Reverse-engineered PlayStation 1 motherboard runs original chips without emulation

[Daniel Sims]

Why it matters: Preserving retro games and hardware becomes increasingly difficult as the years pass and essential components grow rarer. Reverse engineering allows modders and repair shops to create substitutes that function identically to the original parts. Now, a new project aims to bring that level of flexibility to the original PlayStation.

Italian engineer Lorentio Brodesco recently became the first person to successfully reverse-engineer the original PlayStation's motherboard, creating a custom printed circuit board that supports the 1994 console's chips. The achievement marks the first step in an ambitious project aimed at expanding options for customizing and repairing the device that launched Sony's dominant video game business three decades ago.

Brodesco's "nsOne" is a custom PCB onto which users can plug the PS1's original CPU, GPU, SPU, RAM, oscillators, regulators, and other components to run the console's software without an official motherboard. PS1 game support is fully native, requiring neither traditional software emulation nor FPGA-based hardware emulation.

The electronics enthusiast spent several months performing delicate tasks such as sanding the motherboard, tracing every connection, identifying its architecture, and designing a new PCB layout to support it. Brodesco eventually plans to produce detailed documentation for a mass-production model, which is expected to be ready soon. His Kickstarter campaign offers nsOne units starting at €35, with fully soldered boards starting at €80.

Engineering replacement parts for aging devices helps preserve them decades after the original manufacturer has ceased production or gone out of business. In a somewhat similar example, in 2023, a modder built a new Commodore 64 by combining reverse-engineered components with parts salvaged from non-functioning units.

However, Brodesco's project has a more intriguing ultimate goal: creating a portable PS1 that plays games natively. Handhelds that play PS1 games through official or unofficial means already exist, but they currently rely on either emulation or cannibalizing Sony's original motherboards.

Users who only own modern hardware can access PS1 games through Sony's PlayStation Plus subscription, which offers a handful of retro titles via software emulation. Compared to custom machines or FPGA devices, the primary advantage is that these emulated games can run at higher resolutions.

Meanwhile, modder Taki Udon is developing an FPGA-based console that promises cycle-accurate hardware emulation for games from the original PlayStation, Nintendo 64, Sega Saturn, and earlier consoles. A disc drive attachment will support original physical copies of games.

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Reverse-engineered PlayStation 1 motherboard runs original chips without emulation

 

[opckieran]

Sometimes I wonder if the console makers look at the insane efforts people go to in order to enjoy classic/retro games and realize the untapped potential for, say, selling a few million built fresh, but to original spec, retro consoles and accessories at ridiculous prices? It’s not like they’d have much R&D to do either, other than perhaps updating some hardware safety features or maybe adding modern interfaces (which the community has already done for the most part anyways).

Nintendo for example could EASILY sell 50K-150K of original N64 OEM controllers for $150-200 a pop TODAY. And they could also sell a “full featured” spec: integrated Rumble Pak, Wireless, Voice Command, Memory Card (just throw a Micro SD card slot in it ffs) and even, *gasp* a much more durable joystick even for an extra $50-150.

 

[Burty117]

Sometimes I wonder if the console makers look at the insane efforts people go to in order to enjoy classic/retro games and realize the untapped potential for, say, selling a few million built fresh, but to original spec, retro consoles and accessories at ridiculous prices? It’s not like they’d have much R&D to do either, other than perhaps updating some hardware safety features or maybe adding modern interfaces (which the community has already done for the most part anyways).

Nintendo for example could EASILY sell 50K-150K of original N64 OEM controllers for $150-200 a pop TODAY. And they could also sell a “full featured” spec: integrated Rumble Pak, Wireless, Voice Command, Memory Card (just throw a Micro SD card slot in it ffs) and even, *gasp* a much more durable joystick even for an extra $50-150.

I also wonder this regularly, Sony, Nintendo, even Microsoft with the original Xbox, the price premium can be there because they'll probably consider 50-150k units a year "low volume" but they would sell.

 

[opckieran]

I also wonder this regularly, Sony, Nintendo, even Microsoft with the original Xbox, the price premium can be there because they'll probably consider 50-150k units a year "low volume" but they would sell.

Yeah honestly I doubt there were even 150K of the SNES mini that sold, but that didn’t stop Nintendo from spending millions in extra R&D and in creating new molds to manufacture the console.

