Much to the dismay of pirates everywhere, It appears that Nintendo is finally rolling out the infrastructure changes to their Content Delivery Network to put an end to apps like freeShop, Villain3DS, TikDevil, and FunKeyCIA, among others.

For those of you that missed out, in the recent 11.8.0-41 update for the Nintendo 3DS, several changes to how the NIM service handles downloading Nintendo 3DS software from the eShop were made. The main change involves sending an encrypted copy of the user's game ticket to their server for authentication. If the server finds the ticket is invalid, or no ticket is provided, the server could deny you access to the content files you are trying to retrieve.

Looks like 11.8.0 backports the Switch's aauth ideas to 3ds -- network comms now send an encrypted(?) copy of app ticket to the server.

They may not act on it immediately, but like on Switch this lets N perfectly detect pirate accesses vs normal ones, and ban however they like.

— Michael (@SciresM) July 31, 2018

​

This level of granular per-title validation will effectively put an end to any software that relies on the open availability of content files on the Nintendo CDN to function, including freeShop, CIAngel, TikDevil, and even PC based clients such as Villain3DS, PlaiCDN, and FunKeyCIA to name a few.

However, up until earlier today, the server wasn't denying anyone downloads at all. However, multiple reputable sources have stated that the changes have begun to roll out and that it is unlikely that any workarounds will be found.

Because this followup round of changes is server side, this effects all firmware and all devices trying to download from the Nintendo CDN. Staying on 11.7 or below will not make freeShop continue to work, and before you ask, yes, software you already pirated is safe. (for now, anyway.)

Nintendo has finally put in place the server-side change to finish what 11.8.0 started. FreeShop and other 3DS piracy apps are now dead (probably forever).

— Devon Maloney (@plailect) August 9, 2018

At this time, it seems only various first-party Nintendo titles are affected, but it's probable that these changes will begin rolling out to all 3DS titles on the Nintendo CDN over time.

As of approximately 1 AM EST, August 22, 2018, the Nintendo CDN has applied this ticket validation method to over 2800 titles on their network.

Source and Ongoing Discussion
Related 3DBrew Page

Spoiler: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: Will Staying on 11.7 help in any substantial way?
A: Not really. The bulk of the changes made are server side, meaning that they apply to all firmware, all platforms, everything trying to download 3DS content from the Nintendo CDN. I don't recommend updating on principle but that choice is yours to make.

Q: Do I have to delete the games I downloaded from freeShop to avoid being banned?
A: No. This ticket check is done only when downloading titles through the NIM Service on the 3DS. Not when launching games. Not when going online in games. Not when downloading or installing games through other means.

Q: What uses the NIM service to download from the Nintendo CDN?
A: The Official 3DS eShop, Official 3DS eShop Sleep Mode Downloads, and freeShop Sleep Mode Downloads. That last one is the only wild card here. We don't know what Nintendo might do if you upload an invalid game ticket to them through NIM. They could possibly use this ban you, but as of now, it doesn't seem like they are.

Q: Will there be a workaround for this in the future?
A: Almost certainly not. Don't count on it.

Q: Can you still download non-first-party 3DS games?
A: No, as of August 22, 2018, nearly all titles are requiring valid tickets to download. A complete list of titles that are blocked is available courtesy of @DMSalesman, here.

Q: Does any of this apply to Wii U content on the Nintendo CDN?
A: No. Nintendo hasn't updated the Wii U with any of this security, which they would have to do to implement this.

 

[tomhanks69]

Anywhere to get them sexy qr codes?

 

[stanleyopar2000]

so FreeShop is dead no matter what version i'm on??

I'm hoping Sony doesn't follow suit with NPS on the Vita

 

[GhostLatte]

I had to.

 

[wurstpistole]

Can anyone hint me to the direct ip to the title keys site? I have the one for WiiU, but can't seem to find the one for 3ds.

 

[SirNapkin1334]

Can anyone hint me to the direct ip to the title keys site? I have the one for WiiU, but can't seem to find the one for 3ds.

Replace the console name in the URL with the other console.

 

[wurstpistole]

Replace the console name in the URL with the other console.

Ah, so that does the trick? From pc at least - but how do I enter this url into Freeshop on 3ds? (I know it doesn't work for first party titles anymore)

 

[TherealDarknes]

Which “lies” then?

the whole thing i cant remember exactly what they said but i think they were rambling about emulators not being legal and a whole bunch of other shit

 

[SirNapkin1334]

the whole thing i cant remember exactly what they said but i think they were rambling about emulators not being legal and a whole bunch of other shit

Ah, that. No, that’s not what they said. They said that using emulators in a way to pirate games was against their rules, but they haven’t gone after anybody yet, mainly because that’s nearly impossible to measure.

