Hacking Try trading some save game files?

[Quicksilver88]

Guys,

I am wondering if we can trade some Gateway created .sav files. I would like to test the portability of the save game files. Then maybe someone could start a database like the r4 save dongle site has. This way people could upload and share save game files.

If you are interested PM me and I will provide an email to exchange files. I just got my gateway on Monday and have mostly been playing Castlevania LOS and DKCR which are both US versions and then I have been playing the ML Dream Team EU dump using the region/version spoof. I am not very far along so not much use in my files other than to confirm I can send you a file and you can see if it works for you.

BTW Castlevania if fricking awesome.....I didn't buy it because it was getting panned in so many reviews and after playing it I have no idea why (other than that it is not like the DS/GBA games). It is easily an 85 IMO having really nice grafx, great gothic soundtrack, and nice platform and combat mechanics. I love the old style CV games but just becaue this is not like them doesn't mean it isn't an excellent game.

Also I am hoping somone with a little coding ability could look into the r4 save dongle files and the gateway save files and see if there is a way to create a conversion program. This way we could use the library of already available saves on the r4 site and also use the dongle to backup our own saves and convert them to gateway.....

 

[logon]

For mario and luigi dream team
If anyone has a sav file at all (preferably around wakeport or Mount PajaMaja I'd really appreciate it).

 

[drfsupercenter]

Once I get my Gateway I'd be glad to try it out, certainly. I should have it by the end of this week.

 

[Quicksilver88]

Once I get my Gateway I'd be glad to try it out, certainly. I should have it by the end of this week.

Sounds good.....really loving the gateway. It really isn't as combursome as people feared. I mean you run the DS exploit once (unless you re-enter DS mode to play a DS game....which I so rarely do any more) and then all you have to do is the settings/proflie thing if you cold boot, which takes all of about 10 seconds. The saving has worked great for me so far as I have had no problems chaging games and continue from my last save spot.

 

[Wiki'd]

Sounds good.....really loving the gateway. It really isn't as combursome as people feared. I mean you run the DS exploit once (unless you re-enter DS mode to play a DS game....which I so rarely do any more) and then all you have to do is the settings/proflie thing if you cold boot, which takes all of about 10 seconds. The saving has worked great for me so far as I have had no problems chaging games and continue from my last save spot.

True, and especially when you compare it to the early DS flashcarts; this thing is super simple in comparison.

By the way, here's a Kingdom Hearts 3DS save data, could you try it to see if it works for you? Make sure you change the jpg to sav though.

 

[Quicksilver88]

True, and especially when you compare it to the early DS flashcarts; this thing is super simple in comparison.

By the way, here's a Kingdom Hearts 3DS save data, could you try it to see if it works for you? Make sure you change the jpg to sav though.

Ok will check it out today....BTW what region is the rom from USA or EU?

 

[Ris312]

Ok will check it out today....BTW what region is the rom from USA or EU?

The filename is the TitleID of the USA Rom, so its a USA save.

 

[Wiki'd]

^ Correct, it's the USA version.

You know, if this works, we should really try and make this topic more active as it can be quite beneficial. Personally, I am in dire need of Miracle Mask save data around chapter 6, never finished the game as I had to leave country and gave my original 3DS with bunch of games to my sis. So I still want to finish the game but I don't have the desire, nor the time to restart from beginning again.

 

[Rydian]

Filetrip.net is GBATemp's file host, saves can be uploaded there.

 

[Wiki'd]

Filetrip.net is GBATemp's file host, saves can be uploaded there.

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. For the time being though, to see if save data can be exchanged, the .jpg file name modification should do the trick!

 

[Vengenceonu]

If it works this could turn out to be useful.

 

[drfsupercenter]

...Really? I actually had no idea that FileTrip is GBATemp's file host. I always just thought it was a random uploading site.

 

[DragonSky]

Interesting. Then I could copy my mario 3d land save from other 3ds.
I'll test this when I got it.

 

[Quicksilver88]

True, and especially when you compare it to the early DS flashcarts; this thing is super simple in comparison.

By the way, here's a Kingdom Hearts 3DS save data, could you try it to see if it works for you? Make sure you change the jpg to sav though.

Ok the file worked as I started the game in the town with about 20min played. Now my next questions that I am trying to figure out are:

1. Does the gateway save encrypted or decrypted files...This is hard to know because we are both likely using the same venom scene dump which means if the file is enycrpted, as long as we are using the same cartridge image it wouldn't matter.

2. There is a command line Save Tool on the r4i dongle website that decrypts/encrypts save files and generates the encryption key file. I dowload a Kingdom Hearts save file that another user posted their and I am going to try to decrypt it and then encrypt it using the key generated from the file you sent me. If that works then that proves we can use posted r4 files they just need to be processed to work with the encryption key from the dump you are using.

