If you’ve been in the loop, then you know that Super Slim/Late Slim PlayStation 3 models, which previously weren’t able to run homebrew, can now run it thanks to PS3HEN. While this is pretty exciting and you might’ve just hacked your console, you may be wondering “What should I install now??” and in this article, we’ll be tackling that question to get the most out of your newly hacked PS3!
1. RetroArch – A multi-platform emulator that ought to make you forget about playing PS3 games for a while
RetroArch lets you play games from all sorts of gaming consoles, from the ever-popular SNES to more obscure consoles like the 3DO! (3DO emulation not available in RetroArch for the PS3)
RetroArch is a front-end for a set of emulators, that it calls cores, which let you play games of older consoles and computers. Available cores for the PlayStation 3 include:
- Many Nintendo consoles like the NES (Nestopia), SNES (SNES9x) and the GameBoy Advance (VBA Next) among others
- Sega consoles like the Gensis and Master System (Genesis Plus GX)
- Atari home consoles like the Atari 2600 (Stella) and 7800 (ProSystem) and portables like the Lynx (Handy)
- Arcade machines (MAME) and some open-source game engines like Tyrian and DOOM
- If you want to emulate MS-DOS, you may use a separate emulator
Other than allowing you to play older games, RetroArch also comes with a pretty significant set of features such as save states, a framerate counter, different user interfaces, shaders and many more stuff!
You can get RetroArch from here
2. Backup Managers like irisMan, multiMan and ManaGunZ
Backup Managers are very popular pieces of homebrew on the PS3 and for good reason because they allow you to do much more than just manage backups!
Other than simply allowing you to back up your own games and play them (yes, it also allows you know what to happen), backup managers on the PlayStation 3 have a whole slew of other features similar to file managers like VitaShell, 3DShell and NXShell on other hacked consoles. Features that various backup managers include are:
- A file manager allowing you to move files around and organise the file system
- Some also come with NTFS support so you can get past the 4GB file limit when connecting an external HDD
- FTP server software allowing you to wirelessly copy files to your PS3 if you have the patience
- PlayStation 2 and PSP game support
- Built-in image viewers and MP3 player
- A customisable appearance and add-on support so you can add even more features to them
You can get multiMAN (partially working on PS3HEN), irisMAN (recently updated to work with PS3HEN) and ManaGunZ (not all games may work OOB on PS3HEN).
3. Applications with NoPSN patches
If you don’t want to take any chances with your PSN account, NoPSN apps lets you enjoy all the apps that require you to log into PSN without logging into PSN!
These are pretty self-explanatory as they’re slightly modified versions of official PS3 applications with one major difference. This difference is that the requirement to be logged into PSN when using these applications is bypassed thus letting you use them without fear of potentially having your PSN account banned! NoPSN versions are available for many apps including:
- YouTube
- CruncyRoll
- Twitch
- Hulu
- Netflix
In order to grab PKG installers of noPSN applications, you can check out this repository that has a LOT of them!
4. Homebrew Games
You can use your PS3 to play God Of War, Okami, GTA V…. or Flappy Bird!
Other than letting you play older games, being able to run homebrew on your PS3 also allows you to play homebrew games. These can be divided into two, namely open-source game ports and original games made by people specifically for hacked PlayStation 3 consoles. Available homebrew games include:
- Flappy Bird PS3
- Free Heroes II
- Hexen
- PS3Tetris
- SGTPuzzles
- UFO Racers
To get some homebrew games on your hacked PS3, check out Brewology’s Homebrew Store and download whatever intrigues you!
Conclusion
It is important to note that the PlayStation 3 hacking scene has been around for over a decade so some homebrew may not work on firmware 4.84 because of incompatible offsets or other issues. Furthermore, PS3HEN isn’t a full CFW so some homebrew may expect capabilities that PS3HEN doesn’t currently offer so some features in homebrew may not fully work.
That being said, there’s still plenty to enjoy and make sure you scrutinize Brewology’s Store and PSX-Place’s forums (in particular this thread) for more homebrew
