Switch 2 Jailbreak, PS5 Xbox Cloud Client and SkyCraft: Separating AI Claims from Facts

The three projects are different in kind. They rely on different prerequisites and carry different risks, so this piece takes them one at a time.

ns2jb: a tethered Switch 2 exploit​

Security researcher Sammy Hajhamid, who goes by pepsipu, published ns2jb. He believes it is the first software-only jailbreak for Switch 2 systems on firmware 23.0.1. His own write-up, dated October 21, says it runs arbitrary native code with the privileges of ordinary system modules and of the built-in fs module. He lists homebrew, game reverse engineering and modding, and save-file backups as possible uses. He also lists access to most peripherals through MMIO.

How the chain works​

According to the researcher's post and to reporting by Mad Robot, the entry point is a bug in SmileBASIC 4. This is a Switch 1 programming app that runs on the Switch 2 through backward compatibility.

• The app was already known to be exploitable, and its file handling was familiar ground.
• The first stage is a 32-bit integer overflow in the interpreter's REMOVE command. The position-plus-count check wraps to a negative number, so memory just before an array gets pulled into it.
• That gives arbitrary read/write inside the app. From there the chain pivots to fs through a buffer overflow in path normalization.
• A logic flaw then lets the exploit swap the executable behind the system loader's file handle after the signature checks have passed. The result is native code running with the permissions of any module whose signed metadata the attacker can copy.

The signature checks themselves were not cracked. The weakness was a timing gap between checking and use. That is a familiar bug class to anyone who has chased TOCTOU issues on Windows.

What the AI actually did​

The AI did real work, but it did not do everything on its own.

• Hajhamid built a harness that let Codex work on the hardware. He connected JetKVM to both the original Switch and the Switch 2. That let the agent send controller inputs and read the screen. A Bluetooth light-switch pusher restarted the console after crashes.
• Codex also tried the Switch 2's WebKit browser. That route was blocked by hardware protections such as pointer authentication.
• Mad Robot reports that the hunt for the SmileBASIC bug and the later exploit stages leaned heavily on Codex. Hajhamid says the jailbreak itself took about two weeks of work. The Mario Kart World demo, with Cinnamoroll and Peter Griffin added, took about a day once the exploit existed.
• The widely shared caption about telling Codex to jailbreak the console and make no mistakes was a joke. Hajhamid says an attempt to get userland code execution through a goal prompt did not succeed.

The README also says Codex packaged the release and that he has not read the distributed package. Anyone tempted to run it should note that.

The limits that matter​

• It is tethered. The jailbroken state disappears when the console restarts, so users must run the process again.
• It installs no custom firmware. Mad Robot reports it needs SmileBASIC 4.4.9 and is timing-sensitive. In Hajhamid's own October 21 test it worked on the third fresh boot.
• Nintendo can pull an eShop app from sale. The bugs could also be fixed in a system update. The company has not announced a response to ns2jb. Nintendo's firmware 23.0.1 notes predate the exploit.

Hajhamid says he also reported a separate Civilization VII chat bug to 2K. He is withholding its details, which is routine coordinated disclosure.

PSBox Cloud Gaming: Xbox streaming on a jailbroken PS5​

The second example touches Microsoft's own platform. Developer RafaelNGP's open-source project is described in its repository as an Xbox Cloud Gaming client for jailbroken consoles. It offers a catalog browser and 1080p60 streaming, with the DualSense working as an Xbox controller. The README also lists Xbox Remote Play for the user's own console, rumble and adaptive-trigger support, and GPU upscaling to 4K with AMD FSR 1 or Anime4K. That is upscaling, not native 4K rendering.

