This category doesn’t get enough love. Anyone else on here still into gaming? I’m just getting back into it after probably a decade of only playing occasionally. Just bought a PS4 Pro used for $100 with two controllers. I plan on jailbreaking it as soon as I get my P4 tool in the mail. Pretty cool little device that just plugs into the Ethernet port and takes a minute or two on startup to load HEN. Apparently, the PS4 isn’t as far along, or there aren’t as many exploits as the PS3. You can’t run full custom firmware on the PS4 like you can on the PS3. So this little device runs every time on boot. I’m still gathering the best sources for games right now. Wondering if anyone else on here has this experience with the PS4?
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How to install Retroarch on PS4 - PC Guide How to install Retroarch on PS4 - PC Guide
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I did see a blurb that older folks (me) are getting back into gaming for brain stimulation. The news blurb had a grandma that kicks everyone’s ass in Call of Duty. I’d love to get back into it. We use to play Super Mario, Zelda, Kid Incurious etc. but it’s changed ALOT since then. I wouldn’t even know where to begin,
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Retroarch isn’t what I’m going for here.
Lol, imagine giving granny a headset and listening to her trash talk some 13-year-olds while she’s ripping headshots one after another.
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Not a gamer but have some friends who are and they say current trend is using a a PC. They all have subscriptions to Gamepass
I am 71 and have been a gamer most of my life. I use an Xbox One S but plan on getting the newer Xbox X/S, as the new games won’t run on the Xbox One. I mostly play open world RPG such as Witcher 3, Fallout 3 & 4, Ghost Recon Wildlands, Assassins Creed Valhalla, etc. Since physical conditions cause me to spend the majority of time indoors, video games and streaming are a life saver for me.
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Glad you mentioned Witcher 3. That’s one of the games I’m looking to play first. I’ve always loved the older Assassin’s Creed games. I have no idea which ones are the best on PS4.
Witcher 3 is probably my favorite game all time. Buy whatever edition has both DLC addons. They are both well worth playing. Also do all the side quests as they are a lot of fun also. The Assassin Creed games, I have only played the one. Valhalla. It was a very fun game. A bit repetitive in spots, but was a lot of fun. Good luck. Hope you find a lot of gaming fun.
So it sounds like I’d want to buy a USED console? Can you all lend a few suggestions what kind, how much and where you can buy used? Thanks.
Not necessarily. It all depends on what you are trying to accomplish.
If you just want to play a handful of games, buying a used system with a disc drive and buying used games is the way to go. You can buy games from local stores, Facebook Marketplace, OfferUp or similar apps, etc. Probably the most convenient is eBay because you can find “lot” listings where there’s a drop-down box to select which games you want from what they have available. Many of them offer bigger discounts with the more games you buy. And you save on shipping when they are all shipped together.
My original post was about jailbreaking the PS4. Meaning I can actually download PS4 games off the internet and either transfer them to the internal hard drive or play them from an external drive. In order to play those files, you have to put custom firmware or software on your system first. HEN is short for “homebrew enabler”. Homebrew is just a term used to describe unofficial software for game systems. In order to use this software, you have to exploit a security vulnerability in the original machines operating system. This is why game systems have frequent firmware updates (just like Amazon continued to push updates for their fire stick devices to stop people from using third party apps). Currently, you can only jailbreak a PS4 with firmware version 11.0 or lower. So, if you plan to go this route, you’d want to buy one that hasn’t had the firmware updated in a long time. The current and easiest way of jailbreaking a PS4 involves plugging a little device into the Ethernet port that allows you to copy HEN from a USB flash drive onto the hard drive. But it’s not a permanent setup. The USB drive isn’t needed after HEN is transferred, but the Ethernet connected device has to be plugged in every time you start up the PS4. It can take a minute or two for HEN to load before you can play your downloaded games. And last but not least… you cannot play online or even login with your PlayStation network account with a jailbroken PS4 or you will be banned. It’s best to turn off all automatic updates and keep your Internet settings so the attached device is connected and not your home network.
As for “retro gaming”, like all the games you mentioned above, there are now off brand game systems you can buy super cheap. I have a Kinhank X2 Pro Super Console gaming system that has literally thousands of games from all sorts of consoles from Atari up to PS1 and Dreamcast. You can buy them on Amazon, but they are even cheaper on AliExpress or Temu. They come with cheap knock off controllers that mimic PS3 controllers or similar. Most of the devices like this are meant to be plug and play but sometimes things aren’t perfect and navigating the settings can be very difficult. This particular console runs Retroarch (as mentioned above) which can load game files from many different types of old systems.
I bought a PS4 on eBay last year specifically to jailbreak. No PS4 tool, just a file loaded on a USB stick.
Though I do now have a mini chip that can auto jailbreak after a powerup.
Hadn’t console gamed in a decade, but there’s some gems on PS4.
The Last of Us and the Uncharted Series are great. Google dlps for games.
You must have been on an earlier firmware back then. 9.0 to 11.0 requires this type of device to jailbreak. 12+ is unable to jailbreak yet.
I’m on 9.0. Just load the exploit on a USB stick.
Up to 11.0 you can use your PC with a LAN cable.
As he says in the video, the USB only method will only work on 9.0 and lower. FW 9.03 came out in December 2021. Good luck to anyone trying to find a used system that is still on 9.0 or lower. Most people selling used systems don’t even know how to check the firmware version and don’t care to look it up for you even if you ask.
For higher than 9.0, yes, you can hook up your PS4 to your PC with a LAN cable. However, the jailbreak isn’t permanent. Every time you shut down the system and start it back up, you have to do the jailbreak again. Unless you constantly leave it in sleep mode. If you need to unplug it for any reason or have to hard reboot because of a glitch, the jailbreak is gone. That’s why the little P4 tool is so handy, because it eliminates the need for connecting a PC. Once you go through the internet connection settings and setup a P2P connection with the device, that’s it. Every time you boot up the PS4 it will automatically redo the jailbreak.
Sounds like a used PS4 is a good place to start. EBAY & Back Market will be my starting stops to look. What’s the most I want to pay for a used PS4? I imagine I want a “pro” model too for extra storage.
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Get a PS4 Pro. People are selling them for about the same price. I got one for $100 with two controllers. But most people are listing them for around $150 to $200. On Facebook marketplace or OfferUp you can haggle with the seller for a lower price. Just make sure that if you are going to jailbreak it that you get one with 11.0 or lower firmware.
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I just want to tell you if you did not know that ps4 is going away. They have stopped making new games.