If PS5 is Region Free, why do I still have limits?
In the past, consoles were limited by firmware. Those were other times, and there were technologies such as PAL in Europe and NTSC in the United States that really meant a physical barrier when running the video game on your living room console.
Globalization gradually eased these impediments. The PlayStation 5 was advertised almost from the beginning as a console region free. This goes to say that Sony cannot prevent that you insert into your console a game physically purchased in Japan and whose title is only distributed in the country of the rising sun.
And we return to the initial problem. The limitation does not exist as to physical games, but yes it happens on the PlayStation Store. To comply with its agreements, Sony limits us access to applications that are not available in our home country. Otherwise, the company would expose itself to all kinds of demands from its employees.
How to change the console Region
This first step will prepare your PS5 to be able to bypass the regional blockade from Sony. The process is as follows and you will have it in just a few minutes:
- Turn on your PlayStation and select “New User”. Follow the steps to create a user new and accept the EULA.
- When asked if you already have a PSN account, select «Create an account”.
- Mark the region from the Store what do you want to use. Tip: If you select a country where you do not speak the language at all, such as Japan, prepare your mobile with the Google Translate app in camera mode.
- Fill in the data related to the language, date of birth and other user information that is requested.
- When asked about your location, search in Google Maps for a reference place in that city to place street, number and postal code. Normally, a hotel is chosen so as not to cause inconvenience to any individual.
- Finish creating the profile establishing an ID and accepting the privacy policy.
When you open PlayStation Store, you can have access to the catalog from that country. You will be able to download apps, but you will not be able to buy video games yet.
How to use a VPN to buy games not available for PS5
As you already know, setting limits on the Internet is more absurd than setting doors to the field. Enjoy PlayStation 5 games that are not available in your region (or that have not yet been released in your country) It is not Really complicated far from illegal. But obviously Sony has to prevent everyone from doing it.
Once you have carried out the step that we have explained in the previous section, you will need to do using a VPN to be able to bypass the blockade.
What is VPN and why do I need it? Is there any free?
Its acronym stands for “virtual private network.” This increasingly popular technology serves to camouflage position from which we connect to the network. We will use our Internet connection to connect to a server that will publicly give us your IP. You will not have to leave your home in Spain, but the whole world will see that you are sailing from Boston, to mention an example.
Most VPN services are very cheap and we can contract them only for the time that we are going to use them. You should avoid the free ones, as they are especially slow and are usually highly questioned by how they manage the user privacy.
Prerequisites before buying from another PS Store
Payment method
In the purest style «Among us», The PlayStation Store payment gateway will detect you as an imposter if you use a credit or debit card from your country to pay at the foreign store. You will need a much more subtle medium, so if you don’t want to complicate your life too much, PayPal will be your best ally. The secret will be kept and you can even pay with your card through said platform.
However, there are more ways to dodge. You can buy one gift card or gift card the PS Store you want to use. There are a large number of stores on the Internet that sell this type of media prepaid. It is as simple as acquiring the card of the country we have chosen and redeem the code on the PS Store.
Using the VPN
Once we are clear about the procedure, we will have to connect our PS5 console to the VPN. To do this, you will have to follow these steps:
- Go to the Settings of your PS5 and enter Network Settings.
- Select the connection method you are using (LAN or Wi-Fi) and go to Advanced Settings.
- Place your IP adress in automatic”. Under “Host Name”, check “Do not specify”.
- Now you can establish a DNS so Handbook. Click and type the address that your VPN provider has given you.
- Set the MTU in Automatic.
- Accept the changes and the console will automatically connect to the Internet through the VPN. Once the procedure is done, restart the PS5.
There is another simpler way if you have unlimited data on your mobile. Install the VPN service on your smartphone and create a network hotspot with the. Connect the PS5 to the Wi-Fi network that your mobile is creating and you will have quickly carried out the procedure. Of course, remember that the download you make will be done through the data connection of your mobile terminal, so this last method is not recommended if you are going to download very heavy games or if you have a fee of few gigs.
Buying process and warnings about DLC compatibility
If you have completed all the steps correctly, you will now have Total freedom to move around any PS Store. You will be able to download applications not available in your country and buy video games that don’t exist at your local store, always paying with PayPal or with a redeemable card or code from the PS Store of the country in question.
Finally, it is very important that you know that despite all this procedure, DLC will still have a limitation. In order to install a DLC to a game that you have already downloaded on your console, you will have to use the same account with which the title was originally purchased and it must come from the same region. If you combine a Spanish game with an American DLC to save a few euros, rest assured that it will not work and you will lose your money.
