James Delahunty
6 Jul 2005 16:30
Being at the top of the most wanted gadget list is exactly where Sony wants its Playstation Portable (PSP) console to be, but with any gaming console, there is always the fear that piracy might hit... and it usually does. Now Sony is beginning to realise that this time it is no different despite their best efforts to keep piracy at bay. Sony PSP games use Sony's proprietary Universal Media Disc (UMD) format, which gave Sony hope that copying games was impossible.
However, we reported when PSP Firmware v1.50 was cracked and anybody who knew how was able to use an exploit to run homebrew files on the PSP (which Sony likes to refer to as "unauthorised programs"). Since then emulators for other consoles have appeared for the PSP but Sony accepted it (but highly opposed the PSPs use to run unauthorised games) and stuck to the belief that Sony PSP games were still safe.
PSP games spread across net... A loader on the horizon?
Paradox, a well known group on the Internet was first to publicly release several PSP games on the net, which then had no way of being played. However, now it appears that a working game loader is just days away from public release which means that users with large capacity memory sticks may be able to play their PSP games from them.
However, it is important to point out that v1.51 firmware has not been cracked, and for some time at least it will only be possible with v1.50 firmware. Sony has warned PSP users off the exploits saying it’s possible to damage the console and void warranty. These claims were founded with the first exploit for v1.50 firmware which required two memory sticks and swap which if done incorrectly could have lead to damage.
However with the release of KXploit 1.50, it became safer to take advantage of the discovered loophole in 1.50 firmware, as it did not require the use of two memory sticks. It is also reportedly a very easy method. There is of course one thing that Sony plans to do to battle the problems with past firmware and that is to make sure that PSP users have no choice but to update their firmware as time goes on.
Firmware checks on PSP games
Coded Arms, which is set to be one of the most popular games for PSP users to date has a built in mechanism that will check the firmware of the PSP and literally refuse to load if the firmware is too old, which is a good way Sony has thought up to ensure that PSP users will keep their firmware up to date. However, its a good idea but it is far from flawless.
While it is a good idea, it seems possible that these "firmware checks" could be defeated the same way early PS2 users made backups of DVD games to CDs and booted them - finding and altering DVD media checks. The same thing could possibly be done with PSP games to remove firmware checks and more than likely will be done by "warez" groups who will spread the games around. Even if this is impossible, there is still one more option.
PSP Modchips?
Yes you better believe that the prospect of PSP mods is very real, in fact, one British man already claims he has a useful chip for PSP users. He has already been in legal trouble with Sony, and now has made a chip which can be used to rollback PSP firmware to older versions (like 1.50) that can be exploited. While this would still have problems playing firmware check protected games, it would give users the option to rollback afterwards if they needed to update in order to play a game.
In conclusion
In the battle between Sony and the hackers, Sony is losing big time. It is now possible using existing tools to rip entire games to memory stick using the PSP and with a loader reportedly on its way, piracy of PSP games is inevitable. However, this also provides the ability to sort of "backup" your existing Sony PSP games in case your originals get damaged.
The amount of developments in the "PSP Scene" is phenomenal and I think Sony wasn't expecting so much so soon. Literally every day, something new is released, discovered or announced and it appears things will continue to go that way for some time. A new spark of filesharing of PSP games has also begun, with several large torrent sites and P2P networks making it possible to obtain and share the games.
Source:
PS2NFO.com