Fair0verflow has announced that the hacker group has successfully broken into PlayStation 4, installed Linux, booted up Gameboy Advance emulator and run Pokémon.
Game consoles such as PlayStation and Xbox One are basically PCs but designed for a very limited use which is for gaming only. So it's kind of interesting when hardware hackers get to do other things with these consoles.
Last week, console-hacking group Fair0verflow managed to crack PlayStation 4, install and run Linux, an open source operating system. TechnoBuffalo noted this could open the market to have gaming consoles function just like a PC. After all, they have the same processor architecture and video processing technology.
In addition to running Linux, Fair0verflow also attached a Gameboy Advance emulator and was able to run it and play a Pokémon game. They call the modded copy of Pokémon game as the PlayStation version. They also tried to use a Game Advance as a controller, and while there are functions that were missing, they reportedly have most of the functions working. Still, the group has gather much understanding of how PS4 console is working which is apparent with their comments that the differences between a PC and the PS4 are "crazy," some even "batshit crazy." They also said that Marvell Technology Group's engineers were "smoking some real good stuff" because of the way PS4 southbridge chip was designed.
Well, there's really this possibility of seeing consoles do other things than what they are currently intended to do. Back when PlayStation 3 was launched, as per Venture Beat, it came with a feature called "OtherOS" which enables the installation of operating systems. It was eventually removed by Sony, although you can bet there are people who have kept it alive.
Below is the full presentation of the console hacking from Fair0verflow.
