Remove the lock from PS5 games: how to solve the problem

 There is a problem that you will surely have encountered at least once during the life cycle of PlayStation 4: the famous padlock that does not allow you to play the titles on the console. The thing that doesn't console in the least is the fact that on PlayStation 5 the situation has remained essentially the same, with licensing problems that don't allow you to play your favorite titles. Fortunately, to know how to unlock PS5 games, you just need to know exactly how licenses work and have knowledge of certain functions integrated into the PlayStation 5 settings.

Let's take a closer look at the problem and what exactly needs to be done to remove the lock from our games!

First, let's try to understand why the padlock sometimes appears next to the games.

The padlock issue only occurs with video games that are owned in digital form (video games with physical discs are in fact exempt from this problem); this is a problem related to the concept of license to use.

Every time you turn on the console, it needs to certify that the account started has possession of the licenses for the use of the installed games; sometimes due to server problems or other flaws, these checks are not successful. This problem can also occur in the presence of multiple accounts on the same console: within the Sony Playstation ecosystem, in fact, it is possible to play digital video games redeemed by other accounts if you have logged in with the latter.

However, if you don't set your Playstation as the main console, these titles require a continuous check of the licenses every 15 minutes; in the event of a bankruptcy check, the above padlock appears.

Fortunately, the procedure for removing the padlock exists and is very simple to complete. Just start the procedure for restoring game licenses.

What is the purpose of restoring licenses?

This procedure, in addition to removing the aforementioned padlock, can be used to fix various problems such as: absence of a DLC despite the purchase, sudden and repeated crash of the game during execution, problems during live events within the experiences, or inability to make purchases in the internal marketplaces (which rely on the PlayStation store) of video games.

Restoring the licenses does not in any way affect the saved data present on the console but is limited to requesting confirmation again from the Sony servers for the ability to play the titles that are digitally owned.

How to remove lock on PS5 games: what to do?

PLEASE NOTE: this operation must be done with the game owner account which will be locked with the padlock, make sure you are connected to the internet in the meantime.

1. We open the Playstation 5 settings by pressing X after having brought the cursor to the gear symbol in the upper right corner of the screen
2. We enter the item Users and accounts
3. We interact with the item Other
4. Press the Restore Licenses button
5. We press the Reset button
6. We await the filling of the bar which will be visible on the screen
7. Let's go back to the main menu

What to do if the locks remain?

If this procedure does not lead to any results, there are still some ways to follow: it is possible to enable console sharing and offline playback on PS5.

Turn console sharing and offline playback on and off

The PS5 console sharing and offline play feature is automatically activated on the console that is used to access the PlayStation Network for the first time. If for some reason you want to activate this function again, you need to follow these steps:

1. We open the settings from the PlayStation 5 main menu
2. We enter users and accounts
3. Let's go to More
4. Let's go to Console Sharing and Offline Play
5. We select Enable