Nearly four years after Sony launched the PlayStation Vita handheld game console, a team of hackers have released a simple method for jailbreaking the device.

All you need to do to jailbreak your device is visit the HENkaku website using the PlayStation Vita web browser and tap the install button.

HENkaku will take advantage of a vulnerability in the PS Vita’s software to install homebrew packages, allowing you to run software that’s not officially supported. The jailbreak utility also works on the PlayStation TV.

ps vita jb

Once you’ve got a jailbroken device, you can run emulators for Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, Sega Mega Drive, and other game systems.

Note that while this may open the door for third-party apps that disable DRM or allow you to run pirated games (or pirate games yourself by making backups), the one of the developers behind HENkaku says the software doesn’t explicitly support those features.

This isn’t the first time the PS Vita has been jailbroken, but it’s the first publicly-available utility that works with the the latest PS Vita firmware (version 3.60) and it’s also by far the simplest to install.

There is at least one down side to using HENkaku: if you reboot the PS Vita you’ll need to re-jailbreak your device.

Don’t already have a PS Vita? You can pick up a refurbished model for as little as $118. The PlayStation TV is even cheaper: a new model costs just $40.

via Geek.com and EuroGamer

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