A number of console can not play games once the internal CMOS battery dies. Sony's fourth generation PlayStation console launched back in 2013, running in stiff competition with the Xbox One and Nintendo Wii U for nearly seven years. In 2020 the PS4 was succeeded by the PlayStation 5, Sony's newest current-gen console.
As new consoles come out, it is only natural that older consoles are discontinued and developers stop ing them. Sony recently announced that the PlayStation 3, PSP, and PS Vita digital stores will soon be closed, with players no longer able to make online purchases on these older consoles. These closures are scheduled to happen very soon, with the PS3 and PSP stores closing in July and the PS Vita store closing in August. Players who continue to use these consoles are encouraged to make any desired purchases and s while they can, because they will not be able to once the stores have been closed.
Twitter DoesitPlay1, a team of gamers dedicated to testing games for the sake of media preservation, recently unveiled that the PlayStation 4's CMOS battery may be intrinsically linked to the console's functioning. Once this battery dies the console could be unable to play games, online or offline, making it unusable. Fellow Twitter Forest_Reviews seemingly confirmed this theory, having removed a PS4 Slim's CMOS battery to test the results. After the battery's removal the console was unable to play any games, physical or digital, due to the lack of internet connection.
The quirk of the PlayStation 4's CMOS battery may spell disaster for the console's future, and a different glitch in the console has recently made headlines as well. Hackers recently discovered a bug that allowed PS4 s to game share with an unlimited number of additional consoles. The game share feature allows one PS4 to allow another access to their digital games library, effectively sharing the games across consoles. While the feature is meant for use in a single household, hackers have managed to share a collection of games across a large number of consoles. Meanwhile the console's successor, the PlayStation 5, has just received its first major software update.
Preservation and accessibility has become a major topic in the gaming industry, as digital distribution and game streaming has become more and more popular. Many gamers still purchase physical copies of games because it ensures that they can not lose access to their favorite titles due to software or connection issues. Unfortunately, the PlayStation 4's CMOS battery could render the entire console useless, whether gamers have physical discs or not. As more research is done by the likes of DoesitPlay1 and Forest_Reviews, the possibility of the PlayStation 4 becoming a simple paperweight will become more clear.
Source: DoesitPlay1, Forest_Reviews
