Sony’s PlayStation 3 console can be jailbroken to add plenty of additional functionality – but what can a jailbroken PS3 do? Let’s find out!
Want to feel old? Sony’s PS3 console was first released in Japan and the US at the end of 2006; that’s close to sixteen years ago now. In PAL regions, it appeared in March 2007 – which is now fifteen years ago.
Despite its age, the PlayStation 3 is still a pretty capable console – and there are ways to mod, aka jailbreak, the console which opens it up to lots of different options that would otherwise be inaccessible.
We’ve covered similar ground for other consoles – check out our ‘What Can a Hacked PS Vita Do‘ article as another example.
A Quick Word of Warning…
Do note that jailbreaking your PS3 is done at your own risk – with it being against Sony’s terms of use, you won’t be able to go online while the jailbreak is active; to do so, you’re risking a permanent ban from Sony.
Retro Gaming
It’ll come as no surprise to you, seeing as you’re reading this article on Retro Dodo, that the team here are extremely keen on retro gaming. Which is one of the biggest advantages to having a jailbroken PS3.
Retroarch – the jack-of-all-trades emulator that’ll emulate just about any console game, from most eras, with ease – can run on a jailbroken PS3, so once installed you’ll just need to add ROMs and you’ll be wallowing in wonderful retro gaming nostalgia in no time!
Playing PS3 Games
“I can just play PS3 games on my PS3 without jailbreaking it though,” I hear you say. Well yes – but can you play all PS3 games, even ones that aren’t in your library? Or PS3 games that were delisted and removed from sale entirely?
No, you can’t. So jailbreaking your PS3 opens it up to using these games that have long been missing in action; do be warned, however, that there are plenty of legal grey areas around downloading game files if you don’t own the games in question.
Customising the Interface
Jailbreaking a Sony PS3 will allow you to customise just about every aspect of its interface, including the startup sound and background theme. Sure, it’s not exactly the most essential feature – but the level of personalisation does add nice-to-have options to a jailbroken console.
Playing Your PS3 Game Collection Without Discs
So how about the sheer convenience of having your physical game collection stored on a hard drive without needing to ever enter or swap discs? That’s something else you can do with a jailbroken PS3!
Installing Your Own Hard Drive
Once your PS3 is jailbroken, you can install your own hard disk drive in order to increase the storage capabilities of your console – and store plenty of your PS3 game collection on there too!
Playing Homebrew Games
Sure, retro and PS3 games may be on dodgy legal ground – but what about homebrew games specifically for PS3? There’s no issue there of course – and there’s plenty of these around.
Naturally, we’re not able to let you know where you can download ROMs or game files for PS3 (or other PlayStation consoles for that matter), but you should be able to find what you’re looking for online without too much trouble.
Above all, do bear in mind that if anything goes wrong in jailbreaking your PS3 or it breaks, it’s game over for your console unfortunately, so tinker with it at your own risk – but above all, have fun!
So let’s put it simply.
What can a Jailbroken PS3 Do?
A jailbroken PS3 can do a multitude of things. For example it can run an emulator to play a bunch of retro games via ROMs (including PS3 without discs), you can customise the user interface, you can install your own hard drive, and you can even play homebrew games.
Jason – who lives in the UK – has had a lifelong interest in video games, which all started when he discovered Space Invaders in the early 80s. The first game he ever completed was Wonder Boy in Monster Land on the Sega Master System – which remains one of his proudest gaming achievements. Jason is a passionate writer – and has been writing about gaming since the late 90s. He currently runs pop culture blog midlifegamergeek.com, which he updates on a daily basis (and has written more than 700 articles on the blog alone!).
Outside of video games, Jason is a keen tabletop gamer, film buff and comic book fan.
