The PlayStation 3 had a lot of cracking online games, didn't it? Even from Sony itself, there were plenty of offerings for those looking to get stuck into some multiplayer. Whether it was the vehicular battlefields of Warhawk or the mucky racing of MotorStorm, there were lots of ways to play together. Unfortunately, most, if not all, of Sony's servers for PS3 online functionality were shut down years ago as the company looked to the future. That's not stopped some industrious fans from working to bring these classics back, however.
A group calling themselves PSONE — PlayStation Online Network Emulated — has been busy working to restore Sony's online games to let you carry on playing them. By reverse engineering the PS3's online protocols, the group is setting up its own servers to which players can connect and enjoy multiplayer like it's 2008 all over again.
The project is very much a work in progress, but there are several games already supported in this way. MotorStorm, Killzone 2, and Warhawk are among the games already functional, but there are lots in the works too. PSONE is bringing titles such as SOCOM Confrontation, Resistance: Fall of Man, WipEout HD, and even PlayStation Home back online. There's no time scale for any of this work, as the group is operating voluntarily, not affiliated with Sony, and isn't interested in any monetary gain.
If you're interested in playing any of the supported games, there are some steps you'll need to take. Firstly, you'll need your PS3 and copy of the relevant game, and then you'll need to fiddle about with some DNS settings in order to connect to this group's servers. You can learn more about how to do all that through here.
[source psone.online, via videogameschronicle.com]
Comments 29
Seeing PlayStation Home running again would be a trip. I didn't actually get to do a whole lot on it back in the day, but there's still some nostalgia there.
Looks like I’m booting up KZ2 later today!!…..now to track down that disc…
Awesome! Might go back playing killzone 2 once I have enough free time.
ive gotta get my hands on motor storm never tried it back in the day was way more interested in fps games and nhl didnt play much story stuff till the end of the console as well
furthermore why havent sony released the motor storm games in a big remastered package yet? kinda strange isnt it?
@alexbolton2 I'd honestly love that, but feels unlikely!
Strange they went with PSONE when you consider Sony’s trademarks. I guess they might as well annoy them on multiple levels. Haha.
@lolwhatno Sorry, what do you mean by that?
I'd love if Sony revived some of its online/multiplayer games as F2P/PS+ titles. Gimme a new Killzone, Starhawk, Twisted Metal, Jet Moto... I'd play em all.
Welp, time to play Warhawk again, this is honestly super cool of them to do this though I wonder how populated the servers are?
I'll check it out this weekend.
@lolwhatno Glad I could be of service
The Witness puzzle shall be reinstated shortly, and then this interaction will make no sense whatsoever.
Its so cool when people do stuff like this. Ive got a list of games I'd love to see brought back, but unfortunately they probably won't.
Great gaming never dies. Good on the community for supporting
I doff my hat to PSONE but l'm also just waiting for New Sony to get grumpy and shut them down for daring to keep the PlayStation's legacy alive (unlike the current Sony so called management)
@alexbolton2 'Cos they shut down Evolution like a bunch of muppets, despite Evo producing probably the best racer of the PS3 (Pacific Rift) & PS4 (Driveclub, eventually!) era.
I suppose Codemasters could remaster them under licence as that's where most of the devs ended up?
Wonder if PSONE could resurrect the PS3 & Vita LBP and ModNation Racer servers?
Still got my launch-day PS3 and I'm a very proficient nerd, so this should be good!
Love seeing projects like this, hopefully Sony don't get heavy handed about it seeing as PSN still supports PS3. Insignia is a similar thing for the OG Xbox that I use quite often and so far MS haven't intervened though I expect that's because they abandoned it years ago.
I have far more faith in fans to ensure game preservation than I do the big companies.
I hope in future years the two can work together more comfortably, similar to the PC modding community so that we can remove some of the barriers to access.
That's pretty neat. Hopefully they can add more titles and Sony will turn a blind eye.
Oh lets play some MAG!
This is awesome! I'd like to see pre update 1.05 Uncharted 2 online come back. Still one of the best online games I've ever played.
@alexbolton2 My irony meter just exploded
Anyone know if you can still earn missed trophies with this?
Would be amazing if they got Uncharted 2, 3 and Mortal Kombat up and running again!!
Hope mw2 gets added loved playing online on that back in the day
Killzone 2 online was my favorite online experience of the PS3 era. It was dark and gritty and I loved every second of it.
I'd be interested in a series remaster with online.
I hear, for Warhawk at least, that you can also unlock trophies. I never got around to finishing the KZ3 DLC trophies. but I am mos dev ready for some KZ2 in my life again. 2 in specific, deserved a remaster with online multiplayer
I know I'm late to enter this conversation but can anyone please tell me the status of PSONE and if there is ANY way, chance, or possibility that we can still unlock online trophies we missed through this service? I spent years debilitated from injury, surgery, and physical therapy. I couldn't concentrate, let alone play video games. I'm also a completionist and having locked trophies because of server closure is excruciating.
@onewingedcrow @True_Jehuty What’s the latest with this? Gone very quiet. Would like to start some of these games if PSONE is actually happening…
@Ox1893 I have no idea. I'm not tech savvy and am in no way directly involved in bringing back the servers. I'm simply in support of it, and have a couple trophy packs I would like to 100%
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