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Hello World + SDK for EU and US versions of Hots Shots golf (Everybody’s golf)

August 27, 2010 in HBL, hacking, release | 53 comments

FrEdDy kindly released a Hello World for the EU version of Minna no golf, (Everybody’s golf) , which now makes the exploit work worldwide (is there a Korean version? an AU version?). The Hello world has been confirmed by JJS to work on the PSN version of the game too. Video below by TiPi.



I also didn’t include the SDK for the US version when I released my own Hello world, so I’m fixing the mistake here.

People who want to download HBL for Minna no golf (JP), or the US hello world, or the JP Hello world for minna no golf 2, can check my previous article.

I’ll be busy like never for the next week or so in real life, so don’t expect too much from me on the port for now. Maybe some of the other devs of HBL will be working on it, otherwise please be patient. Merging J416’s port into our SVN and making all these regions’ exploits compatible with HBL is currently my main priority, so be sure that as soon as I have free time I’ll be working on that :)

Of course, if people want to provide exploits for Hot Shots golf 2, and everybody’s golf 2, please feel free to do so. The more the merrier!



HBL Released for 6.30/6.31

August 24, 2010 in HBL, hacking, release | 310 comments


Update:Added the US SDK, plus the EU Hello World
J416 finally released his port of the HBL for the firmware 6.30/6.31. The port uses an exploit in the Japanese version of the game Minna no golf portable. People who currently want to enjoy Homebrew on their 6.30/6.31 PSP need an original JP UMD of this game. Compatibility of the exploit with the PSN version of the game has been confirmed, for the US and EU versions of the game.

I haven’t tested HBL through this exploit yet, as I wanted the news out of the door asap, but I’ll be working on merging this port into the HBL SVN codebase in the days to come. Download links below.



HBL Currently only works with the Japanese version of Minna no golf, but Mamosuke confirmed that a similar exploit exists in Minna no golf 2, and I confirmed that the exploit exists in the US Version, “Hot Shots golf”. We will be working hard in the days/weeks to come, to adapt HBL to as many versions of the game as possible, meanwhile, here’s a summary list:

  • Minna no golf portable (JP UMD): Exploitable, runs HBL (J416’s port)
  • Minna no golf portable (JP PSN): Probably Exploitable, untested
  • Minna no golf portable 2 (JP UMD): Exploitable, Hello World by Mamosuke
  • Minna no golf portable 2 (JP PSN): Probably Exploitable, untested
  • Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee (US UMD and PSN Version): Exploitable, Hello World by wololo (SDK)
  • Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee 2 (US UMD): probably exploitable
  • Everybody’s golf (EU UMD and PSN Version): Exploitable, Hello World by FrEdDy
  • Eveybody’s golf 2 (EU UMD): probably exploitable
  • Everybody’s golf 2 (EU PSN): probably exploitable

Do NOT buy the non JP versions of the game just based on hope. As long as nothing’s released, a promise is as good as a fake. Only trust releases. In other words, consider that for now, HBL only works with the JP version of the game!!!
Enjoy :)

It’s legal to hack your PSP…unless it’s a Phat

July 29, 2010 in hacking | 39 comments

(image from concept-phones.com)

If you’ve been following hacking news of other devices, you probably know that recent updates in the US law finally confirmed that jailbreaking an iPhone is legal in this country. Out of curiosity, I read the original announcement from the US copyright office. Of course, I assumed it doesn’t mention the iPhone specifially, so maybe this change in the DMCA would have a positive impact on the PSP as well ?

It turns out that the hacking of the PSP remains in a grey area, as the article says:

The purpose of the proceeding is to determine whether current technologies that control access to copyrighted works are diminishing the ability of individuals to use works in lawful, noninfringing ways.[...]

Computer programs that enable wireless telephone handsets to execute software applications, where circumvention is accomplished for the sole purpose of enabling interoperability of such applications, when they have been lawfully obtained, with computer programs on the telephone handset.

So, you are authorized to jailbreak your iPhone, if your goal is to run software that you legally obtained AND that cannot run on the iPhone because of DRMs. In other words, it is alright to jailbreak a phone in order to run homebrews.

