Documentation

Everything you need to set up PStooEZ and start using cheats in PCSX2.

Installation

Download the latest .exe installer from the download page. Run it and follow the prompts.

PStooEZ installs to %LocalAppData%\PStooEZ and creates a start menu shortcut. No admin rights required.

PCSX2 setup

PStooEZ connects to PCSX2 via the DebugServer (port 21512). You need to enable it:

1. Open PCSX2
2. Go to Settings → Advanced
3. Enable "Enable DebugServer"
4. Restart PCSX2

PCSX2 v1.7.0 or newer is required. The nightly build is recommended.

First run

Launch PStooEZ. It will automatically scan for PCSX2 running on your machine. Once found:

• The connection indicator in the bottom-left turns green
• Your currently running game is detected
• Cheat codes for that game load automatically from the database

Cheats tab

The main view. Cheats are grouped by category (Health, Money, Ammo, etc). Click any cheat to expand its detail panel on the right.

Toggle cheats

Click the power button to enable or disable a cheat. For slider cheats, drag the slider to set the value, then toggle on.

Add custom controls

In the detail panel, click + Add control to add a slider or quick-set button to any cheat — even toggle-only cheats from the database.

Memory tracker

Watch live values from any PS2 memory address. Go to Memory → Watch tab.

• Enter an address in hex (e.g. 0x001A7A00) and click Watch
• The value updates every 500ms
• Click the value to edit and write it back to memory
• Click the lock icon to freeze a value (writes continuously)
• Right-click any row for more options including Create Cheat

Memory scanner

Find unknown addresses. Go to Memory → Diff tab (or the left panel in AI Hunt).

1. Click First scan to snapshot all PS2 RAM (~32MB)
2. Change a value in-game (spend bolts, take damage, etc)
3. Choose a scan mode and click Scan
4. Repeat until candidates narrow to 1-5
5. Click Watch to monitor candidates live

Scan modes

• Changed — any value that changed (broad)
• Unchanged — eliminate flickering/timer addresses
• Increased / Decreased — directional change
• Increased by X / Decreased by X — exact delta (fastest)
• Exact value — find addresses currently equal to a number

AI Hunt

AI Hunt walks you through finding any address with step-by-step guidance. The scanner is on the left, the AI chat is on the right.

You'll need an Anthropic API key to use the AI chat. Each conversation costs fractions of a cent.

Creating custom cheats

Once you've found an address in the Memory Tracker:

1. Right-click the address row → Create cheat from this address
2. Enter a name, pick a category, choose Toggle or Slider
3. For Slider: set Min, Max, and default value
4. Click Save cheat

The cheat appears instantly in the Cheats tab and is saved to your game's .pnach file so it persists after restart.

Speedrun timer

Go to the Timer page. Set up splits, then use the controls to start/pause/split. Times are saved between sessions.

Account & sync

Create a free account at pstooez.com/signup to enable friends, notifications, and avatar sync between the app and website.

Signing in from the app

Go to Settings → Account and enter your email and password. Once signed in your avatar syncs automatically — upload a photo from the sidebar (bottom-left profile button) and it appears on the website too.

License key

Your Classified license key is visible at pstooez.com/account → Overview. Copy it and paste it into Settings → Classified in the app to activate your tier.

Friends & sharing

The Friends page lets you connect with other PStooEZ users and share cheats directly.

• Search for players by username and send friend requests
• Once friends, click Share next to their name to send the currently selected cheat or your full pnach file
• Received items appear in your Inbox tab — click Get to add them to your game

Notifications

The bell icon in the top-right of the app shows real-time notifications: friend requests, accepted requests, and shared items. Unread items are highlighted with a blue dot. Friend requests can be accepted or declined inline without leaving the notification panel.

PS2 Debugger (Classified)

The Debugger page gives you full CPU-level control over a running PS2 game via the DebugServer connection. Available under the Debugger nav item — Classified subscribers only.

The Debugger has 7 tools accessible via tabs:

• Control — dashboard overview with Pause/Step/Resume execution bar
• Breakpoints — pause execution when the CPU reaches an address
• Watchpoints — break or log when memory is read or written
• Pattern Search — scan RAM for a byte sequence with wildcard support
• Registers — live EE CPU register viewer and expression evaluator
• Stack — call stack frames and EE thread list
• Disasm — MIPS disassembly at any address

Breakpoints

A breakpoint pauses PS2 execution the moment the CPU's program counter reaches a specific address. Useful for finding where a game reads or executes a known routine.

1. Go to Debugger → Breakpoints
2. Enter the address in hex (e.g. 0x001A7A00)
3. Optionally add a label and a condition expression (e.g. v0 == 100)
4. Click Set

When PCSX2 hits the breakpoint, execution pauses. Switch to the Registers tab to see all CPU registers, or Disasm to disassemble code around the current PC.

Watchpoints

A watchpoint monitors a memory address and triggers when it is read, written, or changed — without you having to know in advance which code accesses it. This is the fastest way to find what function modifies a value.

1. Find the address you want to watch (e.g. from the Memory Tracker)
2. Go to Debugger → Watchpoints
3. Enter the address, choose the type (write is most common), and action (break or log)
4. Play the game until the value changes — execution pauses automatically
5. Switch to Registers to see the CPU state, or Stack for the call chain

pnach format

PStooEZ reads and writes standard PCSX2 .pnach files stored in %LocalAppData%\PStooEZ\cheats\. Each file is named by game CRC (e.g. 8520CA18.pnach).

[Cheat name]
patch=1,EE,001A7A00,word,05F5E0FF

User-created cheats are appended to the bottom of the file under a // ── User Created Cheats ── section.

Anthropic API key

AI Hunt requires an Anthropic API key for the chat functionality. To get one:

1. Go to console.anthropic.com
2. Create an account and add a small credit (~$5 covers months of use)
3. Create an API key
4. Paste it in PStooEZ → Settings → AI Hunt → Anthropic API Key

Troubleshooting

PStooEZ can't connect to PCSX2

• Make sure DebugServer is enabled in PCSX2 Settings → Advanced
• Restart PCSX2 after enabling DebugServer
• Check Windows Firewall isn't blocking port 21512
• Try running both as administrator

Cheats not applying

• Encrypted cheats (shown in grey) can't be applied via Pine — use PCSX2's built-in cheat menu instead
• Some cheats only work in specific game regions — check the CRC matches

Game not detected

• The game must be running and past the BIOS screen
• PStooEZ polls every 4 seconds — wait a moment after loading a game