The last major undocumented component of the original PlayStation 2 has been mapped. A developer known as DiscoStarslayer, with a collaborator named Libby, pulled firmware from the SPC970 MechaCon security chip that handles disc authorization and most security on early "fat" PS2s. The work was announced on Bluesky, and the files are now on GitHub alongside 22 firmware images covering consoles from 2000 to 2002 and the Namco System 246 and 256 arcade boards that used the same chip.
The chip stores its code in mask ROM, so it cannot be patched. The team exploited how it writes to a small EEPROM, making an internal counter underflow and overflowing a buffer to redirect a write task to read from ROM instead. Repeating this roughly 1,000 times yields a full 256KB image. The process risks the console's EEPROM, so the tool backs it up and restores it, but the original dumper warns it may leave a PS2 "unable to operate normally, or require hardware-level repair."
These early machines were among the last unread parts of the PS2 after the 2003 "Dragon" MechaCon was dumped in 2021. That dump led to MechaPwn, an exploit that makes later PS2s region-free and able to read backup discs. The new dumps could enable a similar unlock for early consoles, though contributor uyjulian says it won't come as fast because the SPC970 can't be updated at all.
The images also expose code behind Sony's MagicGate encryption for memory cards and executables, which uyjulian says will eventually feed "full-system low-level emulation." PCSX2 currently reimplements MechaCon's commands in C++ rather than running the chip's code. For the retro gaming market, the practical payoff is likely to be in modchips, more accurate emulation, and preservation of arcade hardware.