3. I have a few eShop purchased 'retail' games on my 3DS XL (mario kart and prof layton)....I am wondering if the digital games store save game files in an exchangeable format with cartridges....if this is the case I should be able to take the game save file, decrypt it and re-encrypt with key from rom dump and load with gateway...that would be cool.

4. And if that works then my next thought would be.....could we use the Nintendo save game transfer tool that moves a save from cartridge to SD card, process it and then use that save game file with the gateaway (this ofcourse would require 2 3DS but I have two but haven't uptaded my XL past 5.1 yet which would be required to get the Nintendo save tool).

Ok I will do some more expirementing first with the r4 file and then see if I can take one of those digital game files and do anything with that. If we could be so lucky to get that to work then I would probably just go ahead and update my XL to 6.2 so I can test further.....My personal goal is to be able to get my save game files off my own retail carts one way or another so I can use them with gateway later if I ever want to revist a game I get rid of.

 

[drfsupercenter]

My Gateway should be here tomorrow so I can do some tests with you guys, but my initial thoughts would be:

1. Everything on the 3DS is encrypted, including the saves the Gateway uses. Meaning you can't edit the save yourself, but since everyone's using the same ROM dump, you are correct in your thinking there (or at least, it just encrypts it to a neutral cartridge ID, whatever the Gateway shows up as to the 3DS)

2. I would expect that to not work

3. No. Downloaded games have even more encryption than the cartridge versions, not less or even the same to my knowledge.

4. In theory, you could, but I'm pretty certain that when you use the save data transfer tool, it requires an Internet connection (stupid I know, but that's Nintendo for you) so you'd pretty much be SOL anyway, sadly.

 

[Quicksilver88]

A few notes of interest:


1. The gateway save file is using the game's serial ID.sav for its naming convention.....so if you use the 3ds dump database you can identify a .sav file if you are confused or unsure what it is.

2. It looks to me like the .sav file gets created right when a game is inserted for the first time and then the file gets written when you do the home/close sequence.

3. I don't think the the red catridge save eeprom gets flushed and reloaded unless you change games. I say this because I changed the .sav file without changing the game and it still retained the same save data.

It is getting late and I have to hit the sack....but I did find a GUI version of the old save de/encrypt tool which makes life easier....It stopped being updated in Aug 2011 so not sure if it is still aplicable for current games or not....the r4i tool also has a decrypt/encrypt function but it won't even work to decrypt the Kingom Hearts file I pulled from their website, let alone the one the gateway created......yet the file save file is confirmed as working?

For one thing I wish someone that has played with the r4 save dongle and traded files with another user would speak up and let us know what process they used to decrypt/encrypt the save files and if it worked and is it always needed or do some games not bother with it?

In theory the gateway could just ignore the save encryption hashes as you can make rebug firmware on ps3 do that and it will then load another systems save files (which does screw trophies)...I doubt at this point it is doing that though as it would take more coding in the launcher and right now it looks like they are mostly just emulating a 'retail' cartridge as closely as possible.

 

[drfsupercenter]

Alright, so I got my Gateway, put the ROM of Kingdom Hearts on there and made a save/saved at first point. Confirmed that it does work, as I turned the system off, put it back in Gateway mode and played the cart again.

But when I put the MicroSD in my computer, it says it needs to be formatted (probably because I had to put the raw ROM on the SD card, without a filesystem)

So... how do I get the .sav?

--EDIT--

Oh, it's on the 3DS' SD card. That's really weird. Let me try your save now.

--EDIT 2--

Looks like it worked. I see your save, 20 minutes in, in Traverse Town, on Proud Mode. I did mine on beginner mode, so I can tell them apart. Cool beans. Here's a link to my save if you're curious:
http://filetrip.net/dl?JKhFuwDdlu

 

[KazoWAR]

Has anyone tested this on any games that you can't swap saves with using a save backup tool like the R4i save dongle?

 

[drfsupercenter]

Give me an example and I'll try it.

As far as i know, the save dongles *do* still let you back saves up as long as you restore them to your own cartridge. You just can't decrypt them anymore and use them on other carts.

 

[Quicksilver88]

Give me an example and I'll try it.

As far as i know, the save dongles *do* still let you back saves up as long as you restore them to your own cartridge. You just can't decrypt them anymore and use them on other carts.

Thats what I wondered about so why do people continue to posts saves on the r4i forum when you can't decrypt them and re-encrypt them any longer? It seems like someone should get busy (maybe r4 team considering they have a product to sell that would benefit from decrypt/encrypt) and see if they can figure it out as save game hashing is not a new thing and their are apps for x360 and ps3 that do it just fine.