Hacking About CFW and japanese 3DS

[Kyushu]

Hello.

I'm about to travel to Japan and thinking in buying a 3DS there. Problem is, I don't speak/like Japanese and because of the region lock, the Japanese 3DS has only Japanese as language.

My question is: can a CFW change the system language? And/or do a region swap? If so, there are any collateral effects? (like problems accessing eShop).

Thank you

 

[Quantumcat]

Hello.

I'm about to travel to Japan and thinking in buying a 3DS there. Problem is, I don't speak/like Japanese and because of the region lock, the Japanese 3DS has only Japanese as language.

My question is: can a CFW change the system language? And/or do a region swap? If so, there are any collateral effects? (like problems accessing eShop).

Thank you

Yes, you can region change. You'll be better off getting one with a higher firmware (you can downgrade if you have to), and avoiding the launch-day 8.1 consoles as they are a pain to set up for CFW/impossible.

 

[Bu2d85]

Hello.

I'm about to travel to Japan and thinking in buying a 3DS there. Problem is, I don't speak/like Japanese and because of the region lock, the Japanese 3DS has only Japanese as language.

My question is: can a CFW change the system language? And/or do a region swap? If so, there are any collateral effects? (like problems accessing eShop).

Thank you

If you region change a N3DS you will not easily be able to connect to the eshop on your new region. On an O3DS it's easier to get the eshop working but still complicated.

I have a JPN N3DS with a US region changed emunand and have still not been able to get the eshop to work.

 

[Quantumcat]

If you region change a N3DS you will not easily be able to connect to the eshop on your new region. On an O3DS it's easier to get the eshop working but still complicated.

I have a JPN N3DS with a US region changed emunand and have still not been able to get the eshop to work.

@yifan_lu has created a way to get eShop working on region-changed consoles. (Look up Cosmo3DS)

 

[Halvorsen]

Has anyone actually got eShop working with the CFW? I know it is supposed to, but results are different.

 

[Quantumcat]

Has anyone actually got eShop working with the CFW? I know it is supposed to, but results are different.

I am hanging out for @Ronhero's guide coming to 'that' ISO site. I recently got a purple 3DS and am looking forward to changing it to PAL (stupid Nintendo for making purple consoles exclusive to North America and making the MM console tarnished bronze instead of purple which is the signature colour of the game!!!! Purple is my favourite colour if you couldn't tell)

 

[Halvorsen]

I am hanging out for @Ronhero's guide coming to 'that' ISO site. I recently got a purple 3DS and am looking forward to changing it to PAL (stupid Nintendo for making purple consoles exclusive to North America and making the MM console tarnished bronze instead of purple which is the signature colour of the game!!!! Purple is my favourite colour if you couldn't tell)

Yeeeee, it should come out in the next few days.
Idk, a purple new 3DS would look weird. Personally I'm still aimlessly hoping for Nintendo to release the Smash n3DS XL out of Japan. It is love and life.

 

[Quantumcat]

Yeeeee, it should come out in the next few days.
Idk, a purple new 3DS would look weird. Personally I'm still aimlessly hoping for Nintendo to release the Smash n3DS XL out of Japan. It is love and life.

That would be cool! I wish there would be third party/Chinese replacement shells. I don't understand why there's loads for DS and absolutely zilch for 3DS.

 

[yifan_lu]

I am hanging out for @Ronhero's guide coming to 'that' ISO site. I recently got a purple 3DS and am looking forward to changing it to PAL (stupid Nintendo for making purple consoles exclusive to North America and making the MM console tarnished bronze instead of purple which is the signature colour of the game!!!! Purple is my favourite colour if you couldn't tell)

I'm very skeptical that such a guide exists. Region change eshop access only works because of a bug/vulnerability on Nintendo's servers (something they can easily fix). That's what my complicated instructions depend on. I would be curious to see how you can mange to trick nintendo's servers otherwise.

 

[Bu2d85]

@yifan_lu has created a way to get eShop working on region-changed consoles. (Look up Cosmo3DS)

That "fix" is what I was talking about. There are still a lot of things you have to do before it will work. You should probably read the updated OP in that thread.

 

[BloodRose]

Hello.

I'm about to travel to Japan and thinking in buying a 3DS there. Problem is, I don't speak/like Japanese and because of the region lock, the Japanese 3DS has only Japanese as language.

My question is: can a CFW change the system language? And/or do a region swap? If so, there are any collateral effects? (like problems accessing eShop).

Thank you

CFW can change the language but the stock nand only has Japanese. It's not a problem for me and others because I can read it but you are going to need to navigate through Japanese menus when setting the console up, doing the downgrade, nand unlinking etc. You can follow online instructions or use photo translate to find out where things are and what any errors mean but I would still be very careful if I were you.

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

Yes, you can region change. You'll be better off getting one with a higher firmware (you can downgrade if you have to), and avoiding the launch-day 8.1 consoles as they are a pain to set up for CFW/impossible.

If he doesn't speak Japanese then the chances of him being able to negotiate what model he gets are pretty slim IMHO

My other advice, unless you're specifically looking for a special limited edition model or really want a bnib one then buy used. You can save a lot and used consoles in Japan are normally immaculate anyway. Plus it means they have been tested at least twice (the big chain stores in Japan do extensive tests before reselling any used kit) and the official Nintendo warranty isn't worth shit once that console leaves Japan.

 

[Halvorsen]

If he doesn't speak Japanese then the chances of him being able to negotiate what model he gets are pretty slim IMHO

Well, the box.

 

[BloodRose]

Well, the box.