What it does and doesn't do​

• The PS5 does not run Xbox games locally. The games run on Microsoft's servers and stream down, as they do on a PC or phone.
• The app needs a homebrew-enabled PS5 that can run directory-style apps from /data/homebrew, for example through ShadowMountPlus. The README reports working results on PS5 firmware 13.00 and 13.60, and asks users to file issues if it fails. Those are reported results, not guarantees.
• The README gives a manual install path. You copy the PPSA99810 folder to /data/homebrew/ and wait for the loader to add the icon. You then sign in by entering a code at Microsoft's device-link page on a phone or PC. This applies only to an already jailbroken console.
• The project describes itself as unofficial and not affiliated with Microsoft or Sony. It warns that Microsoft may change or block the services it relies on at any time.
• Microsoft's guidance lists supported devices such as Windows PCs, Macs, phones, TVs, handhelds and Xbox consoles. It recommends at least 20 Mbps for stable streaming. The PS5 is not on that list.

The subscription fine print​

Microsoft's December 2025 guide says cloud gaming is included in Game Pass Essential, Premium and Ultimate. The PSBox README adds a newer detail: since November 2026, Xbox limits monthly cloud play. The caps are 15 hours on Ultimate, 10 on Premium and 5 on Essential. That figure comes from the project's own documentation. I could not confirm it against a Microsoft page, so verify it in your account before relying on it.

What we can't confirm about Claude​

How Hajhamid used Codex is documented in his own write-up. The claim that Anthropic's Claude helped build PSBox is not. The repository I reviewed shows an .agents folder and an AGENTS.md file, which hint at agent-assisted development. It does not say what Claude contributed. Treat the Claude attribution as reported by How-To Geek and the developer, not as independently established.

SkyCraft: two games, one screen​

The third example is SkyCraft, an early, experimental Windows project. Its README describes a way to play Skyrim as a Minecraft-style player. Minecraft's movement, inventory, block placing and breaking, and combat run inside Skyrim's world.

The design is more interesting than a texture swap.

• Neither game is rewritten. Minecraft runs hidden in the background with its own game logic.
• Skyrim runs its world, NPCs, quests and saves and draws everything on screen.
• A Skyrim SKSE plugin and a Minecraft Fabric mod talk to each other through shared memory.
• Skyrim's collision data is fed into Minecraft's physics.

Requirements and risks include:

• Skyrim Special Edition on the Anniversary Edition runtime (1.6.x/1.7.x), SKSE64 and Address Library.
• A Microsoft account that owns Minecraft: Java Edition.
• About 3 GB of extra RAM and roughly 1.5 GB of disk space.
• A warning to back up your saves.
• Known conflicts with other camera mods, and a heavy scripted Skyrim opening that can leave you stuck.

The README calls it a fan project with no affiliation to Mojang, Microsoft, Bethesda or ZeniMax. It does not say how much AI was involved. How-To Geek says developers are using coding agents for projects like this. Verified evidence for SkyCraft in particular is limited to the project's own documentation. How-To Geek also notes that experienced modders criticize many AI-assisted creations as superficial or buggy.

So, can manufacturers "not stop it"?​

The headline overreaches. The evidence supports a narrower claim: AI coding agents can cut the repetitive labor of vulnerability research and integration work, especially when a human builds the test rig and steers.

• Only one of the three projects, ns2jb, is a security break, and it is tethered and patchable.
• PSBox needs a console that was already jailbroken. It adds a cross-platform client but does not itself break the PS5.
• SkyCraft is a PC mod with no console angle.
• Nintendo's remedies are real. It can delist an app or patch the bugs. Hajhamid himself speculates that future consoles might hide code behind encrypted blobs that userspace can never read. That is his opinion about a possible direction, not a Nintendo plan.

For Windows and Xbox readers, the practical points are modest:

1. Xbox Cloud Gaming runs through Microsoft's servers and a Game Pass plan. Clients Microsoft hasn't blessed can break whenever Microsoft changes its interfaces.
2. Sign-in tokens on homebrew devices are sensitive. PSBox stores its sign-in in account.json under /data/psbox and warns users never to share it.
3. If you try SkyCraft, back up your Skyrim saves first and use a clean mod list.
4. AI-written packages deserve the same scrutiny as any untrusted code. Hajhamid says he never read the package Codex built.

AI is speeding up the grunt work, and that will keep happening. Defenders get the same tools. It will be a while before anyone can say who benefits more.