If you’re looking to do a little bit of technical surgery on your old consoles, then you might be wondering what can a jailbroken PS2 do!
There was never much success with modding or adapting the PS2 during its lifetime. To be honest, most of this was down to Sony making their console mod proof, especially after the mess that Sega had with their console accepting DVD games from any console.
Yikes, not a good thing to discover!
As such, the PS2 was locked down tighter than Fort Knox in a cyber security scare, and Sony slept soundly in their beds at night not thinking that people would be able to mess with their dream machine.
Still, the world’s best selling console has a global fanbase, and with the technology available in 2022, the unthinkable is finally possible thanks to a couple of sneaky loophole and a very steady hand.
Here’s everything you need to know about what a jailbroken PS2 can do!
A Quick Word of Warning…
It’s worth us mentioning at this point that modding your PS2 should be done at your own risk. Jailbreaking a PS2 is 100% against Sony’s terms of use, and if you head online while the jailbreak is active, you’ll risk being banned by Sony. Obviously, Retro Dodo doesn’t condone doing anything illegal of any kind.
Playing PS2 Games
I know it’s not going to surprise many of you that you can still play PS2 games on a jailbroken PS2. You can still upload your existing games from your collection as normal, but there’s also the added bonus of being able to play any game burnt onto any DVD.
Of course, there’s a massive grey area around downloading games from companies that are still running, especially when lots of Sony’s games are available to play on PS Plus.
Playing Homebrew Games
In a world where the best PS2 emulators can be pulled up on most computers and laptops as well as some of the best retro handhelds, the thought of playing games from other consoles on your PS2 might not be that exciting.
Still, one other answer to ‘what can a Jailbroken PS2’ do is play games from other competing systems. If you fancy loading up the SNES classic Chrono Trigger on your PS2 on a burned DVD, then that’s another option!
Loading Games From A Hard Drive
As I’ve said before, downloading ISO files and hacked games falls into some serious grey territory. Still, with a jailbroken PS2, players don’t even need to have discs in order to be able to play games.
With a modded console, gamers can pull files straight from a USB or external hard drive. Upload free McBoot and bam; gone are the days where you need to carry all your discs around with you!
You can also install your own hard drive into the PS2 to make a larger internal memory bank.
Loading PS2 Backups
Anyone looking to make backups can download IMG Burn and OPL for creating and loading PS2 backups.
I know we’re getting a little more in-depth now and that this isn’t something that all Sony fans are going to be doing, but the option is there if you want to get a little creative.
Install A Raspberry Pi
Of course, once jailbroken, you could also install a Raspberry Pi into the PS2, essentially making the console a glorified case.
Your PS2 would then essentially become a housing unit for multiple emulators, allowing you to Access Retro Arch, PSCX2, and many more!
What Can A Jailbroken PS2 Do?
In short, a jailbroken PS2 can play burned games from other consoles, load games and back-ups stored on external hard drives, and turn it into an emulation behemoth.
Is it worth it in 2022? Probably not, especially because it’s a massive hassle and there are many alternatives to playing PS2 games that you both may or may not own.
Check out our list of the best PlayStation emulators if you’re searching for some ‘purely scientific methods’.
Seb Santabarbara has bought every Nintendo console that has ever been released in his 31 years on Planet Earth. His favourite game franchise is Zelda, and he’s patiently waiting for Banjo-Kazooie to come back to the fold. When he’s not playing games, he’s travelling the world in his self-converted camper van.
