Homebrew is it illegal to Install CIAs made from Unity on a regular new 3DS...

[magethemagician]

(answered)I recently signed up for the Nintendo developer portal, is it okay to install my cias from Unity using a Homebrew app...
like for example if I tried to submit my game with Nintendo will I accidentally get any legal trouble or get my account deleted or something....
in other words do they ever ask if you're ever using a dev kit and can they find out?
it's been bothering me recently and I'd like to know...

 

[Deleted member 373223]

I recently signed up for the Nintendo developer portal, is it okay to install my cias from Unity using a Homebrew app...
like for example if I tried to submit my game with Nintendo will I accidentally get any legal trouble or get my account deleted or something....
in other words do they ever ask if you're ever using a dev kit and can they find out?
it's been bothering me recently and I'd like to know...

Technically it's illegal to use homebrew with a nintendo developer program since you sign a NDA.

 

[magethemagician]

Technically it's illegal to use homebrew with a nintendo developer program since you sign a NDA.

okay thanks!
I'll just have to save up money to buy a dev kit.
if I buy a 3DS with a dev menu installed from nintendo will it actually work?

 

[Deleted member 373223]

okay thanks!
I'll just have to save up money to buy a dev kit.
if I buy a 3DS with a dev menu installed from nintendo will it actually work?

Probably, i don't know, i don't have a devkit.

 

[magethemagician]

Probably, i don't know, i don't have a devkit.

alright thanks for your help anyway

 

[Enovale]

you can install NDI/Unity CIAs just fine, you just cant distribute it without express permission or putting it on the eShop.

 

[Enovale]

EDIT: Wrong thread, d'oh!

 

[JennaScvl]

Technically it's illegal to use homebrew with a nintendo developer program since you sign a NDA.

While it may be against the contract to use homebrew, it wouldn't be because of an NDA. An NDA just says you can't distribute the dev kit, anything that you made with the dev kit, any of the contents of the dev kit, etc. Non-Disclosure is not "no hacking".

So you should be able to do it as long as you don't distribute it. That said, any time you run unauthorized software on a 3DS while the 3DS is connected to the internet, you can wind up banned from Nintendo's online services in the next ban wave. That's a risk you take whether or not you're using a CIA from Unity.

If you're making your CIAs with Unity without using Nintendo's dev kit, and there's nothing in your Unity license either, then... it should be technically be ok to distribute it.

Also, I don't care for the characterization of it as "illegal" as that casts it in the light of being a criminal. There is nothing illegal about breaking a contract. You can get sued for it, but that's civil court, and it's just basically breaking a legally binding promise. That is the contract has laid out some kind of penalty for breaking it, be it monetary damages or simply being banned from ever getting access to the dev kit ever again. The one thing that can't happen simply from breaking a contract is jail time.

 

[piratesephiroth]

Of course it isn't illegal.
Just enter Luma3DS's settings and enable "Set developer UNITINFO". Your 3DS will behave like a Panda unit and will accept your development CIAs.

 

[Deleted member 373223]

While it may be against the contract to use homebrew, it wouldn't be because of an NDA. An NDA just says you can't distribute the dev kit, anything that you made with the dev kit, any of the contents of the dev kit, etc. Non-Disclosure is not "no hacking".

So you should be able to do it as long as you don't distribute it. That said, any time you run unauthorized software on a 3DS while the 3DS is connected to the internet, you can wind up banned from Nintendo's online services in the next ban wave. That's a risk you take whether or not you're using a CIA from Unity.

If you're making your CIAs with Unity without using Nintendo's dev kit, and there's nothing in your Unity license either, then... it should be technically be ok to distribute it.

Also, I don't care for the characterization of it as "illegal" as that casts it in the light of being a criminal. There is nothing illegal about breaking a contract. You can get sued for it, but that's civil court, and it's just basically breaking a legally binding promise. That is the contract has laid out some kind of penalty for breaking it, be it monetary damages or simply being banned from ever getting access to the dev kit ever again. The one thing that can't happen simply from breaking a contract is jail time.

Sorry, should have been more specific. But I am pretty sure hacking 3ds and installing unauthorized software is part of the NDA to not do list. There were quite a few threads about It when first announced.

 

[JennaScvl]

Sorry, should have been more specific. But I am pretty sure hacking 3ds and installing unauthorized software is part of the NDA to not do list. There were quite a few threads about It when first announced.

I haven't read the contract, but if it has "do not hack a retail 3DS" in it, then it's not merely an NDA. Also, it would be fairly redundant and outside of the scope of the dev kit. Seems rather silly to have you sign an agreement to not hack a retail 3DS on two levels. The first being that the dev kit is a Panda, rather than a regular 3DS. The second being that the regular 3DS already has a eula to that effect, which is why I say it's redundant.

And again it's not illegal. Worst they can do is simply bar you from having a dev kit again and possibly stop publishing any apps or games you've published through Nintendo, basically sever their relationship with you.

Also it seems rather silly that they'd have a problem with you using your own homebrew on a Panda... Think about it... homebrew is software you write yourself to run on a 3DS... a Panda is a 3DS they sell you for running software you write yourself.

My advice is this... if you're going to do homebrew on a retail system, do not ever use the same Nintendo account on that system as you intend to develop legit software on via a Nintendo dev kit. That way the worst they can do is just ban an account that isn't associated with your official dev stuff.

 

[DarthDub]

If it's for personal use, then Nintendo can't care about it.

 

[JennaScvl]

If it's for personal use, then Nintendo can't care about it.

They can if they catch you. Thsecret is don't get caught... to do that, simply use a different nintendo account for the development account...