There are many reasons why you might want to edit a game save. Let’s say, for instance, that you’re struggling with a particular boss or level, and you want to be able to skip it. Alternatively, you may want to give yourself a huge amount of in-game resources, or even just dial back the clock a little and try a level you’ve already beaten if the game doesn’t allow you to freely move between levels.
With that said, then, you might be wondering whether or not it’s possible to edit your saves on PS5. After all, if there was a PS5 save editor, it would make your life a lot easier, right? The question, then, is this: has anyone created such a tool for Sony’s current-generation console? Let’s take a look at whether PS5 save game editing is possible, and what your next best option is if it turns out not to be.
The bad news
Let’s get the bad news out of the way first: there is currently no official way to edit your saves on PS5. This is for the same reason that you can’t move individual save files to USB devices; Sony encrypts save data in a certain way on PS5, which means that you don’t have control over your saves and can’t access them on the granular level needed to edit them individually. Unfortunately, this means there’s no actual PS5 save editor right now.
Efforts are likely underway to develop a PS5 save editor, but this would require jailbreaking the system software and gaining root-level access to functions that the standard PS5 UI doesn’t allow you to access. The PS5 has technically been jailbroken, but not to the degree that it’s actually possible to run your own code on it. Right now, it looks like you’re going to have to wait a little while for a PS5 save editor to hit the scene, and it might require more extensive work than its PS4 counterpart.
Why can’t you edit PS5 saves?
It all comes down to the way in which Sony handles save data on PS5. To put it simply, on PS4, it was possible to access individual saves and transfer them one-by-one to a USB stick. This enabled third-party software to read those saves and change their data, but the PS5 handles things a little differently. You can only back up your saves en masse to a USB drive or external storage device; you can’t choose to do so with individual saves.
That means no editor is able to individually pick out saves and understand how to interpret them in order to edit them. Some have suggested that Sony has implemented this protocol so as to push players towards a PlayStation Plus subscription, which allows them to individually upload saves to the cloud. We don’t want to speculate, but it would make sense if Sony wanted to reduce players’ options in order to make a PS Plus sub seem that little bit more enticing.
The good news
Even though you can’t edit PS5 save files, there is some good news: it is still technically possible to edit PS4 save files from your PS5 using a PS4 save editor like Save Wizard, so if you’re looking to play a PS4 game on PS5 and then edit your save within the PS5’s ecosystem, that is possible to do. As Save Wizard itself points out, PS5 will probably never be supported by the editor, but at least you can still edit your PS4 games!
The other good news is that the PS5 homebrew community is still very much active on Reddit and other internet forums. Work is continuing regarding jailbreaking the PS5 and rolling back its firmware to previous versions, so it could only be a matter of time until someone develops a PS5 save editor. There may not be one available right now, but in the future, who knows what the ingenious folks in the homebrew scene will come up with? No challenge is too great for them, after all!
How to edit PS4 saves on PS5
You may not be able to edit PS5 saves, but that shouldn’t stop you cracking open your PS4 saves and making the most of them. If you want to edit PS4 saves using an editor like the aforementioned Save Wizard (or any number of other PS4 save editors you might find online), then the most common method is to transfer the saves to a USB stick and use a PC to edit the files. Then, simply put the saves back on your console and you’re good to go.
Each editor naturally has its own way of doing things, so make sure that you read the instructions for your particular software carefully. The last thing you want to do is brick your save by accidentally making a modification that isn’t supported or that you didn’t intend to make. Treat your PS4 saves very carefully, because you never know when you might not be able to get them back!
Conclusion
It’s a shame, but at the time of writing, there’s no concrete way to edit your PS5 save files. If you see someone advertising a piece of software that purports to offer this functionality, be sure to examine it thoroughly, because there’s a good chance they’re trying to scam you. Only when the homebrew community puts its full support behind any potential save editor (and, of course, Sony confirms it’s not against the PlayStation terms of service) should you consider using one.
