With the launch of optical media in game consoles such as the Sony PlayStation 1. The console could be hacked with a use of a simple modchip - an unauthorized hardware modification that was soldered directly onto the motherboard. This was done to circumvent security features. While the original goal was for piracy and backups, as modchips evolved, so did their use cases. Everything from Region Free, homebrew, emulators, makeshift development kits and more were soon possible. In today’s video we look at the earliest modchips and how they shaped the video game landscape.