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3DS : hackers found a way to get rid of region-locking
- Thread starter L~A
- Start date
I'm assuming you don't have a PS3 already, or you just want to play on 3DS only. I've thought about importing the game but I don't know Japanese so I think it would interfere with my ability to enjoy the game. <_>;
I loved that the Wii was hacked I imported Disaster, Another Code R, Taiko, Captain Rainbow, TatsuCap (when it first came out back in 2008), Let's Tap, Fatal Frame 4 (played with a translation patch!). I still need to get Fatal Frame 2 from Europe.
SuperAngelo64
Banned
Great.
Now give us a new Jump Stars game.
Now give us a new Jump Stars game.
toddhunter
Member
SMT4 and I'm guessing Persona when it is released (or not released for PAL....)
But it isn't just about playing games, it is more about having the choice of where to buy them.
Unfortunately I'm well past that firmware version so I'll continue to save my money for another day.
sixteen-bit
Member
WHAAAT?
Nice that it'll be playable in English. Holy shit I wasn't expecting that at all.
Pity I have a NA system with up to date FW
Why would you do that?
Member
Yay, one step closer to Band Bros.! (except that my 3DS is updated but still...)
but still...)
Smiles and Cries
Member
Nintendo should just get rid of this bs Region Lock already
Immaculate
Banned
Why would you do that?(except that my 3DS is updated
Member
Today, 3:43PM
Saint Gregory
Member
I'm not sure why anyone would think that this would make Nintendo's region lock stance stronger. If anything they may realize it's not worth the risk of hackers continuing to try find ways around it which may lead to piracy.
I'm not saying that stuff like this will make them drop it but it definitely won't make them dig their heels in deeper. IIRC the whole reason for region lock in the first place was to give them the ability to have different digital stores for each region. I'm not sure if that's a security issue or some other technical issue but I'm sure there are better ways to deal with it than region locks.
I'm not saying that stuff like this will make them drop it but it definitely won't make them dig their heels in deeper. IIRC the whole reason for region lock in the first place was to give them the ability to have different digital stores for each region. I'm not sure if that's a security issue or some other technical issue but I'm sure there are better ways to deal with it than region locks.
Gunstar Ikari
Unconfirmed Member
I'd like Puyo Puyo Tetris on a handheld and buying a Vita or second 3DS is out of the question, so I hope that they get this working on current firmware sooner than later.
n64coder
Member
You can't go by copyright date. You have to look at serial numbers. There's a page over at gbatemp that gives tips on how to find older systems. In the US, this means looking for a blue/red/pink system with serial number beginning with SW12 or something like that.
Pancakes R Us
Member
Nintendo could have different region eShop locks without making the cartridges region locked. It's pathetic, especially as they more or less pioneered handheld region free in the first place with Gameboy due to the whole portable nature of the device. They just got too fucking greedy.
I came in here thinking I could finally play Dragon Quest VII on my 3DS, then was dissapointed. I just updated to the latest version.
I'm so sad. I just want to play Dragon Quest VII on my 3DS. Why is that so hard for Square-Enix and Nintendo? Just release the GAME OR GET RID OF REGION LOCKING.
Edit: Is there no way to downgrade and then upgrade again?
I'm so sad. I just want to play Dragon Quest VII on my 3DS. Why is that so hard for Square-Enix and Nintendo? Just release the GAME OR GET RID OF REGION LOCKING.
Edit: Is there no way to downgrade and then upgrade again?
spindashing
Banned
I do not know where else to ask this question, so I apologize if this question is a bit off-topic:
After this whole NNID integration onto the 3DS, is it not possible for me to change my "State" on the 3DS to evade NY state taxes when buying things from the eShop?
After this whole NNID integration onto the 3DS, is it not possible for me to change my "State" on the 3DS to evade NY state taxes when buying things from the eShop?
If you just updated then no.
Pancakes R Us
Member
Have you gone into the 3DS settings? I don't see why this would be locked given that people can move states a lot more easily than switching countries (I assume).
Immaculate
Banned
it still is. just go to settings in the eshop then change the zip code to a tax free state
i did it with senran kagura burst even though my debit cards billing zip code was different
Misterinenja
Member
Shit. No SMT IV for me then.
Because their situations are completely different. First of all, Europe is Sony land. Second, the 3ds is the successor to one of the most pirated systems ever in Europe. Publishers were dropping localisation efforts left an right because they couldn't make their money back. This isn't confirmed or anything but I wouldn't be surprised if this is an effort from Nintendo to reassure those publishers. I am sure NoE isn't big enough to localize everything.
how about having some patients than? We went over this a million times already: If they had released the game last year in europe, it would've been crushed by Zelda and Bravely default. There were also 3 similar games released in the same time frame: Etrian 4, Soul Hackers and Project X Zone. Releasing SMT4 in that environment would've just killed it's momentum and sales.
