3 Ways to Free Download Games for PSP

2024 Author: Samantha Chapman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 09:13

Sony's PSP, although it has recently been overtaken by the new PS Vita, is still a very popular handheld video game console, offering a large collection of games. Read the steps below to learn how to play for free on the PSP.

Steps

Method 1 of 3: Get a Memory Card to Load More Games

Step 1. Purchase a memory card compatible with your PSP

To download games for the PSP, you should get yourself a memory with the largest capacity you can afford.

Step 2. Format the PSP memory using the following steps

• Insert the memory card into the PSP.
• Press the small "Home" button at the bottom left of the device.
• Use the directional pad to go to "Settings" and then to the "System Settings" menu.
• Select the "Format Memory Card" option.
• Confirm your choices by pressing "Yes" in the menu that appears. The PSP device will format the memory card (this should only take a few seconds).

Step 3. Find out which firmware you have installed

Firmware is the operating system used by the PSP to store files and perform its functions. The type of games you can run will depend on the firmware installed. Use the steps below to find out what your firmware version is.

• Click on "Home".
• Go to "Settings" and April.
• Open the "System Settings" menu.
• Select the "System Information" option. The firmware version will be displayed on the screen.

Method 2 of 3: Third Party Games

Step 1. Learn about third party games

Third-party applications (such as games and emulators for old consoles) are programs written by independent programmers and usually distributed for free to everyone. The downside of third-party programs is that they require a PSP with modified firmware, which allows unauthorized programs to run.

Step 2. Be prepared for what awaits you

Changing the PSP firmware is not a big legal risk, but custom firmware can in some cases prevent you from playing some commercial video games correctly. Even as the modding community is constantly improving its reliability and compatibility, the problem still exists. Make a backup copy of all your saves and other data stored on the PSP to a second memory before proceeding, just to be safe.

Step 3. Get custom firmware

To get started, find your PSP model number. You'll find it inside the battery door, so open it. Look for the characters "PSP-XXXX", where XXXX is your model number. Note if it is a 1000, 2000, 3000 or GO series.

Step 4. Download the customized files to your computer

It is not very difficult to find them on the net. As of May 2013, the most recent and commonly used files for editing are PSP CFW 6.60 Pro-C2 and Pro-C1, which you can download here and here, respectively.

C2 is better than C1, but in some cases C1 is more reliable. Try the C2 firmware first, and switch to C1 if you experience any problems with the PSP

• Enter USB mode. Go to "Settings" on your PSP and select "USB Mode". Connect the PSP to your computer with a USB cable and open it on the desktop. Make sure your blank memory card is still inside the PSP. Open the root of the card.
• Copy the firmware. Open the files you downloaded and find a folder called "PSP" inside it. Drag the folder to the root of the memory card and release it. If a dialog opens, click "Yes" to continue.
• Exit USB mode. Disconnect the PSP from your computer and exit USB mode by selecting the appropriate options. You can delete the files on your computer now if you wish.

Step 5. Install the custom firmware

Go to the PSP menu screen and select the "Game / Memory Card" item. From here, select the "PRO Update" icon. Press X to start the firmware.

• Imprint the firmware. When you have installed the custom firmware, you will need to permanently stamp it or you will need to know how to restore it to start third-party games. The method you will use will depend on your PSP model number.

  • For 1000 and 2000 series models, navigate to the "Game / Memory Card" menu and select the "CIPL Flasher" icon. Press X after running to make the firmware update permanent.
  • For the 3000 series and GO models, security measures prevent you from permanently imprinting the firmware. However, you can run the PSP Quick Restore tool every time you launch it to restore the custom firmware for that section.

  

  Step 6. Get custom games

  Now that everything is ready, do an internet search for "PSP custom games"; it should give you good results. Many of these games are emulated versions of older games for other systems, but there are also some user-created games.

  Method 3 of 3: Pirating Commercial Securities

  

  Step 1. Know what you are getting into

  Game piracy isn't usually prosecuted like music or movie piracy, but there's no guarantee you won't get in trouble. The risk is quite low, but the only way to certainly avoid legal trouble is to buy PSP games. When you pirate them instead, you take risks.

  In the case of small releases, you are probably harming the game's producer and creators as well. Think twice before pirating little-used or original games if you want the developers to release more

  

  Step 2. Download PSP games

  There are two basic methods of finding PSP game files and downloading them to your computer.

  • Torrent file. You can learn how to use torrents thanks to other guides on this site; in short, you will need a program to run torrents, a torrent file of the game you want, and time to download a copy. You shouldn't have to pay for the torrent of the program.

    Use aggregating search engines like Torrentz.eu to search multiple torrent libraries at the same time. Select the files that have the most positive reviews, to make sure you don't download something you don't want

  • Download games directly. There are many disreputable websites that offer free PSP game downloads. Some of these, like PSPMania, are practically scam sites; others like https://www.pspshare.org/ are legitimate. Keep searching until you find the link for a download (typically from another file hosting site like uploaded.net or mega.co.nz), then click to activate it.

    Generally speaking, the appropriate file extension for a PSP game is.iso. Make sure the file you downloaded is an ISO file, or contains one (in the case of ZIP and RAR archives). Do not run or download.exe files

  

  Step 3. Copy games from computer to PSP

  Enter USB mode (as described above) and connect the PSP to your computer. Copy the game files from your computer to the PSP memory to load them on your system.

  

  Step 4. Play

  Play your new games by going to the "Games" menu and selecting the game you want to start from your memory card.