All Your PS4 Games Might Be Unplayable in the Future

If you thought you’ll be able to play games on your PS4 forever, then you’re in for a lot of trouble.

Credit: Nikita Kachanovsky on Unsplash

A Twitter user going by the name “Does it Play?” tweeted in March 2021 to inform people that PlayStation 4 (PS4) users won’t be able to play games at all once the console gets an Error CE 34878-0. This error means that the console’s CMOS battery, which contains an internal clock the PlayStation Network (PSN) relies on for its trophy system, has died.

“Does it Play?” further explained that a dead PS4 CMOS battery will render all of the console’s digital files unusable without a server reconnection and disables the console’s disc playback. This is due to the PSN relying heavily on the console’s internal clock for its trophy system so that users are unable to tamper with the dates and times that they acquired achievements in-game.

Changing the CMOS battery is an option, but that console will still need to connect to Sony’s servers after to verify the time. This means that if and when Sony shuts down all support for the PS4 and its servers, the console will still be rendered unusable once the battery dies.

Additionally, a YouTuber by the name of “Forest Reviews” tweeted that he was able to confirm the problem can actually happen by replicating the issue along with a video showing how the problem looks. Although Forest Reviews’ tweet was recently removed, YouTuber YongYea was able to include it in his video reporting the same issue. Forest Reviews’ tweet also detailed that the CMOS battery’s death may also cause game install data corruption.

There is an option though; you can jailbreak your PS4 when you replace the dead CMOS battery with a new one. Hacker Lance McDonald tweeted that jailbreaking your console will allow you to set the system clock manually, bypassing the need to connect to the PSN.

Sony has yet to issue an official response regarding this design flaw in the PS4, but hopefully, the company will be able to offer a solution in a future software update. However, “Does it Play?” uploaded an email template addressed to Sony so that people can let the company know of the issue and as “Does it Play?” puts it, “Let Sony know what we’re unhappy about and we would like them to do!”

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Written by John Paul Joaquin