There is NO WAY they would pass on something as big as smt4 but release minor stuff like Soul Hackers. If it isn't announced/released by Summer 2014, then all the whining would be justifiable. Until than.. please don't. After the past several years, you'd think people would've more faith in NoE.
Yeah, I am sure that was the whole reason they hacked the ds...
by now we should all know that being able to play your legally bought games was never the final goal. It's always about piracy.
People will always hack. The people who do it like taking things apart and often have different motives. In the DS's case, region locking wasn't a problem. People still wanted homebrew and the ability to play backups.
Giving those people extra motives only pushes the hacking scene further.
Glittering Crux
Banned
I played E.X. Troopers before I knew Japanese. It's a really solid game and you don't need to know Japanese to play the main storyline though multiplayer/extra missions may be annoying.
Question: If you have an old enough firmware and run this exploit, is it safe to update the firmware afterwards and transfer everything to it from another 3DS and still have the region-lock broken and nothing else would be messed up? Or is it better safe to just use this region-lock-broken 3DS on its own?
Elaugaufein
Member
It looks to me like you need to use the EmuNAND function of the Gateway card to be able to update. I dunno if that allows system transfers to work but if you poke around the usual place for Nintendo hack information you should be able to find out.
You lose the exploit once you update. Can't transfer with EmuNAND, but should work if you know how to solder. Still hard to solder on regular 3DS, easier on XL.
Getting it to work on 5.1 to 6.3 is one thing, but on current firmware? Not without an entirely new exploit. And you wouldn't want your main 3DS stuck on old firmware anyways.
(I suggest getting the Vita)
Very happy to finally be able to run my copy of MapleStory 3DS (the only Korean exclusive, and it boots!)
If you have 4.5 you can use EmuNAND to get all the features of updates, but still keep the exploit.
flintstryker
Banned
I am still not sure why region locking is a thing in the first place..what exactly does it achieve?
It helps enforce price discrimination between regions, by preventing people from importing the cheaper foreign copies.
It allows Nintendo to sell you games at a more expensive price in your region compared to others that might be discounted.
Yup and that's the only reason it exists.
flintstryker
Banned
Well that makes sense and is also a shit load of fuck fairly sure the DS wasn't region locked and that did excellently
Correct. They started this with the DSi, and there weren't many DSi enhanced games made.
ZombiePlatypus
Member
I don't understand what the point of this is if it isn't gonna be impervious to firmware updates.
They need to either keep up with Nintendo or find some other way. It's not realistic to expect owners to never update their hardware.
They need to either keep up with Nintendo or find some other way. It's not realistic to expect owners to never update their hardware.
Japan really should not be part of the region restrictions. The major blocking factor of importing cheap game software into Japan is language, by far, and not price. Japan usually has ridiculous prices anyway.
It's incredibly hard to keep up, because any exploit they find can then be patched in the next firmware update and there is no guarantee they will find another exploit any time soon.
While Japan is a pretty big one, that's far from the only region with price discrimination. US 3DS games regularly sell for $20 less than the equivalent game in Europe. No language barrier for us UK folk either.
The current going price for MK7 for example is $60.
I'd kind of like to see the #NintendoRegionFree thing start up again, since this solution is still far from ideal.
We got EmuNAND, which allows you to keep your system at 4.5 and keep the exploit while using the features of new firmware. It takes some time to get the new launcher but so far they don't have any problem.
Yeah, NA and EU is a trickier situation, especially the business of localization and distribution being complicated as it is. If it weren't an all-or-nothing situation, it would be more ideal.
The current design of region designation is a super outdated hackery that hurts content creators. It really needs to be overhauled.
And the PSP wasn't a widely pirated system as well?
I think you overestimate the impact of SMTIV. I consider the game more as a niche title than a mainstream one and thus cannot understand why NoE would have to hold back such a "big" title (hell they released Pokemon and Zelda within 5 weeks and those are what one would call big titles). The US gets Bravely Default in February after having Zelda, Etrian Untold, Project X Zone, Rune Factory 4 and Pokemon in the similar time frame as the one you mentioned for Europe. Why can't SMT IV get a February Release as well then? In fact Nintendo hasn't even mentioned SMTIV since the localization announcement in April 2013.
I mean, until when do they want to hold back the game? It's not like the 3DS will suddenly have a drought of high quality or similar titles in Europe. In the meanwhile NISA already announced Etrian Untold for Europe and Rune Factory 4 and Conception II will come as well.
If SMTIV should finally come in Summer 2014 it would be 1 year after the US release which is nothing to be grateful for and would just show why region-locks should cease to exist. Just give us the fu**ing choice to enjoy the games whenever we want even if it requires importing from the US!
Well, the problem for me is that I've moved to a different region. I've had to resort to importing in order to play new 3ds games. Same deal with WiiU. It does actually deter me from supporting Nintendo sometimes actually. This would solve that problem for me if I hadn't updated.
Again, if you move you're SOL.