can play them as emulation on your computer??
Why the hell would you need Linux on a PS3 as an OS??? Using a laptop or a PC would be more benefitial than trying to run an OS on a PS3 anyways. When Linux was offer hardly anyone even used it for the PS3 but once it was taken away it was the biggest deal since sliced bread.
Most people who claim they want to hack the ps3 to use linux and homebrew are lying. Once a custom firmware comes out to burn games they will be the first to go out buy a 2tb external hard drive and start burning games that they rent so they can pirate games.
After that multiplayer games will be screwed (example: PC gaming, and Xbox 360). Say even you were able to play COD modern warfare 2 for free, but you're playing with a bunch of glitchers and hackers what fun would that be?
Im all for making a game machine better, but if its going to cause developers to lose their job, a company to stop supporting their hardware, and people who play game legit be affected than what is the benefit. Sooner or later Sony will be forced to come out with new machine and people who have a legit ps3 would be force to buy a new machine.
only_777 on 6 Jan '11 said:
You sir are a tool.
1) Opening up a machine can give birth to homebrew games, ever wondered why the Dreamcast scene is still going even stronger than the net Yarose scene? No, of course not, because you have never even scratched the surface of either homebrew scene.
2) Installing Linux to a console is great. I have a high end PC in a room to work on, but in my front room I have 2 PS3's, one of which still has the old FW on which allows another OS. I use that PS3 as a media centre as it will run type of video file you like (example .mkv), I also use it to play Japanese PS1/PS2 games as it is a 60gig Jap PS3. Sure I have a PC that can do that, but I don't want to have to lug that heavy bastard from room to room just because I want to watch an MKV sitting on the sofa. If you live with your mum and dad, I guess having a PC with linux on
3) You cry on about how hard developers will be hit, I agree. i remember how hard developers failed with both the PS1 and PS2 which were both hacked wide open. Oh no hang on, that wasn't how it happened at all!
Even though this hack doesn't allow pirate games, and that the BR keys are still safe so ISO loaders are not about to happen, but still RUN FOR THE HILLS!
ste hicky on 6 Jan '11 said:
i've been honest,believe me or don't. if i wanted it for piracy i'd say so. no reason not to.
job on finding half of my collection cheap now too.
what does it cost for a mint american FFVII original print now? or the japanese FFX:international with 'the other side of the FF two' bonus disc not the cheap,1 disc korean version?
you can't get the ps1 chrono trigger over here that came with FFIV: FF chronicles and FF Anthology is not the same in europe: it's V,VI and a soundtrack cd in the states. what about full screen/full speed devil may cry 1,etc...as well? this could go on.
is it so bad that i'm trying to get ps games running on ps hardware? i don't think so.
kayoss on 7 Jan '11 said:
You Sir is the biggest idiot I know.
The dreamcast was hacked, the ps1 was hacked, and ps2 was hacked, can you give me a list of Homebrews that people are still using now with their ps1, ps2 or the dreamcast? If they all ready have the homebrews on those console why would they need it again on the ps3? Once those machines got hack sony decided to abondon the consoles because it was a lost cause to save it from people who are using it mainly to play pirated games. You ask people who hacked their psp what they going use a hack psp for? 90% will tell you to play pirated games. You ask the same 90% of the people if they use homebrews or create homebrews? I guarantee you the majority of them would say, "NO".
Once hackers start messing with the ps3 now, its just a matter of time before BR key is hacked, and iso loaders are developed. The PS3 is only 5 years old and still developers havent even use its full potential. Once the PS3 become like the psp, which i believe will happen in less than a year. Look forward to putting that hacked ps3 of yours into the storage bin because it will become obsolete. Sony have no other choice but to come out with a new console. Dont tell me that you wont buy the new console either because once a new console comes out developers will abandon the ps3 and start making games for the new console. What games will you pirate then for your useless PS3??? Will you still be using the PS3 as your media center? will you still play that precious homebrew on the PS3?
only_777 on 7 Jan '11 said:
1) Ok here is a list of homebrew games within the last month for the Dreamcast:
Jump & Blob - http://dreamcast.dcemu.co.uk/jump-n-blob-final-version-350815.html
Premiere SQRXZ 2 - http://dreamcast.dcemu.co.uk/premiere-sqrxz-2-for-dreamcast-350685.html
Fast Striker - http://dreamcast.dcemu.co.uk/fast-striker-insideout-by-dcjy-350640.html
Drascula - http://dreamcast.dcemu.co.uk/drascula-the-vampire-strikes-back-for-dreamcast-350465.html
Strumwind - http://dreamcast.dcemu.co.uk/sturmwind-official-trailer-released-350296.html
Freddy Pharkas Frontier Pharmacist - http://dreamcast.dcemu.co.uk/dcevolution-releases-freddy-pharkas-frontier-pharmacist-350292.html
I could go on but I think I've proved my point that Homebrew is very much alive and well on the Dreamcast, dispite what you thought even you you done no research into that statment before you made it.