Do they have different packaging? If he's in Japan then buying a copy of OOT would be a sound investment while he's there anyway since it's cheap and is a lot more reliable than using any kind of browser exploit. For the sake of 2000 yen, it's not worth the hassle IMHO and finding a copy once you have left Japan will be a lot harder.

 

[Kyushu]

Thanks everyone for the answers

I think I'll buy it then, more likely a used one. Which model, it will depend of what I'll find in the stores, but I would prefer any model of N3DS.

Also, I asked about eShop because I heard it could be hard to access, but I really don't have plans using it or playing online. (at least for now, maybe I regret it later)

Again, thanks for the replies.

 

[BloodRose]

Thanks everyone for the answers

I think I'll buy it then, more likely a used one. Which model, it will depend of what I'll find in the stores, but I would prefer any model of N3DS.

Also, I asked about eShop because I heard it could be hard to access, but I really don't have plans using it or playing online. (at least for now, maybe I regret it later)

Again, thanks for the replies.

You can play online with US or EU CIAs regardless of what region your console is set to. From an online perspective, once you have cfw region is only important if you want to buy stuff.

There are tons of stores that sell preowned 3DS's in Akihabara in Tokyo and DenDen Town in Osaka. Also most major city areas and even train stations around Tokyo have branches of chain stores like Game Traders and Bic Camera that sell them. It will not be difficult to find one. Expect to pay between ¥12000 and ¥15000 for a used but like new N3DSLL or more if you want a special edition one. N3DS shouldn't cost you anymore than ¥10000-¥11000 used.

Visiting foreigners can buy things like that tax free too so don't forget to ask as that will save you 8% on the price. There's a minimum spend for tax free though so if you want any games or accessories with it then it's best to buy everything in one go.

I'm not kidding, when it comes to used games and consoles, Japan is this planet's closest thing to paradise.

 

[Kyushu]

You can play online with US or EU CIAs regardless of what region your console is set to. From an online perspective, once you have cfw region is only important if you want to buy stuff.

There are tons of stores that sell preowned 3DS's in Akihabara in Tokyo and DenDen Town in Osaka. Also most major city areas and even train stations around Tokyo have branches of chain stores like Game Traders and Bic Camera that sell them. It will not be difficult to find one. Expect to pay between ¥12000 and ¥15000 for a used but like new N3DSLL or more if you want a special edition one. N3DS shouldn't cost you anymore than ¥10000-¥11000 used.

Visiting foreigners can buy things like that tax free too so don't forget to ask as that will save you 8% on the price. There's a minimum spend for tax free though so if you want any games or accessories with it then it's best to buy everything in one go.

I'm not kidding, when it comes to used games and consoles, Japan is this planet's closest thing to paradise.

Wow, thanks for the infos ¥10000 is about $ 320 on my country's currency, a N3DS here is about $ 1000, so it will be a nice deal.

Since you seem to know a few things about used games and consoles in Japan: is it possible to find US games there? I'm thinking about buying one old game or two just for collection purposes (PS1/PS2/DC stuff), because I don't like playing in Japanese. But if I could find PS3/Wii U games there it would be nice, because some games here can be really expensive, especially for the Wii U.

 

[gkoelho]

Hello.

I'm about to travel to Japan and thinking in buying a 3DS there. Problem is, I don't speak/like Japanese and because of the region lock, the Japanese 3DS has only Japanese as language.

My question is: can a CFW change the system language? And/or do a region swap? If so, there are any collateral effects? (like problems accessing eShop).

Thank you

There is a way now u can have everything working on region-changed N3DS thanks to Cosmos3DS and 3DS injector, however in order for this to work u need an USA o3ds.

If u cant have yet, so the only thing u will not be able to do is access the eShop

 

[BloodRose]

Wow, thanks for the infos ¥10000 is about $ 320 on my country's currency, a N3DS here is about $ 1000, so it will be a nice deal.

Since you seem to know a few things about used games and consoles in Japan: is it possible to find US games there? I'm thinking about buying one old game or two just for collection purposes (PS1/PS2/DC stuff), because I don't like playing in Japanese. But if I could find PS3/Wii U games there it would be nice, because some games here can be really expensive, especially for the Wii U.

Yes absolutely but you would need to go to the more dedicated areas for that e.g. Akihabara or DenDen Town. Most visitors to Tokyo with even a passing interest in games, tech, anime etc usually tend to spend some time in Akihabara anyway though. In Akihabara US and EU games aren't difficult to find but they tend to cost a bit more than the JP versions for obvious reasons.

3DS consoles are cheaper in Japan than they are in the west and coming from Brazil it should save you a small fortune.

 

[joex11]

Wow, thanks for the infos ¥10000 is about $ 320 on my country's currency, a N3DS here is about $ 1000, so it will be a nice deal.

Since you seem to know a few things about used games and consoles in Japan: is it possible to find US games there? I'm thinking about buying one old game or two just for collection purposes (PS1/PS2/DC stuff), because I don't like playing in Japanese. But if I could find PS3/Wii U games there it would be nice, because some games here can be really expensive, especially for the Wii U.

look for any bookoff store in japan. i bought both my n3ds there for around 10800 yen. and a 3.15 ofw final fantasy XIII ps3 for 13800 yen.
how I miss Yokohama...

 

[BloodRose]

look for any bookoff store in japan. i bought both my n3ds there for around 10800 yen. and a 3.15 ofw final fantasy XIII ps3 for 13800 yen.
how I miss Yokohama...

They're great too and there is a huge one in the centre of Yokohama now but not all their stores are in the government tax free program unfortunately IIRC since they mostly cater towards Japanese residents.

Some of the big ones in Kanto are though and the condition of their 2nd hand consoles is usually immaculate.

https://www.bookoff.co.jp/inbound/