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PlayStation emulator pulled from Android Market, dev suggests Xperia Play to blame

by Randy Nelson on Mar 30th 2011 9:30PM

With the launch of Sony Ericsson's Android-powered "PlayStation Phone," the Xperia Play, supposedly right around the corner, Google has pulled the plug on a prominent PSOne emulator for its mobile OS. According to its author, "zodttd," PSX4Droid was removed from the Android Market without warning due to a "Content Policy violation," though he suspects it has more to do with Sony's imminent smart phone offering. "Sony's Xperia Play must be coming soon," tweeted the dev, adding that, "The timing is suspicious with no remedy."

As for alternatives to the Android Market, PSX4Droid's maker says he's a "bit worried to go to Amazon App Store" since "people who own the Market version would have to buy it again to update." Meanwhile, another PSOne emulator for Android, fpse, remains available on the Market. We've contacted Sony for its response to the app's removal and are awaiting comment.

Via: Pocket Gamer
Source: @zodttd

Tags: android, android-market, emulator, google, mobile, Playstation-Phone, PSone, scea, sony, sony-ericsson, xperia-play

Reader Comments (28)

If he wants to do it for "free" like most emulators in existence he still can. You can always install a "third party" apk file can't you? Or am I confused?

Also in related news rom gripper and rom gripper + seem to have disappeared today, maybe because of the sony roms?

I'm sure this won't be the last we hear of emulation of Sony consoles on the Xperia...

And first?

@Scotty96

Rom gripper has been gone for a couple of days now. But the emulators are still up, as far as Snesoid etc. go.

And really? You had to do the "first" thing? Such a shame since your comment has content.

@Scotty96

"You can always install a "third party" apk file can't you?"

Yep.

@BlazeKing Unless your carrier in the US is AT&T. Then, you need to find a way around them locking you out.

@MystileArmor

I'll never do it again, since that was the first time I was ever first :)

@Scotty96 @BlazeKing

"You can always install a "third party" apk file can't you?" Actually, some carriers and manufacturers, most notably AT&T, disallow sideloading.

@MowDownJoe

Then root if you must. Root, install recovery, backup nand to save your carrier rom, install custom rom, install apk.

No no no, we want you to do the exact opposite of that guys.

It WOULD be awesome if not only did they respond, but respond honestly with a "well DUH."

Hey anyone know if we can link our phone to our psn account? I'd love to play ff VII on my evo but rather not pay for a new copy.

@dudes113

Tell you what, the one thing that would really have made Xperia Play a 100% killer buy is proper PSN integration, with PSP titles and all. Too bad it wasn't meant to be.

@dudes113 Previously purchased content won't transfer to your phone, you must buy it again.

"Why was my technically illegal emulator pulled from the market"

@sammo21
The emulator wasn't illegal, it were the .isos and roms.

@sammo21
As far as know to make a emu work you need parts of the firmware of the original PSOne to make it work, so yes, it's illegal.

@eNriqeu
I know that the common PS1 emulators for the PC use this method as it is the easiest way to have a basis for your emulation, however there are various emulators for different platforms that do not require anything from the original console and are built from the ground up. I can't comment on the specific emulator in question here, but it is possible it to was built from scratch to avoid legalities.

@The Only Girl
This guy's emulator was using the BIOS file from the Playstation (illegal) and was providing direct downloads for official games.

I'm so glad I'm on T-Mobile. I can sideload any .apk I want.
AT&T can go suck it!

Wait... crap.

Yeah, we noticed that Rom Gripper was gone too.

@Schlecht

If you need ROM Gripper to find ROMs you fail at the internet

@Theneverendingsoda

I know, huh? What gives them the right to protect their OWN assets? Acting like a real company and trying to make money is SO full of fail!

@Theneverendingsoda
Let me guess...you'll "never buy another Sony product again"?

Why don't you just complete the outfit and move over to Ars Technica's comment sections of those Sony v. Hotz articles? Your irrational "SONY IS FOREVAR EEEEEVIL!!" mentality would let you fit in that community like a glove.

Gotta protect them 20+ year old games only a small group of enthusiasts care about, made by companies that don't exist anymore

@wcarnation Yeaaah except that people ARE still buying these 20+ year old games off of virtual console, psn and XBox live. So Sony is within their rights in protecting their assets. Playstation games are licensed and NOT abandonware.

@wcarnation

Sony's gaming division just celebrated a 15th birthday a year or two back if I remember correctly. It's more like 15 year old games, most of which are currently being offered for sale through legal channels (PSN Store).

It'd be one thing if his emulator didn't contain the bios and instead required you to provide them on your own, but if it includes the bios he's technically not only violating the law, but also making a profit off it at the same time. Sony would probably be pretty successful if they decided to pursue a more serious legal action.

So when can I actually buy an Xperia Play??

No emulators...no xperia play success imo

You had to get the bios yourself, if you actually downloaded and tested the emulator you should know that already, as a message shows during first attempts at running the emulator.

It is not illegal.

Breaking News

PlayStation emulator pulled from Android Market, dev suggests Xperia Play to blame

Reader Comments (28)

Posted: Mar 30th 2011 9:34PM Scotty96 said

Posted: Mar 30th 2011 9:48PM MystileArmor said

Posted: Mar 30th 2011 9:50PM BlazeKing said

Posted: Mar 30th 2011 9:55PM MowDownJoe said

Posted: Mar 30th 2011 9:59PM Scotty96 said

Posted: Mar 30th 2011 10:05PM mbarriault said

Posted: Mar 31st 2011 2:09PM BlazeKing said

Posted: Mar 30th 2011 9:34PM jph89 said

Posted: Mar 30th 2011 9:46PM Cavall said

Posted: Mar 30th 2011 9:54PM dudes113 said

Posted: Mar 30th 2011 10:04PM Ryan P said

Posted: Mar 30th 2011 10:23PM Flapjackal said

Posted: Mar 30th 2011 10:49PM sammo21 said

Posted: Mar 31st 2011 12:02AM The Only Girl said

Posted: Mar 31st 2011 1:52AM eNriqeu said

Posted: Mar 31st 2011 1:31PM wormania said

Posted: Mar 31st 2011 7:28PM soatari said

Posted: Mar 30th 2011 10:55PM Nova Hands said

Posted: Mar 30th 2011 11:12PM Schlecht said

Posted: Apr 1st 2011 7:23PM BrokenTriforce said

Posted: Mar 31st 2011 12:38AM KuztomX said

Posted: Mar 31st 2011 12:42AM PointlessPuppies said

Posted: Mar 31st 2011 1:36AM wcarnation said

Posted: Mar 31st 2011 2:15AM KuztomX said

Posted: Mar 31st 2011 2:38AM sonicspike41 said

Posted: Mar 31st 2011 9:12AM Elranzer said

Posted: Mar 31st 2011 10:00AM australiasia said

Posted: Mar 31st 2011 9:39PM The Only Girl said

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