2) The PSP was dead at retail well before the GTA hack or even pandora battery. Outside of Japan sales of HW and SW were awful. It was only AFTER hacking became so easy that PSP HW sales actually picked up.
3) Why use the PSP as you example? It's a handheld machine and is not really compaiable to the PS3. Why not use the 360 as a reference point. I mean thats been hacked to bits and pirate games are easy to get. Oh I know why you don't want to, it's because piracy has not actually the effected the 360!
Now, don't for one second think that I like pirate games, I don't buy them and I think I already proved that with my picture. But people like you that come along and say that hacking for homebrew and emulation is just as bad and that emulation and homebrew will bring down the PS3 are just wrong.
User75 on 7 Jan '11 said:
this is a disaster. what the hell are they gonna do? the PSN is gonna b like the wild west.
ppl are already speculating that hackers and modders might actually b able to write firmware that can hack other PSN profiles, steal credit card info, whipe harddrives and so on. this might b the biggest scandal in gaming ever. if they dont come up with something smart asap
yourmumwasfun on 7 Jan '11 said:
Dear Nintendo, Apple and Sony.
I will kill them, but first punish them for you.
I just want lifelong supplies of your goods for free, oh, and a free hooker every weekend to my cell.
kayoss on 7 Jan '11 said:
Yes I am aware of new homebrews for the Dreamcast but the point im making is does it have enough users to warrant a hack that leave it vulnerable to piracy? This what will happent to the ps3. It seems like you are avoiding my point . why Hack a PS3 when the majority of the user will just use it for online game play and not for homebrews? say if the PS4 comes out you are telling me people will still be using the PS3 for homewbrews and not move on to the PS4. I guarantee you that if and when the PS4 does come out, hackers will try to hack the ps4 and claim that the purpose is to allow Homebrew. But why hack a ps4 when you have a powerful hacked ps3 that would probably do anything?
The reason why i brought up the psp is because the PS3 in the beginning was in the same boat as the psp in sales numbers and popularity meaning it was struggling among all the consoles. As we speak the PS3 is dead last when compared to the wii and the xbox. It software sales in terms of multiplatform it is always behind the xbox. What you think would happen once piracy start happening on the ps3? The psp as of now is struggling to convince developers to make games for them. This would be the same for the PS3. Im not comparing them as in popularity but only using them to prove my point.
Another point that you are missing that i'm trying to make is that Hackers may have good intentions for hacking a device or in this case a console for homebrew purposes but 99% of the people who hack their console is to play pirated games. You can not argue that fact. This will cause a short life span for a system that should last at least 10years or more. Because of these moron, everyone who owns a ps3 will have to abondon it since developers are afraid to make games for it and i mean the good ones. So Sony is force to come out with a new system or completely leave the gaming business.
Imaduck on 7 Jan '11 said:
Incoming PS3 user punishing "patch". Sony's arrogance has put me off supporting them in recent years. They need to realise that they aren't invincible or perfect: /
The more they release things to stop these hackers, or remove things ... cough ...... the more exciting a target they are. I reckon the iceberg that sank the Titanic heard the "it's invincible" stuff and was like : "challenge accepted". It probably sailed from the other pole just to sink the ship.
Surely hacking the PS3 brings it closer to that pathetic marketing line "it only does everything", it's 1 step closer to not being a total utter lie!:D
Don't get me wrong, Sony have done great stuff, but they really need to put their feet back on the ground. they aren't the first though to be fair .... or last sadly.
User75 on 8 Jan '11 said:
this is an O M G moment.
/im sad, damn yee pirates!
User75 on 8 Jan '11 said:
i hope sony sends geohot to guantanamo
gypscanuck on 10 Jan '11 said:
Hmmm, I jailborke my PS3 quite awhile ago so this isn"t new to me. And for those who dont understand jailbreaking, go on homebrew.com to check out my patches and downloads so you can hack ur own PS3. Sony did send out a new patch but if ignored hacking is stil consistent.
only_777 on 10 Jan '11 said:
Yes, because is it wasn't for Homebrew Dreamcast would be doing nothing right now.
Where is the proof of this? Both PS1 and PS2 had rampant piracy, and the PS2 is the best selling console of all time. 360 has it's share of piracy and they still seem to be doing quite well.
I don't see what the problem is. For a start the BD key is still safe, but even if someone manages to create an ISO loader AND then someone writes a patch for the ISO version of said game then the online servers cheat detection kicks in and boots them straight off! All this panic is stupid! Cheat detection is something most game servers have had for god knows how long.
No, for the same reason we are not using PS2 for homebrew now either.
It wont do anything now will it!
PlanesOutcast on 10 Jan '11 said:
So are the media now going to jump on any publisher that says "we're not releasing on the PC format due to piracy"? I doubt is as they never confront the industry about anything hardly!
thedriffter50 on 10 Jan '11 said:
Every console gets hacked sooner or later. Look at the ps1 and ps2. Easy to hack yet are the 2 best selling consoles in history.
Its not like people stopped buying games for them right ? though I hate piracy its really killing gaming.