Gaming Warning: Majora's Mask 3D deletes save data upon playing on different 3DS console

[Platinum Lucario]

Okay, it all started off with me playing The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D, and I just completed the Snowhead Temple. Then I saved and then on this very day when I started playing again... I noticed something very unusual when I decided to play it on my other Nintendo 3DS (since it's a retail game card).

The game said that the save file was corrupt and the game automatically erased it instantly. And all I did was play the game on a different console. I never took the game card out while saving, I never switched the power off while saving, the connectors were perfectly clean. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the game card physically.

So then... I tested it out to find out what was actually causing it. I thought it was some save point in the game, but then I found out what was the cause: it was none other than playing the game on a different 3DS. I tested it out again on a verity of different 3DS consoles, it came up with the same message every time I switched 3DS consoles after attempting to play it:

Don't believe me? Try it out for yourself, I'd suggest making a backup of your save data from the game card before doing this. But as a warning, please do not... I repeat, please do not play the game on a different Nintendo 3DS than the one you normally play it on.

And before you start saying that I was using some flash card (or ROM) during that time, no I'm not! And I'm certainly not even using SD card data with out-of-region .cia data either.

This is a bug in the game's saving system. Am I the very first person in the world to ever experience this? If there's anyone else that experienced this problem before me, feel free to say so.

And just so you know, this version of The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D I used is PAL (European) Version. And it's a retail game card of course. And also, all the 3DS consoles I tested them on were on 9.5.0-22E.

If there's anyone that experiences the same problem with Majora's Mask 3D in other region codes, please post about it here.

 

[WiiUBricker]

What firmwares are your two 3DS systems on? Most likely one uses 4.x encryption and the other 6.x

 

[Platinum Lucario]

They're all on 9.5.0-22E, which are the ones that I tested them on.

 

[The Real Jdbye]

They're all on 9.5.0-22E, which are the ones that I tested them on.

So none of them were ran in emuNAND classic mode?

 

[Platinum Lucario]

Tested one out in emuNAND classic mode, between 3DS consoles in which were both in emuNAND classic mode. I also tested them between the ones that were in sysNAND mode. The results? The save data gets corrupted on the ones that use emuNAND on different consoles, while the ones that use sysNAND won't get corrupted.

I can now say that this is a problem with Gateway's emuNAND function. It needs some more bug fixing to do.

 

[DjoeN]

Tested one out in emuNAND classic mode, between 3DS consoles in which were both in emuNAND classic mode. I also tested them between the ones that were in sysNAND mode. The results? The save data gets corrupted on the ones that use emuNAND on different consoles, while the ones that use sysNAND won't get corrupted.

I can now say that this is a problem with Gateway's emuNAND function. It needs some more bug fixing to do.

Yupz, same here, it gets corrupted if you switch to another 3ds both in emunand, when doing this between 2 3ds systems in sysnand, it doesn't.

 

[Platinum Lucario]

I did some more testing, and apparently... it seems to only be a problem between two 3DS that use emuNAND. But using one on emuNAND and then switching to one on sysNAND seems to have no problem at all and doesn't corrupt.

 

[WiiUBricker]

Then there is nothing to be seen here as this is expected behaviour. Thread title should be edited to avoid confusion.

 

[Fire_Slasher]

Oh well emuNAND problem then, it's a shame you lost so much progress tho but it was expected.

 

[_v3]

Lemme guess one 3ds' sysNAND version was 4.5 and one was 9.2, both emuNANDs were set to 9.5.

 

[Gettwobirdsstone]

So, if I buy the N3DS XL and play this on the new system, I lose my save. I'm not using any flash cards or ninjhax.

 

[Platinum Lucario]

Lemme guess one 3ds' sysNAND version was 4.5 and one was 9.2, both emuNANDs were set to 9.5.

Yep! That's exactly what the 3DS consoles that have emuNAND were on. One had sysNAND at 4.5 with emuNAND at 9.5, the other had sysNAND at 9.2 with emuNAND at 9.5.

 

[lemanuel]

Yep! That's exactly what the 3DS consoles that have emuNAND were on. One had sysNAND at 4.5 with emuNAND at 9.5, the other had sysNAND at 9.2 with emuNAND at 9.5.

It's only because how Classic Mode works. It uses your sysnand keys. So basically you were trying to make a save created with a specific encryption work in a console with a different key encryption. There's nothing new about it.

 

[VinsCool]

It's only because how Classic Mode works. It uses your sysnand keys. So basically you were trying to make a save created with a specific encryption work in a console with a different key encryption. There's nothing new about it.

So if both 3dses have 9.2 as sysnand we're safe, right?

 

[lemanuel]

So if both 3dses have 9.2 as sysnand we're safe, right?

Pretty much. They use the same key. Same thing if you use it in two 4.x 3DS for example.
That's why you lose your retail cartridge saves if you start them above 6.x and then downgrade to 4.x

 

[NAND0]

Dang. Good thing I only used my retail card to dump it lol. Sorry you lost your progress though

 

[Apache Thunder]

The main issue with this game is that it doesn't really ask you before erasing save data. With Pokemon games at least, you have to use a button combination to erase even after getting the save corrupt message. This game doesn't even have the courtesy to ask you before erasing it on it's own....

 

[Platinum Lucario]

It's only because how Classic Mode works. It uses your sysnand keys. So basically you were trying to make a save created with a specific encryption work in a console with a different key encryption. There's nothing new about it.

Ah, that makes sense. A game that uses 7.x encryption in which is played with a sysNAND save key from a 6.x or earlier will end up with a save file encrypted with a completely different key, due to the lack in a 7.x save key. Then if it's played on a different console, it'll use the other save crypto key in the sysNAND, making the game thinking the file is corrupt, due to decrypting with the wrong key and the game noticing it was still encrypted, automatically thinking it's corrupted.

 

[Apache Thunder]

Ah, that makes sense. A game that uses 7.x encryption in which is played with a sysNAND save key from a 6.x or earlier will end up with a save file encrypted with a completely different key, due to the lack in a 7.x save key. Then if it's played on a different console, it'll use the other save crypto key in the sysNAND, making the game thinking the file is corrupt, due to decrypting with the wrong key and the game noticing it was still encrypted, automatically thinking it's corrupted.

Actually new save encryption began in 6.x. So the save keys are actually 6.x. 7.2 encryption refers to ROM encryption keys which are not the same as save encryption keys. So being on 6.1 or higher I think is enough to use the current save keys. Seems people still get them mixed up and lump 7.x rom encryption with save encryption when the two are not quite the same.

 

[_v3]

Yep! That's exactly what the 3DS consoles that have emuNAND were on. One had sysNAND at 4.5 with emuNAND at 9.5, the other had sysNAND at 9.2 with emuNAND at 9.5.

It has been mentioned over and over that the encryption keys are based on the version of your sysNAND rather than emuNAND, it's nothing new, and I really mean nothing new, there's gotta be atleast 100 posts about this.