Naturally, this move was met with a lot of criticism. Video game preservationists, for example, were among those who criticized the movie. But, as bad as this news is, a hacker has stepped forward to claim that there is an even worse problem for the PlayStation 4.
What Happens if the PlayStation Network Goes Down?
ERROR CE 34878-0 when the ps4 cmos battery dies (and it will) it renders all ps4 digital files unusable without a server reconnection and in ps4 it also kills disc playback pic.twitter.com/0TYE2rOeBC — Does it play? (@DoesItPlay1) March 10, 2021 Media preservation group, Does It Play?, recently shared a PlayStation 4 error code labeled “ERROR CE 34878-0”. To the untrained eye, this is your typical error code. This simply means that something happened to the game and it crashed. However, the group claims that the error code is closely tied to the CMOS battery of the PlayStation 4. According to their findings, if and when the CMOS battery of the PlayStation 4 dies, it also takes out all the digital files along with it, unless there is a server to reconnect to. TLDR; if your PlayStation 4’s CMOS battery dies, the console can’t play games anymore.
— Lance McDonald (@manfightdragon) March 23, 2021 Another hacker named Lance McDonald took things a step further and explained how the error is specifically related to how Trophies work on the PlayStation 4. Apparently, the Trophies use the internal clock of the PlayStation 4. This means that when players receive a Trophy, it double checks the time first to make sure that the players haven’t messed with it before awarding the player a Trophy. If, for example, the console sees that the user has altered the internal clock, it’ll prevent owners from playing games anymore. In normal situations, this isn’t really that big of an issue. Players can’t exactly mess with the internal clock unless they are deliberately trying to hack it. But, the real issue here is what happens when the CMOS battery dies, which will inevitably happen. Luckily, there are already multiple solutions available for when the time comes. For example, the system clock will reset automatically after you’ve replaced the battery by simply connecting it to the PlayStation Network. However, this, in turn, creates the question, “what happens if Sony decides to shut down the PlayStation Network?”
What Should Sony do About This?
At this point, the ball, as they say, is in Sony’s court. Sooner or later, they’ll have to address the public’s growing concerns. It’s not enough for fans to have faith in Sony and believe that they are not planning to take down the PlayStation network anytime soon. Hopefully, Sony’s most recent patent that involves a way to award players trophies for emulated games solves this issue. With that said, this news coming into light could make the Xbox Series X the more appealing option than the PlayStation 5. Microsoft has already promised that they plan on making the Xbox Series X backwards compatible with every Xbox One game. Not to mention, they’re currently working on making even older games backwards compatible with their flagship console. If Sony fails to reassure fans soon, this could be a huge win for Microsoft.
