Important: The PS Vita has been fully hacked on all firmwares, so generally speaking you might want to install a Custom Firmware rather than VHBL. Custom firmwares are much more flexible, have more features, and are easier to install than VHBL. This page remains online for historical/archive purposes.
What is it?
Vita Half-Byte Loader is a homebrew loader HBL for the Playstation Vita, running through the PSP emulator on the Playstation Vita.
For the latest news about Vita Half Byte Loader, check the VHBL Category on this blog.
Half-Byte Loader (HBL/VHBL) is an open source Homebrew Loader for the Sony PSP and the PS Vita. It allows to play fan-made games on any PSP and PS Vita. HBL allows to run emulators for the Game Boy, Nintendo 64, Sega Megadrive, NES, Super NES… and many other applications. See here for a list of emulators
This page is specific to the Vita version of Half Byte Loader, VHBL.
Disclaimer
- VHBL does not technically allow you to play any pirated PSP or Vita games.
- Although VHBL is free and open source, depending on your firmware some exploits rely on vulnerabilities in specific PSP games that you need to buy from the PSN. VHBL comes with no guarantee, especially I cannot guarantee it will work on your Vita, so remember that when you buy a PSP game on your vita, you pay for that PSP game, and not for anything else. I do not do refunds for the money you gave to Sony 🙂
- It is super easy for Sony to patch the vulnerabilities used by this tool, given the amount of control they have on the PS Vita. VHBL runs fine and is extensively tested, but for all I know it is possible for Sony to patch the game’s vulnerability without a firmware update. So, once again, before buying the game and downloading VHBL, you need to understand that you pay for the game, and VHBL is a bonus that might or might not work.
Downloads
On lower PS Vita firmwares, the Version of VHBL you need to download depends on the PSP Game you own. Click on the game you own to get redirected to the appropriate download page (the download page of each game also contains installation and usage instructions). Currently, VHBL is available for the following PSP games/ Vita firmwares:
- For Firmware 3.60, please follow this tutorial
- Puzzle Scape (up to firmware 3.52)
- Space Invaders Extreme (up to firmware 3.15)
- Jikkyu Powerful Pro Yakyu 2012 Ketteiban (up to firmware 2.61)
- Arcade Darts, Arcade Air Hockey, Arcade Pool, and World of Pool (up to firmware 2.60)
- Gamocracy One: Legend of Robot (up to firmware 2.12)
- Apache Overkill (up to firmware 2.06)
- Monster Hunter (up to firmware 1.80)
- Super Collapse 3 (up to firmware 1.67)
- Motorstorm Arctic Edge (Motorstorm Raging Ice) (up to firmware 1.61)
- Everybody’s Tennis (Minna No Tennis) (up to firmware 1.61)
Sony’s strategy so far has been to remove these games from their store, and put them back once the Vita firmware is patched. Most likely, if you didn’t buy the vulnerable game(s) in time, you will not be able to run VHBL. But we are regularly bringing more exploits to VHBL, so stay tuned on this page for further updates.
If you’re looking for historical information on the original hbl for psp, check the hbl page
Would it be possible to bring an update out for VHBL on motorstorm to make it a little more stable?
Hi, thank you so much for packaging doom for us already, I am a bit of a simpleton when it comes to all of this and have been unable to reproduce this for any emulators of any kind. is it possible someone can package up some homebrew for us and put them up available to download? as the only thing ive been able to get running is doom (as you did it for me! haha)
Also another potentially silly question, how on earth do i save in the doom game?
I have answered my own question RE: doom if you push triangle and select it brings up the in game menu! For those of you who were also wondering!
DarK Alex (DAX) were are youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu :*(
Hi guys,
I don’t get why so many people hate the homebrew scene because homebrew doesn’t and mustn’t mean pirate stuff.
You have to think of the PSP at it’s days without pirate stuff:
We were able to watch Youtube, watch videos with unsupported codecs, play oldschool stuff like NES, have hobby coders code theirr own game for a handheld without having to be a coders from Sony to get famous.
So, if we get access to the Vita (at least in user mode, that should be enough) for such stuff, we would be able to do more than the things which are able through the PSP emulator exploit, for example watch videos at 1080p (because the Vita is with it’s stats capable of this [quad-core@1,4GHz and better graphic chip than ipodtouch4g]), have more oldschool stuff like PSX emulator with savestates, N64 running at fullspeed with Conker’s bad fur day ;D, or even PS2 emulator running at half speed, running Homebrewgames made specially for the Vita (maybe with HD graphics).
I think nobody is against something like this. I for my part don’t want the Vita to be cracked with pirate stuff in it’s first year on earth, but having a better video player than the built-in one or carrying two beloved oldschool consoles(or even more) without having to carry everything in a big bag would be very awesome.
I hope you all get what I want to say 😀
And thanks to the team who made the first homebrews able to be run on the Vita.
aliman
Playing your beloved emulators is still piracy…
Play emulated games is not piracy…
I had sega genesis about… 20 years ago And of course i purchased all my games (well, my dad did because i was a kid). Now, my console has gone and several games i once had were damaged (my copy of the first genesis sonic died because i played it a lot)… So, the fact that i have a damaged genesis would force me to forget them and not to play them again? I paid for those games and i just want to play them again! That doesn’t hurt the industry because those games are no longer a source of profit; In fact, the industry is hurt by the piracy of new games, because they are the real income for the companies.