What I find annoying is that this precision in the law specifically mentions “wireless telephone handsets”…which the PSP isn’t…oh, but wait, Skype is officially provided by Sony on the PSP 2000, 3000, and on the PSP Go, so technically, these PSP are wireless telephone handsets…

Hence my cool conclusion of the day: in the US, hacking your PSP (for example using Half Byte Loader) to run Wagic is perfectly legal, unless it’s a psp 1000 :)

By the way, it is wrong to say that it means that hacking a psp1000 is illegal in the US. It just means the psp1000 remains in a grey area because it is not a handled phone. Companies like Apple and Sony will always try to make you believe that hacking your device is illegal. The truth is, it’s not. Of course, hacking these machines will (obviously) void your warranty, and what you do with an unlocked device can be illegal, but that’s a different story.

Additionally, the update of the DMCA clears another area, for reverse engineering. It is now officially legal to look for vulnerabilities in video games, as long as your goal is to improve the security of the game and/or fix bugs. To quote the statement:

Video games accessible on personal computers and protected by technological protection measures that control access to lawfully obtained works, when circumvention is accomplished solely for the purpose of good faith testing for, investigating, or correcting security flaws or vulnerabilities, if:

(i) The information derived from the security testing is used primarily to promote the security of the owner or operator of a computer, computer system, or computer network; and
(ii) The information derived from the security testing is used or maintained in a manner that does not facilitate copyright infringement or a violation of applicable law.

I believe such a law was already clearly specified in many European countries, in order to protect Free Software and the right to fix bugs on systems you own, as well as IT companies that specialize in security.

In case you didn’t figure it out, I’m not a lawyer, so this article has absolutely no legal meaning :)

Half Byte Loader on OFW 6.30

July 27, 2010 in HBL, hacking | 154 comments

Mamosuke just informed me that coder J416 started porting Half Byte Loader to firmware 6.30, based on his game exploit previously found on 6.30.

Before you get your hopes too high:

  • I haven’t tested this and I don’t know the name of the game, but I trust mamosuke (and therefore J416 as well), so I know this is real
  • This is still work in progress and might take a few weeks before it is usable
  • This relies on a game exploit, which is not a Demo. It means that people would have to buy that game, and additionally, it will most likely be patched very quick on the PSN, so interest is limited for PSP Go owners (although rumors say that a solution exist against Sony patching their games on the PSN)

To mamosuke and J416: Good luck guys, you know my email address if you need help on this. Also, please keep in mind that HBL is GPL, so if you release this, we’ll be expecting the sources as well ;)

Should you update to 6.20?

July 11, 2010 in HBL, hacking | 17 comments

UPDATE: For PSP2000 and 3000 users, the latest version of HBL is WAY better if you have firmware 6.10 OR LESS. Unlike what this post says, if you update, I now recommend to update to 6.00 or 6.10. I am really sorry for this, I of course didn’t expect that kind of thing to happen when I wrote this article. Regarding Kernel exploits, my statement remains true. I stil believe that hackers will always focus on newest firmwares.

Lots of people have been staying on lower firmwares in the hope that a kernel hack would be released for firmwares 5.55, or 5.70, or 6.00, or whatever…

In the meantime, HBL gets extensively tested on firmware 6.20, and it feels more games are compatible on this firmware than on old ones. This is quite surprising to me, but, well, honestly, we test our work on 5.00 m33 and 6.20, so that might be true.

So we get more and more questions : “should I upgrade to 6.20 or stay in X.XX?”

A few months ago, I would have said: “don’t upgrade, who knows, maybe a kernel exploit for your firmware will be found tomorrow!”, but today my answer is: if you have a PSP with a firmware between 5.05 and 6.20, I suggest you upgrade to 6.20. HBL apparently works better on it, and I don’t picture any hacker releasing a kernel hack for 5.XX firmwares anytime soon. I believe hackers will focus on 6.30 and maybe 6.20, but it’s not worth staying in 5.XX anymore (unless you’re below 5.03, in which case you can get ChikHEN).

For those who are worried, undisclosed kernel exploits still exist in 6.30 (And no, I don’t know where they are), so you are not giving up on everything by upgrading to 6.20.

Now, as far as 6.30 is concerned…well that’s another story. It’s a choice between homebrew and official contents, it’s a matter of personal opinion. However, as far as I know it is still possible to stay in 6.20 and buy official games, through Media Go, although I haven’t tried.

OFW 6.30 patches the Patapon2 exploit

June 29, 2010 in HBL, hacking | 120 comments

It’s been confirmed by trusted sources that the upcoming PSP Firmware 6.30 patches the Patapon exploit, which is the vector to HBL. I know many people will come to us in the future, telling us they didn’t know about the exploit and foolishly upgraded…well that’s life…

Nobody can say if/when a new exploit will be discovered. So, as usual, if you like homebrews, DO NOT UPDATE TO 6.30.

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