What is homebrew software and how to flash game consoles

On consoles, unlike PCs, you cannot run any software. Some programmers took this as a personal challenge and that's how the homebrew community was born. The portal Howtogeek.com shows how console enthusiasts are flashing.

What is homebrew?

The term homebrew can be translated into Russian as “homemade” or “homegrown”. And in the gaming community, the word refers to games or applications written by amateurs, and almost anything falls under the definition of homebrew. From emulators of other platforms to simple software or complete games.

How Homebrew Works

To create a program for your PC or Mac, you simply sit down at your computer and write the necessary code. No one prevents you from running your own software on your system or sharing it with other users who can also run it. Because of this, there are thousands of great free or open source programs on the Internet, created by enthusiasts in their spare time.

But game consoles are closed systems, so the conversation there is completely different. They can only run what the manufacturer allows: this is how companies fight piracy. Because of this, before you start developing homebrew software, you need to “hack” the console. In other words, protections that prevent third-party code from running must be disabled or circumvented somehow.

On some consoles, protection is hacked through physical modifications, on others – using specially written firmware. Different platforms require different methods. For example, running homebrew on the Xbox Series is as easy as peeling a pear. You just need to register a developer account and pay a fee to receive Microsoft's official favor.

But unlocking the console is just the first step. Directly developing software for the platform can also be a complex undertaking. For this, the so-called “Developer Kits”: special versions of consoles that studios buy for large sums of money. The toolkit allows them to write and test code directly on the final hardware, which is important when creating games, because… many platforms have unique architectures with their own characteristics.

Is Homebrew breaking the law?

Unlike pirated copies of video games, homebrew programs are not technically illegal. Yes, hacking your console's security can be illegal, as can apps that let you run pirated games. But homebrew projects themselves do not violate legal regulations.

A much greater threat is posed by risks of a “hardware” nature – from serious damage to the console due to the installation of unverified code to a permanent ban on online services. gland. Even so, the homebrew modding community is still large. There are even people who buy two consoles: one for gaming, the other exclusively for laboratory experiments with homebrew.