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Hacking nesDS problems

[WIP/Release] ds_mangaman - Turning the Nintendo DS into the Ultimate Vertical Book-Style Manga Reader!

Hwongfish · 2026-06-09T00:33:11+00:00

Hi everyone! I’ve always felt that the Nintendo DS is criminally underrated when it comes to being a dedicated manga-reader. Think about it: it has two screens built right into the form factor, one of them has a precise (not quite most of the time though) touchscreen, and when you rotate the console 90 degrees counter-clockwise, it perfectly mimics the ergonomics of holding a real physical tankobon (manga volume). When held vertically, the D-pad sits perfectly on the bottom, and the shoulder keys (L/R) are in the ideal position for switching chapters. Plus, the touchscreen can be used to magnify for reading the text or inspecting details. Such interactions are the ultimate form factors that modern smartphones just can't match. To prove this, I built ds_mangaman — an open-source, highly optimized homebrew manga viewer for the NDS/NDSL. Download and learn how to build in Github release: :teach::teach::teach: GitHub Repository: https://github.com/hwfish-error408/ds-mangaman :grog::grog::grog: Looking for Contributors! The compiler engine and core state machine are now fully functional and running smoothly on real hardware and emulators (like melonDS). However, I want to take this project further and could really use the community's help! I’m looking for developers, testers, and retro-enthusiasts to help with: A, Implementing a cleaner UI/Main Menu. B, Adding Bookmark support (saving states to SRAM/FAT .sav). C, Further optimizing the DMA memory copy speeds during page and chapter transitions. Feel free to download the source, check out the build pipeline, test it on your flashcarts, and open Issues or Pull Requests on the GitHub repo! Let's make the NDS the ultimate retro manga machine.

Thread starter nick944
Start date Sep 9, 2008
Views 1,565
Replies 4

nick944

Member

Newcomer

Level 1

Sep 9, 2008

I have an Acekard 2 v2.1 and nesDS is refusing to work on the latest official firmware (4.08). It will start but you can't choose any games. (tested both with patches on and off) Yet firmware version 4.07a15 works 100% fine with it. Any idea what is wrong?

currynoodles

Well-Known Member

Member

Level 1

Sep 11, 2008

Ooo.. didn't realize it was broken until I read your post. Same thing for me, latest firmware (official) and it doesn't let you select the game.

Taza

Well-Known Member

Member

Level 2

Sep 11, 2008

Exactly the same.

Occasionally - like 5% of the time - it'll actually get past the first menu and then completely break when I enter a menu during gaming.

Another World

Emulate the Planet!

Former Staff

Level 16

Sep 12, 2008

why are you using official firmware when AKAIO is better in all respects?

-another world

Sweater Fish Del

Well-Known Member

Member

Level 3

Sep 12, 2008

Yeah, I recall this problem with nesDS on the RPG as well, but it was fixed in all the custom firmwares quite a long time ago. I guess the official firmware (at least for the Acekard 2) still hasn't fixed it. Switch to AKAIO.

...word is bondage...