Windows 95 on a PlayStation 2: A Partial Success — This Modded Console Couldn’t Run Doom

Alright, so here’s the thing. Jace, who runs this YouTube channel MetraByte—which is all about, let’s call it “quirky tech adventures”—decides one day to try and mash together Windows 95 and a PlayStation 2. I mean, why not, right? Who thinks of this stuff? Crazy thing is, they kinda get somewhere with it. Not all the way, but hey, they try.

I suppose some folks might say, “PS2 should totally handle Windows 95, what with it being a bit newer and all,” but nah, it’s not so easy. This ain’t plug and play. You’ve got this console built to run games, and you’re trying to get it to run an old, fiddly operating system built on DOS. Picture trying to plug a square peg into a round hole—while wearing mittens!

Jace’s setup was something else. They plugged a game controller with a QWERTY keypad into a modded PS2, then added a USB stick and a fat PS2 hard drive. I mean, you almost expect a bolt of lightning to strike, right? They packed the USB stick with a bunch of files: DOS emulators and a whole Windows 95 install image. Like preparing for some techie “Doomsday” or something.

Funny thing, Jace keeps switching gears. At first, they try DOSBox, a program mostly for old games (feels retro, doesn’t it?). But after lots of attempts—it’s like trying to convince a cat to take a bath—nothing’s working. So they give Bochs a shot, which is slower but maybe, just maybe, better for this job.

Watching Jace struggle was painful. You almost feel for them; it’s like waiting for a snail to cross the road. Layer over layer of “this didn’t work” and “nope, that didn’t either.” But finally, the Windows 95 setup screen shines like some vintage beacon on the PS2 screen. Seriously, it was a hero’s journey to get there.

Altogether, it took over 14 hours. Imagine that! They finally got to click around in Paint, of all things, though I wonder — what’s the fun without a mouse? And as for Doom95? Nope, nada. But hey, hats off for the effort, right? At least it was fun seeing someone go on this wild ride.