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3DS Flash Cart Now Shipping: Nintendo's nightmare coming true

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$h@d0w

Junior Member
Update

Gateway 3DS has released version 1.1 of it's software allowing region free and bypassing firmware requirements on newer games.

Update

Lesiroth said:
dX8hU86.jpg
Click to expand...

Update
Long term homebrew plan announced:
As a development team we are especially excited to announce the start of our long term dream to enable 3DS home-brew. We have long awaited the time to be able to start working on opening up your 3DS to the amazing home-brew talent. This is not a trivial feat to accomplish and it will take time ! In the meanwhile we will of course continue to enhance the GW3DS with rich features.
Click to expand...

Update
New video released, firmware update bypass and region free demonstrated.
GaussTek said:
So... apparently, they are now working on region-free?!

http://youtu.be/dPFO0ZDzBfA

(^ They show a Jap game running on an European 3DS XL at 0:49)
Click to expand...

Update
Gateway 3DS documentation has been released. Among the files is a quick start guide which shows their exploit vector:
LE2TQ7n.png
Click to expand...
It seems their grey cartridge is actually a standard DS flash cartridge available elsewhere as they have referred to it in the files as an R4i. This means that anyone with a DS flash cartridge similar to this can likely run the initial exploit.

Also revealed is a required step that has to be run on every boot. Gateway has pledged to support firmwares below 6.2 but warns that anything above is likely to be blocked by Nintendo.

Original Post
Retailers have received their Gateway 3DS units and have started shipping. Within the following days, an official user guide and instructional video will be released.
an unnamed retailer said:
ikRmBKT0UjDjv.jpg
Click to expand...

The Gateway 3DS solution is a set of two cartridges that is supported on 3DS systems running firmware versions 4.1 to 4.5. First, the user runs the standard DS cartridge (pictured in grey) to run an exploit on their 3DS system, this installer makes a permanent firmware change to the 3DS. The user can then load 3DS games from the other 3DS cartridge (pictured here in white).

It is hoped that the grey exploit cartridge can be used to gain region free operation on a 3DS system in the future as it can currently be run on all firmware versions (the status of today's update is unknown). The 3DS cartridge however, can only be used on firmware 4.1 to 4.5 for now as it depends on the exploit.

Previous announcement thread
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=571825
 
N

Nibel

Member
And why should this work with future releases which can be patched just like the OS/firmware itself

I think the age of modchips and flashcarts and bla is about to end very soon
 
S

ShinKagato

Neo Member
Waste of money really, all it takes is for Nintendo to update their firmware again and it no longer works. I guess you could turn off updates but that eliminates some of the 3DS's more unique features.
 
K

Kandrick

GAF's Ed McMahon
Is it that one that only runs/hold one game at a time ? And without any form of homebrew ?

So it also make changes to your firmware uh ? Pretty useless device all things considered.
 
K

Kouriozan

Member
This is the one that can only contains one rom, and if you want to switch game you lose your saves, right? And it's still not region free.
Not worth it IMO.
EDIT : just saw that it won't work with Animal Crossing. Seems to be easy for Nintendo to block it already.
 
S

Shahadan

Member
So after the daily Nintendo threads we know have daily "Nintendo's Nightmare" threads. Can't wait for the next upgrade!

This thing is almost useless, and they won't Gateway with it. Won't buy.
 
Q

qq more

Member
ShinKagato said:
Waste of money really, all it takes is for Nintendo to update their firmware again and it no longer works. I guess you could turn off updates but that eliminates some of the 3DS's more unique features.
Click to expand...

Also prevents you from getting anything on eShop.
 
V

vareon

Member
Nintendo's constant updates might not stop this entirely, but it sure provided a major nuisance. Isn't this the one that didn't have any use other than simply putting a single game?
 
R

rjc571

Banned
The fact that they managed to find an exploit and install new firmware is encouraging, at least. Maybe it'll lead to region free some day.
 
$

$h@d0w

Junior Member
Kandrick said:
Is it that one that only runs/hold one game at a time ? And without any form of homebrew ?

So it also make changes to your firmware uh ? Pretty useless device all things considered.
Click to expand...

Yes, it's pretty limited and useless I agree.

However, by mass producing these devices I think Gateway hope to spark interest in the homebrew/region hacking scene or make a quick buck off pirates wanting free games.
 
A

axisofweevils

Holy crap! Today's real megaton is that more than two people can have the same first name.
I wouldn't be surprised if yesterday's update already blocked it lol.
 
M

MikeE21286

Member
ShinKagato said:
Waste of money really, all it takes is for Nintendo to update their firmware again and it no longer works. I guess you could turn off updates but that eliminates some of the 3DS's more unique features.
Click to expand...


If some games require higher firmware that will also kill it.

Seems like a short lived product here...
 
K

Kandrick

GAF's Ed McMahon
Robin64 said:
This was blocked already with March 25th's 5.0.0-11 firmware.
Click to expand...

