Hacking firmware 6.x

[Arscis]

Hi, I'm new to gbatemp

so i recently purchased a 3dsxl (this is my first ds console) along with pokemon y, intending to later purchase an r4 card to at least play 2ds games. prior to making my purchase, I was under the impression that playing 3ds roms was still impossible and I purchased the Pokemon XY special edition Blue 3DSXL.

Basically, I have a few questions as to what I am able to do with it in regards to r4 cards (i assume that's the general term). I'd like to reiterate that I have no experience with r4 cards and the like.

As of right now, are there flashcarts for the 3ds that will play DS games on firmware 6.3? If there are, will they be playable even after a firmware update, or will I have to stay at 6.3 to play them until support is given?

What about 3ds games? I've read the home page of the gateway 3ds site but I felt like I was receiving mixed answers.

From the site: "Since the product is now released and soon in Nintendo's hands, anything above 6.2.0 will most likely never be compatible"

"Ohh and MH4 is finally working [;-)] XY is officially WIP. Porting our patches from 4.5 to 6.3 is time-consuming and tedious so please bare with us for a little while longer"
what does "porting our patches" mean? do i take it to mean that they are working on gateway3ds compatibility for current firmwares? Is it only for up to 6.2, or the newer firmwares as well?

Finally, assuming that 3ds roms are eventually supported on 6.x, will i be able to play newer, legitimate copies of games on outdated firmware? can you guys on firmware 4.5 play newer 3ds games?

I'm more curious about DS-game support because i purchased my 3ds assuming i would have to purchase 3ds games. Is ROM support for DS games secure?

 

[Filous]

ok, for DS flashcards, they work on newer versions, and if there is a new version, you have to wait for the team to actually release a patch for the firmware to make the flashcard work on the new firmware (hint : supercard team usually are the first one to post updates)

For 3ds games, as for now, only 4.1 to 4.5 firmwares can be exploited to make 3ds roms work on it, actually only gateway 3DS and 2 clones of it are available, but there would normally be a lot of competition in the near future.

There are other hackers that are mostly working on 4.1-4.5 (the most popular one for now is smealum)

and about updating firmware, gateway 3ds said that in their new 2.0 version, it will be possible to emulate 6.3 and even new to come firmwares on the sd card, and you can come back to 4.5 firmware whenever you want. that means that when you want to play eshop games or bought games, you'd be able to emulate 6.3 etc to play them, and when you finish come back to 4.5 to play on your gateway.


smealum anounced that he basically did the same thing, and is able to run unsigned codes on 3ds (means possibility to run homebrews, cheats, screenshots etc...)and also thanks to his work it will be easier (still hard tho) to find 6.3 exploits.

 

[lambstone]

Hi, I'm new to gbatemp

so i recently purchased a 3dsxl (this is my first ds console) along with pokemon y, intending to later purchase an r4 card to at least play 2ds games

There are no 2DS games. Only DS games.

As of right now, are there flashcarts for the 3ds that will play DS games on firmware 6.3? If there are, will they be playable even after a firmware update, or will I have to stay at 6.3 to play them until support is given?

Yes. Google Supercard. It seems to be the kart that is frequently updated by the team. Always stay at current supported FW until they have updated the kart's software.

"Ohh and MH4 is finally working [;-)] XY is officially WIP. Porting our patches from 4.5 to 6.3 is time-consuming and tedious so please bare with us for a little while longer"
what does "porting our patches" mean? do i take it to mean that they are working on gateway3ds compatibility for current firmwares? Is it only for up to 6.2, or the newer firmwares as well?

It doesn't mean anything. Porting our patches could mean they are trying to make the the "emulated" 6.3 work or it could mean they are trying to port the exploits/patches to the 6.3 firmware. The latter is highly unlikely.

They are being deliberately ambiguous in an attempt to beguile 3DS owners into thinking they are actively working on 6.x support. There has been no indications as of yet. The longer they drag on with regards to 6.x support, the more likely it seems they are bluffing.

I'm more curious about DS-game support because i purchased my 3ds assuming i would have to purchase 3ds games. Is ROM support for DS games secure?

DS rom support is pretty much fixed. The supercard which i mentioned earlier has frequent updates. That being said, it is possible that Nintendo might permanently block DS flash karts but this should be unlikely given the history of supercard updates.

 

[Arscis]

I see. Thanks for the terse answers.

A few technical follow-ups questions:

Does DS game support require exploits like 3DS games do? What does nintendo do that requires a new flashcart firmware?
Will using Pokemon Y's online features require me to keep up-to-date with 3ds firmwares? (i'm not sure if this question can be answered since it's still fairly new).

 

[phanteon]

in other words. you have to get a compatible card in order to play DS games in you 3dsXL in version 6.x. BTW the generic term is Flashcart (R4 is one brand that develops flashcarts)

there are tons of clones of R4, supercard and more flarcarts, so be careful when you buy one.
my 3ds is in version 4.5 (in order to play with gateway ) so i have the DS flashcart that comes with the gateway 3DS and one more called R4 SDHC dual core new. the both work with DS roms.

 

[blobox]

If ds flashcards did require 3ds exploit to work, i wouldnt have said that it works on 6.3.1. Im not sure but i thimk the 3ds acts with ds games the same way a normal ds would. Not the same story for 3ds games.
I have no idea how nintendo patches flashcards, neither do i know how teams fix them, but what is sure is it has nothing to do with 3ds structure.
Pokemon x/y requires 6.1 for online features iicr. This is why gateway team are working on the firmwire emulation.

 

[Chaldron]

Well, I'll try to sum up everything into one post.

Most flashcards right now can play DS games only on FW 6.x. The best ones I think are the R4i Card (r4ids.cn - find retailers here.) and the DS Two (You can find them at realhotstuff.com, search around)

Here's the breakdown:

R4i Gold 3DS

-Cheaper
-Supports most/all games
-Software updates have been patchy though, sometimes the team will release a new card instead of fix older ones for more monetary gain.
-Overall a solid choice if you can accept a possible "no-more-updates" policy

DS Two

-More expensive, usually double that of R4i
-Supports all games so far I think
-Has features like GBA Emulator and others
-Hasn't needed a hardware revision since DSi 1.4.1, the team has released updates for all firmwares. Also, if you update the system without updating the card it is still possible to update the card with your system.

All in all, I would get the DS Two if you can spare the cash. If not, your 2nd best bet is the R4i.

DS Flashcards don't require exploits. After downloading the proper software onto the card, you can simply just pop it into the system and it will work.

I'm not sure about Pokemon's online. I think as long as you are on 6.1 or above it should be okay, but please don't take my word for it here. Wait for someone to actually test it, eg play Pokemon online with firmware anything below 6.3

Again, none of these DS cards will every play 3DS Roms, so I wouldn't be deceived/be hopeful for an update.

Hope I cleared most of the things up for you.

 

[Arscis]

Hope I cleared most of the things up for you.

yeah everything i wanted answered has been done so with as much detail i could hope for

thanks to everyone for all the straightforward answers.