It turns out this is the history of PlayStation 1 to 5 piracy
It must be admitted that technological advances have greatly helped human life. However, this progress has in fact also had a negative impact on several sectors, including the gaming industry, such as the emergence of piracy. The history of the development of the game industry cannot be separated from piracy by hackers or irresponsible parties. One device that is not spared from piracy is the PlayStation.
As with cheats, the real problem of piracy in the game industry will never end as long as the demand for pirated products is still high. Unfortunately, there are still many people who view piracy as a natural act.
The History of Piracy PlayStation 1 – 5
Piracy and cheats are indeed a problem in the gaming industry. As if there is no end, until now there are still games that are pirated and distributed illegally. In fact, the resistance efforts made by developers and publishers against pirates are quite massive.
But, these efforts seem in vain because crackers can still outsmart and break the protection they pinned. Based on the records of Kabar Games, almost all games, whether it’s Mobile, PC and console games, have experienced cases of piracy.
History records, games on the PlayStation itself began to experience piracy since PS1 to PS4. This illegal act is certainly very detrimental to developers and publishers. So, what is the history of PlayStation piracy? Check out the following reviews.
PlayStation 1
The illegal act of piracy on the PlayStation was first carried out after the PlayStation 1 (PS1) was released. The case occurred 26 years ago, in 1995, or a year after the PlayStation 1 was released in 1994. The use of a security system that is placed on the edge of each game disc is said to be a gap for crackers to carry out piracy.
Maybe you still remember, where to be able to play PS1 you need to insert a game disc into the console and then play it. You can get the PS1 disc easily and cheaply. At that time, it was certain that almost all PS1 game CDs circulating in the Indonesian market and selling at a price of 7 to 10 thousand per piece were pirated discs.
The reason is, Sony’s original game CDs are currently sold in the range of Rp. 75,000 to Rp. 150.000.per game. It is known, Sony began to stop production of the PS1 console in March 2006 ago or 12 years since its release.
PlayStation 2
After the heyday of the PS1 passed, Sony then continued production of the PS2. For Sony, PS2 may be a comforter in the midst of rampant cases of game piracy at that time. How not, unexpectedly PlayStation 2 (PS2) so easily surpassed PS1 sales and became their best-selling console of all time.
This report was obtained from LearnBonds.com which states that the PS2 recorded sales of 157.68 million units. While the PS1 only sold 120 million units. But the glory of the PlayStation 2 (PS2) did not last long. The presence of the phenomenal PlayStation 2 (PS2) has actually opened up new livelihoods for criminals, especially crackers.
Shortly after its release, Sony again missed. A hardware modchip named Neo Key appeared on the market. Luckily, this modchip is quite difficult, so not everyone can use it.
However, the emergence of Neo Key on the market has actually triggered the emergence of other modchips that are easier to use, such as the Mechacon modchip. Where with this modchip crackers can easily bypass the security system installed by Sony.
PlayStation Portable
Three years later after releasing the PS2, in 2004 Sony launched its newest product, the PlayStation Portable or better known as the PSP. Again, crackers find a loophole to hijack Sony’s products.
Through Sony’s default Custom Firmware (CFW), the cracker managed to change the firmware so that it could finally be installed on the PSP device. Armed with the CFW that has been installed, this hijacker user can very easily play pirated games on the PSP.
PlayStation 3
Not wanting to repeat the same mistake, Sony then began to equip the PlayStation 3 (PS3) with a much better security system than its predecessor. For example, by not only saving the Blu-ray disc security system, but also inserting a firmware that regularly gets updates from Sony PlayStation.
This method is quite effective, it is proven that the PlayStation 3 (PS3) is the most difficult console to hijack. It took at least 5 years for crackers to be able to open this console. The collapse of the new PlayStation 3 security system occurred after the appearance of a USB dongle containing a chipset that allowed the execution of illegal program code.
Not wanting to lose to hackers, the PlayStation then tried to provide protection by updating the firmware gap from 3.55 to 3.66.
PS Vita
At first glance this console is indeed similar to the PSP, moreover, these two consoles have a similar shape and are light to carry everywhere. However, regarding the security system, the PS Vita has a better security system than the PSP.
It is known that the PS Vita system was able to last for 5 years before finally a website called henkaku.xyz appeared which was able to exploit PS Vita’s 3.60 firmware. The website provides files that you can download and then install PS Vita games.
PlayStation 4
Crackers’ efforts to exploit the PS security system continued until the PlayStation 4 was released in 2022. Even though the PlayStation 4 has a fairly tight security system, hackers can still penetrate it.
The technique used by hackers to exploit the PlayStation 4 (PS4) is the same as the technique used on the PS Vita. Through a website that has been prepared, crackers use WebKit tools to hack PlayStation 4 and install games that have been dumped from the default BD.
As if tired of hackers, PlayStation finally held a competition entitled “PlayStation Bug Bounty Program”. Where PlayStation opens opportunities and prizes to anyone who manages to find bugs in PlayStation 4.
No kidding, the prizes given reach 36 million-1 billion for one bug. Is this program successful? The answer is no. The reason is, crackers can still exploit the security system and manage to enjoy pirated PlayStation 4 (PS4) games without any disturbance. On January 5, 2022, the PlayStation 4 stopped production of the console.
PlayStation 5
The release of the PlayStation 5 (PS5) in 2022 and at the same time became a new chapter for Sony in the fight against piracy of intellectual works. This time, so as not to continue to be a loser, the PlayStation cracker finally hides the web browser through its Webkit.
Unfortunately, again and again the PlayStation’s efforts failed because the cracker again found a gap or weak point on the PlayStation 5. This was revealed after a cracker group named Fail0verflow posted its findings in the form of root keys on social media Twitter. However, until now there has been no further information regarding the success of PS5 piracy.
With the help of certain software, these root keys allow crackers to exploit the firmware on the PS5 console. The act of duplicating works or products and distributing them illegally for economic gain is clearly wrong. The rise of piracy cases can happen to anyone.
As with cheats, the real problem of piracy in the game industry will never end as long as the demand for pirated products is still high. Unfortunately, there are still many people who view piracy as a natural act. Is this how we respect someone’s intellectual property rights?
The problem of piracy will also never be solved if the price of games that are too expensive is a cliché reason that gamers often use. Maybe you gamers think that piracy is not an act of theft because there are no lost or physical items, only digital copies.
But have you ever thought, that the game was made with hard work and no small cost. Is this how we respect someone’s intellectual property rights? Ask your conscience, gamers.
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