Who cares if some old *** like me or a bunch of hackers want to play the 1980 pac-man? (a 32years old game) Nobody is selling the damn rom, neither the emulator; Is just for the fun of remember old good times.
In the case of hacking the hardware… Let me quote a phrase well seen on the days of the famous “sony epic fail”: “It’s my console, i paid for it and i f*** it as i want”… If i want to create an application which i think would be useful to have it in my psvita, at least for me, why should i be restricted to the limited use imposed by the manufacturer? For the warranty? I know i am the only responsible if the device gets damaged and for the use i give it.
Think of a videocamera: U can use it to record a masterpiece of film, can use it to record a family video, any garbage u want… Or u can use it to record children ***… That last thing is a crime. The manufacturer held no responsability for what you use the camera and doesn’t have any system to restrict the usage of the device… I think, even if is risky, do the same with nearly (not all) electronic hardware… The psvita has potential to do far more than play games, it has better hardware than a 10yrs old PC, why it shouldn’t have all the functionality of a 5yrs old pc?
Morals and justification aside, running commercial roms in emulators IS STILL PIRACY. Piracy is determined by law, not “i owned them as a kid on a cart, it broke, and so now i should be allowed to own the rom” justification.
Don’t get me wrong, I play them too, but it still is piracy.
You chose pac-man as an example. People are in fact still selling the original pac-man rom in many forms. The exact same compiled source code. Namco owns the rom and Midway releases it in the USA in many formats. These may be a joystick you plug into your TV with it embedded on a chip, or some MIDWAY CLASSICS console or PC release. Many of these types of releases use the same source code. This goes for many games.
Even if a game isn’t “obtainable” any more, it is still classified as piracy to have the rom. Even if you owned the cart, or even if you still DO own the cart, it is piracy to own the rom unless you dumped that rom yourself from your own cart (and even then, it’s a legal gray area in many cases).
Emulators are awesome, but don’t inform the masses that it is legal when it most definitely is not.
No it isn’t. If you own a physical copy of the game, then it is perfectly legal to own a backup copy of any sort. Get your facts straight and maybe next time you won’t be ignored as a dolt. Is it really that hard to do a little research to prevent yourself from sounding dumb?
no it isn’t, you ***.
i, for my part, own oldschool games and like to play them on the go.
some people just don’t want the vita to have homebrew >:(
Hi, is it possible to get either Motorstorm Arctic Edge or Everybody’s Tennis now?
Is there any option for someone who didn’t get the games at the time?
I just want my emulators running…
Can they be bought in the shop and used? I’m in Europe.
Sorry, no. Please stay tuned on our forums. Forum members got the news in advance for both exploits and were able to buy the games up to 1 week before Sony removed them from the store, we might do the same thing for upcoming exploits
Thanks for the quick reply – is there one in the pipeline. The VIta is really missing the homebrew and PS1 titles…
Hey Wololo
wouldn’t it be possible to get an exploit in a demo??
Sorry guys i know i have posted this already but is there anywhere i can get the pre packaged homebrew as has been done with doom but for any other emulators? I have so far been unsuccesful in packaging the homebrew, even through the software that supposedly does it for you!
if it was not for all the secorety that sony has got in the psvita it would be moch betry to do this i most of mit the way thay have done it is bokers needing ctm to move fils to the psv and so on remids me of the I pade lolyou can’t drag and drop like on the psp and psp go on lees some finds a way arond<<<
sorry for the bade speling
I only know it’s a newbie idea to rely on game by psn store. Just give up.
could u give a try on vice city stories i mean a lot of people have this game
How about *you* try?
thats the spirit lol
Shut up meg
Meg, who let you back in the house?
Lol…how long does? It even take you to find an exploit wololo
hey, could u come to my house and mow my grass? it’s getting pretty high…
if i download motor storm or everybody’s tennis using torrents, will the exploit work? or do i need to jailbreak the ps vita?
hi,
I have a question please VHBL run on (Everybody’s Tennis (EU)) (Motorstorm Raging Ice EU) {{{{ for card games }}}} not for psn download from
and Thank’s
Where would you buy a physical vita version of a psp game?
games Card for EUROP
Thankyou!!! Finally a US version. been waiting so long for this.
I dont understand why are you hacking vita,do you have money for that? We want new tituls and no new firmware to patch some hbl think–.
Well, Im GREATLY looking forward to the hack.
I actually refunded my Vita. To me, it is virtually useless without Bookr(which I use daily), and the TONS of PSP games that I could NOT download in my OWN PSN Download List because I did not own a PS3. I felt totally cheated. My older psp has more functionality at this point.
I will buy another Vita the very SECOND the hack is released and confirmed US PSN game is verified working.
With that in mind,
Wololo, PLEASE dont forget about me on the ninja list?
I would not release the name of the next VHBL compatible game until Friday. Sony is apparently incapable of taking games down until the next business day. This would give the largest amount of time for people to get the game.