Jailbroken PS5 Lets You Install Konami's P.T.
Much like its exclusives, PlayStation likes to keep its hardware stored away under lock and key. The gaming giant is known for having its cards close to its chest, and when it comes to the PlayStation, there's no exception. However, someone has managed to jailbreak the seemingly unhackable PS5.
For those who don't know, jailbreaking a console means you can bypass all the usual restrictions a developer puts in place. Most use it to run emulators and play pirated games, and now, jailbreakers have brought a classic back from the dead to run on the PS5. We're sure you've heard of a little title called P.T., so rejoice because the Silent Hills demo is back.
How Do You Jailbreak A PS5?
According to Kotaku, modders have been getting closer to a jailbroken PS5 for about a year now. It's over to Twitter user SpecterDev, who has an experimental IPV6 kernel exploit. Yep, we know it's a bit wordy, but bear with us. The jailbreak apparently uses a WebKit vulnerability as an entry point, meaning it will only run if you're using firmware 4.03 or lower. Even then, it'll only work about 30% of the time.
The kernel-level exploit was first discovered on the PS4, but here, it forces the PS5 to access a web server that's housed on a local PC and includes SpecterDev's hack. As you can see, it's not exactly foolproof. Still, there's video footage doing the rounds of gamers getting inside the PS5's debug mode and getting to software Sony previously tried to stop you from accessing.
The first question is sure to be, "So what can I do?" Even though the functionality of a jailbroken PS5 is currently a little limited, the potential is mind-boggling. It didn't take long, but someone has already got P.T. installed, so you can hopefully experience the horrors of Konami's canned Silent Hill revival in all its playable gore and glory. But, there's a catch.
Can You Run P.T. On PS5?
Famed Souls series dataminer Lance McDonald dug up P.T. and shared a video proving that you can install the 2014 game in some form. There's a caveat to this, with McDonald explaining that a secondary Sony blacklist stops you from actually being able to run it. Still, we're one step closer to being stalked down a corridor by Lisa. Even though Sony didn't respond to Kotaku's request or comment, hackers are sure to be poking holes in its usually airtight security like Swiss cheese.
When the PS5 was first released in 2020, you were briefly able to move over your copy of P.T. to the new-gen console before Sony pulled the plug. By now, you'll all have given up on seeing Silent Hills return in its true form. Instead, we're left with continued whispers of a Silent Hill 2 remake, a PS5-exclusive reboot, and multiple games being in the works at once. As more and more gaming showcases pass without a franchise revival, Silent Hill remains "silent"... for now.