Over a week ago now, I asked the question of whether the PSP is worth it in 2020? I came to the conclusions that it was, and a lot of you seemed to agree. I recently got my hands on a HEN-Enabled PS3 Slim (Unfortunately, not the full CFW model) which gave me the idea to write this. Due to the fact that I own a Slim, I will be focusing more on that model, although a lot of the points I make should apply to other models too. These are all my opinions of course, so feel free to disagree with me in the comments.

Physical Aspects:

While the PS3 definitely isn’t the smallest console in the world, it isn’t the largest either (especially with the Super Slim model) and can easily fit under most peoples TV. It does have quite some weight to it, while still being easily transportable, should the need arise. The power and eject buttons are nothing special, and overall the console can look quite sleek depending on where you put it. The controller is very nice and doesn’t feel to cheap. The analogue sticks are very nice, but I prefer the Xbox 360 ones due to them having an indent, whereas on the PS3 controller, it does not. All the buttons feel very solid, however I extremely dislike the triggers. When I press them down, it just doesn’t feel right to me.  I suppose its because i’m more used to the X360 triggers.

Games:

The PS3 had plenty of solid titles (including one of my favorite games of all time, “The Last of Us”) and, although I had an Xbox 360 in that time, I know alot of the same games were on each system. Stuff like “Black Ops II” (one of the best Black Ops games in my opinion) and “Minecraft” were some of the game I used to play and, playign them on the PS3 today, they play just as well as how I remember on the X360. I have also tried many games that I haven’t played before, such as Sonic Unleashed which runs (almost) perfectly on the PS3. In 1080p, the games still look gorgeous (especially later releases in its lifetime). It’s safe to say, if you have a PS3, you have plenty of good games to pick from and you will not be disappointed.

Homebrew/CFW:

I don’t have a fully CFW/Rebug PS3 so I cant speak for that end, but for HEN, despite launching it every boot, its really good. It lets me run the majority of my favorite homebrew applications, including webMAN/MultiMAN. I can run game backups from my internal storage or a Hard Drive and I have backed up and played many different types of disc from my PS3’s internal hard-drive using MultiMAN. It’s a great experience, and with the addition of so many options for tweaking HEN (including Custom Themes), it really shows you just how much a PS3 was capable of doing. I am sure that a fully CFW/Rebug Ps3 is much better, but my PHAT PS3 died on me before I could get the chance to try it out. Installation of HEN is really easy as well as it uses the browser almost exclusively (near the end you have to enter remote play to finish installing it), and it takes less than 10 minutes. The benefits it provides you and your PS3 are good, and I cannot praise HEN enough. If you have an unhacked PS3 sitting in the basement, go CFW/HEN it and have some fun!

Overall Opinion:

As I said in the PSP article, unless you haven’t read what i’ve written, its pretty obvious what I think of the PS3. Amazing. Considering the fact that, with a PS2, you need an External SATA Hard Drive (Don’t quote me on that), and on the PS4 you need a specific firmware version to hack it, the PS3 is a great choice for people that are looking for an easy way to get into the scene. Hacking works on all versions of the System Software (as of writing), so it is well worth it to try it out if you have the time. I love seeing your opinions on these topics, so make sure you leave a comment before you go!