 

[Captain Library]

The FreeShop was the most ridiculous homebrew I've ever seen on a console. My friend* asked me the other day if it was like plundering CDN via the backdoor. I said nah, it's walking in through the front door because Nintendo had left the key in. And they've only just got around to changing the locks.

There are enough other means to obtain titles for 3DS for those who want to, but I can still hardly believe just how much this system was broken apart by the hacking community. Thanks for the memories, FreeShop!

* I don't really have friends.

 

[Pippin666]

Oh yeah, booyah !

Pip'

 

[chrisrlink]

go away nintentroll @Pippin666

 

[koyuki38]

Never used that freeshop thing, but i definitely used FBI and the QR code feature. Is it broken too ?

 

[chrisrlink]

may I ask this why are you even here pip if your anti hack/piracy this is really not a place for you

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....sorry if I'm pissed I just hate all the recent stuff that happened in the past 2 weeks but we still have ways of dumping our own/rented games so in fact piracy will never die too bad pip

 

[Pippin666]

may I ask this why are you even here pip if your anti hack/piracy this is really not a place for you

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

....sorry if I'm pissed I just hate all the recent stuff that happened in the past 2 weeks but we still have ways of dumping our own/rented games so in fact piracy will never die too bad pip

Thank god, if piracy was to disappear, how would I laugh at banned kids ?

Pip'

 

[Deleted User]

Hm... This is interesting.
Hopefully freeshop for Wii U comes soon. It would be great for those who want to play some random games

 

[Latyana]

so its not there? omg. so even on 11.7 we cant use it. thats messed up

 

[H1B1Esquire]

FBI and the QR code feature. Is it broken too ?

Go wild while you can. I wouldn't update FBI soon, though.

-----

Anywhere to get them sexy qr codes?

Make them, search 3dsoso/google, or titledb&pray.

 

[Latyana]

here is a question a food for thought as it were. if the 3ds (yes this includes all the other types as well) if its at end of life then why the heck should it matter to nintendo that we use the key to unlock the door to download a game? now it especially gets me on it too since i recently seen an ugly new system themed of animal crossing as well. nintendo needs to go ahead and let it go and grow up.

 

[Excalibur007]

Thank god, if piracy was to disappear, how would I laugh at banned kids ?

Pip'

Do you remember when discussion of piracy was forbidden and would get you a warning and then banned from the forums? When did that change? I missed that announcement.

I'm with you on the piracy topic (of currently supported systems anyway). I love homebrew and emulators, but absolutely hate piracy. I'd like to know a realistic figure of how much of the 3DS market has been affected by piracy... like, have some developers cancelled games because of it, etc.? (I know we can't really come up with an accurate picture of this, with all the factors at play and dishonest use of numbers by all sides). The excuse of "I can't afford to pay for the games" doesn't entitle people to steal them. However, we're not going to change the culture around here. It seems completely taken over with piracy. It really kinda surprised me, especially with the Switch. I didn't expect to see this site so openly support piracy of Nintendo's flagship system. It has been frustrating and I've never been very vocal anyway. I mostly just read articles and threads on the site (obviously, by my post count), but sometimes I really want to speak up and say something. Again, we aren't going to change the mind of anyone who just doesn't care and thinks they're entitled to everything.

I got into the 3DS pretty late (mid 2015), and started collecting every game I was interested in. Eventually, I started collecting every game I thought I might someday find interesting. lol. Today I have probably 80 to 90% of the 3DS library (complete physical releases) and even more DS games.

I've been making an effort to support continuing development for the 3DS by buying EVERY game that's been physically released for the past year, which has been pretty easy since they've been so few. I am conflicted though... I am encouraged when I see Nintendo make attempts to protect their system because it says they still desire to support it at least a little longer, but it still makes me nervous because I do want to see it fully open when support for it is completely dropped. I think every system should be fully exploitable around the time they're no longer commercially on the market for the purpose of preserving its library. I hate eshop only releases and would really hate to see games purchased digitally be lost when Nintendo no longer supports them on their servers. When I buy a game, I want to be able to play it 10, 15, or 20 years from now. For this reason, I'm glad to see ways to backup those games. Personally, I've used freeshop to install the games I've purchased physically over the past year or so, because it saves me from having to go grab the cartridge when game updates get released. Pretty lazy of me. All in all, when freeshop is no more, no big deal -- I'll just have to get the games out of their cases for those updates.

It's been much harder to keep up with the Switch releases, but I've still managed to buy 113 physical releases so far.

All that said, I place a clear distinction between currently supported systems and those no longer commercially supported. Once games are only available second hand or through ebay, I couldn't care less how people acquire the game or ROM. Download away. If the money is only going to a second hand seller and not to anyone involved in producing the game, I see no "moral" problem with it (legal problem, of course, but not moral problem).

I know pretty much NO ONE is still reading this, so I'll stop here. lol

 

[koyuki38]

How many 3ds game did you buy ?
80/90% is just insane