 

[NumberNine]

Brodesco's "nsOne" is a custom PCB onto which users can plug the PS1's original CPU, GPU, SPU, RAM, oscillators, regulators, and other components to run the console's software without an official motherboard.

Users won't be "plugging" anything into that board. They'll need to be skilled at very detailed soldering work. Simply getting the chips out of the old system will be quite the job, let alone manually affixing every pin to every pad on the new board.

Pluggable boards have sockets.
This one doesn't.

 

[Theinsanegamer]

Sometimes I wonder if the console makers look at the insane efforts people go to in order to enjoy classic/retro games and realize the untapped potential for, say, selling a few million built fresh, but to original spec, retro consoles and accessories at ridiculous prices? It’s not like they’d have much R&D to do either, other than perhaps updating some hardware safety features or maybe adding modern interfaces (which the community has already done for the most part anyways).

Nintendo for example could EASILY sell 50K-150K of original N64 OEM controllers for $150-200 a pop TODAY. And they could also sell a “full featured” spec: integrated Rumble Pak, Wireless, Voice Command, Memory Card (just throw a Micro SD card slot in it ffs) and even, *gasp* a much more durable joystick even for an extra $50-150.

Because what is being sold here still requires one to have access to an original PS1 and its processors. This isn’t an off the shelf game ready PS1.

For game companies to sell genuine new old consoles, they’d have to source hardware that often isn’t manufactured anymore.

Yeah honestly I doubt there were even 150K of the SNES mini that sold, but that didn’t stop Nintendo from spending millions in extra R&D and in creating new molds to manufacture the console.

The SNES mini was not an original SNES, it was a simple single board PC that was running the games via a programmable ASIC. That only takes you so far in recreating the original experience and once you get to 3d a simple ASIC isn’t enough anymore.

 

[opckieran]

Because what is being sold here still requires one to have access to an original PS1 and its processors. This isn’t an off the shelf game ready PS1.

For game companies to sell genuine new old consoles, they’d have to source hardware that often isn’t manufactured anymore.

I'm aware, I was referring to the efforts put in by the diehard fans. If anything there's no saying whether or not Sony could even purchase the original chips, how expensive they would be (could even be cheaper in some cases!), or how practical it would be for them to engineer their own workaround (and of course charge out the wazoo for it).

The SNES mini was not an original SNES, it was a simple single board PC that was running the games via a programmable ASIC. That only takes you so far in recreating the original experience and once you get to 3d a simple ASIC isn’t enough anymore.

Yes, so clearly they're willing to do some amount of R&D is my original point. And I'd argue that even if an ASIC weren't enough, there are plenty of $30 Chinese knock-off handhelds that have enough chops to run even PS1 games through emulation. But emulation isn't the original experience at the end of the day...

 

[occsdude]

Good for preservation purposes maybe, but I'd never actually purchase something like this. It's significantly cheaper and less hassle to just use quality emulators on PC to play old console games. Going the original hardware retrogaming route means you need an upscaler for your modern TV and quality cables, and part repairs and replacements over time (not to mention the upfront cost of an original console + mods).

 

[amghwk]

Duckstation is my favourite PSX emulator right now and plays all PSOne ISOs perfectly.

 

[Theinsanegamer]

I'm aware, I was referring to the efforts put in by the diehard fans. If anything there's no saying whether or not Sony could even purchase the original chips, how expensive they would be (could even be cheaper in some cases!), or how practical it would be for them to engineer their own workaround (and of course charge out the wazoo for it).

Your comment suggested that game companies should pay attention to the efforts of die hard fans and implied they should put efforts into limited re releases, I explained how that is technically infeasible. So you were either not aware or dont understand the point being made.

Yes, so clearly they're willing to do some amount of R&D is my original point. And I'd argue that even if an ASIC weren't enough, there are plenty of $30 Chinese knock-off handhelds that have enough chops to run even PS1 games through emulation. But emulation isn't the original experience at the end of the day...

Releasing a cheap Chinese knockoff box for emulation is not event he same sport as re creating the original console for resale. The R+D to load an emulator on a ASIC is BARELY the same sport, kids like a kids minor league baseball team being compared to pro MLB teams.