So it only works with firmwares that are older than that March update haha? It will be funny seeing people buy them to play "free" games only to have it not even work on their updated 3DS.
 
$

$h@d0w

Junior Member
rjc571 said:
The fact that they managed to find an exploit and install new firmware is encouraging, at least. Maybe it'll lead to region free some day.
Click to expand...

Totally possible, I believe both cartridges have micro SD slots and are upgradable.
 
A

Alpha_eX

Member
I'd only want this for region free gaming. If only Nintendo flipped the region lock variable, most people getting this wouldn't have need for it.
 
S

ShinKagato

Neo Member
qq more said:
Also prevents you from getting anything on eShop.
Click to expand...

I guess if you are going to the extreme of turning off updates you are probably the kind of user that has a way of downloading the eshop games too lol. I like my fully functional 3DS too much to compromise.
 
S

Salih

Member
ShinKagato said:
Waste of money really, all it takes is for Nintendo to update their firmware again and it no longer works.
Click to expand...

nah. right now there are hundreds of 3DS games already available and with that flash cart also playable. just don't go online with your 3DS anymore and pirate all available 3DS games.
If a new update blocks the flash cart, you just buy another newer version of that flash cart in like a year or two and you have again a pool of games to pirate from.

also a lot of people can do without online and eshop and such.
 
$

$h@d0w

Junior Member
Alistair Roo said:
Sensationalist thread title? Sensationalist thread title.
Click to expand...

I could have made another post called Sony's nightmare, but it just became totally redundant as the game required to exploit the Vita was removed from PSN. It's impossible to replicate now.

This 3DS exploit is in the wild now and preorders are shipping, hence the reason for the title.

It would be a nightmare for Nintendo if this proliferates with cheap Chinese clones working on the latest firmware. They need to stop it - now.
 
E

Erethian

Member
rjc571 said:
The fact that they managed to find an exploit and install new firmware is encouraging, at least. Maybe it'll lead to region free some day.
Click to expand...

Unless something has changed between the release of the product and the original announcement, there didn't seem to be any actual firmware hack. Rather they found a way to reverse engineer a legitimate cart, albeit with some serious limitations. Especially around the way it handles save files.
 
K

Kandrick

GAF's Ed McMahon
Salih said:
nah. right now there are hundreds of 3DS games already available and with that flash cart also playable. just don't go online with your 3DS anymore and pirate all available 3DS games.
If a new update blocks the flash cart, you just buy another newer version of that flash cart in like a year or two and you have again a pool of games to pirate from.

also a lot of people can do without online and eshop and such.
Click to expand...

But it looks like it doesn't even work with already old firmwares. Says that it works with version 4.1 to 4.5, but it seems we are way past that since months.
 
M

Man God

Non-Canon Member
Salih said:
nah. right now there are hundreds of 3DS games already available and with that flash cart also playable. just don't go online with your 3DS anymore and pirate all available 3DS games.
If a new update blocks the flash cart, you just buy another newer version of that flash cart in like a year or two and you have again a pool of games to pirate from.

also a lot of people can do without online and eshop and such.
Click to expand...

you don't get it; each card can only hold one game and one save for a game. No one is going to use this thing for piracy.
 
C

Chairmanchuck

Member
I just want one that will allow me to get rid of the regionlock. I will be in China for the next few years and I would still wanna play Games I can buy there...
 
N

nofi

Member
$h@d0w said:
I could have made another post called Sony's nightmare, but it just became totally redundant as the game required to exploit the Vita was removed from PSN. It's impossible to replicate now.

This 3DS exploit is in the wild now, hence the reason for the title.

It would be a nightmare for Nintendo if this proliferates with cheap Chinese clones working on the latest firmware. They need to stop it - now.
Click to expand...

that's entirely the point. hardly a 'nightmare'.
 
J

Jaded Alyx

Member
Salih said:
nah. right now there are hundreds of 3DS games already available and with that flash cart also playable. just don't go online with your 3DS anymore and pirate all available 3DS games.
If a new update blocks the flash cart, you just buy another newer version of that flash cart in like a year or two and you have again a pool of games to pirate from.

also a lot of people can do without online and eshop and such.
Click to expand...

So yeh, a waste of money.
 
V

VOOK

We don't know why he keeps buying PAL, either.
Oh well gotta get that pirate scum money while you can.
 
E

Erethian

Member
Midou said:
Yeah this is one of those things where the inconvenience is so high, I would not have used it anyways.
Click to expand...

Well it seems they provided a remedy for the save file issue. But you also have to have a micro SD card per game. I suppose you could use one and keep switching files in and out of it through a PC or the like, though.
 
C

cacildo

Member
Dont think this one will "catch". Its too hard.

The DS flashcarts caught on because it was easy as hell. You only needed to put the games on the mini SD card and that´s it.

But with the 3ds more online oriented aproach, it will be a lot harder to boot up the latest releases....
 
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