Sono releases TWL patcher with DS(i) Widescreen support

IMG_20190726_205522_525_resized.jpg

Shortly after @Sono released TWPatch, work started on a few other possible modifications for the 3DS's TWL_FIRM, aka the DS/DSi mode firmware. One of those in particular caught several people's attention: the widescreen patch, which allows you to play DS games in 16:10 resolution instead of the usual 4:3. Support for it was added in @Robz8's TWiLight Menu ++ since version 9.0.0, however, it couldn't be enabled properly as the new patcher wasn't out at the time. This all changed not too long ago though, as @Sono shared a preliminary TWL patcher with widescreen support for everyone to enjoy!

Unlike the first, this one comes as a standard Windows command-line application and its usage can be a little tricky for inexperienced users: you will first have to extract TWL_FIRM's exefs.bin using GodMode9, then run the program with your desired arguments and copy the output CXI to the correct location on your microSD card. Luckily, detailed step-by-step tutorials have already been posted, so don't panic! The patcher's usage and functions can be found its original post, while a guide specific to TWiLight Menu ++ has been added to its official GBAtemp thread (both linked in the sources).

Staying on topic, TWiLight Menu ++ has also just received an update, adding widescreen support for many more games! There are over 200 titles supported to date and the full list can be read below:
TWiLight Menu ++ v9.0.3 widescreen support list said:
Total: 201

007 - Blood Stone (USA/Europe/France/Germany)
Asphalt - Urban GT (USA)
Asphalt - Urban GT (Europe)
Asphalt - Urban GT 2 (USA/Europe)
Assassin's Creed - Altair's Chronicles (USA/Europe)
Assassin's Creed II - Discovery (USA)
Assassin's Creed II - Discovery (Europe)
ATV Wild Ride (USA)
Ben 10 - Ultimate Alien - Cosmic Destruction (USA)
Ben 10 - Ultimate Alien - Cosmic Destruction (Europe)
Bratz Fashion Boutique (USA)
Brothers in Arms DS (USA)
Brothers in Arms DS (Europe)
C.O.P. - The Recruit (USA/Europe)
Call of Duty 4 - Modern Warfare (USA/Europe/France/Germany/Italy/Spain)
Call of Duty - World at War (USA/Europe)
Call of Duty - Modern Warfare - Mobilized (USA/Europe)
Call of Duty - Black Ops (USA/France/Germany)
Call of Duty - Black Ops (Europe)
Call of Duty - Black Ops (Europe {Es,It})
Call of Duty - Modern Warfare 3 (USA/Europe)
Call of Duty - Modern Warfare 3 (France/Germany)
Cartoon Network Racing DS (USA)
Cartoon Network Racing DS (Europe)
Chibi-Robo - Park Patrol (USA)
Cookie & Cream (USA)
Cookie & Cream (Europe)
Crash of the Titans (USA)
Crash of the Titans (Europe)
Daniel X - The Ultimate Power (USA)
de Blob 2 (USA)
de Blob 2 (Europe)
Dementium - The Ward (USA)
Dementium - The Ward (Europe)
Dementium II (USA/Europe)
Dragon Ball Kai - Ultimate Butou Den (Japan)
Dragon Quest Monsters - Joker (USA)
Dragon Quest Monsters - Joker (Europe)
Dragon Quest Monsters - Joker 2 (USA/Europe)
Drone Tactics (USA)
Eragon (USA)
Eragon (Europe)
FabStyle (Japan)
Final Fantasy - The 4 Heroes of Light (USA)
Final Fantasy - The 4 Heroes of Light (Europe)
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles - Ring of Fates (USA/Europe)
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles - Echoes of Time (USA/Europe)
Final Fantasy IV (USA)
Final Fantasy IV (Europe)
G.I. Joe - The Rise of Cobra (USA/Europe)
GoldenEye - 007 (USA/Europe/France/Germany/Italy)
Grand Theft Auto - Chinatown Wars (USA/Europe)
Grand Theft Auto - Chinatown Wars (Japan)
High School Musical - Makin' the Cut! (USA)
High School Musical - Makin' the Cut! (Europe)
High School Musical 3 - Senior Year (USA)
High School Musical 3 - Senior Year (Europe)
How to Train Your Dragon (USA/Europe {En,Fr}/Europe {Es,It})
The Idolmaster - Dearly Stars (Japan)
Iron Man 2 (USA)
Iron Man 2 - The Video Game (Europe)
Jeopardy! (USA)
Jet Impulse (Japan)
Johnny Test (USA)
Juiced 2 - Hot Import Nights (USA/Europe)
Kingdom Hearts - 358-2 Days (USA)
Kingdom Hearts - 358-2 Days (Europe)
Kingdom Hearts - Re-coded (USA)
Kingdom Hearts - Re-coded (Europe)
Lara Croft Tomb Raider - Legend (USA/Europe)
Madagascar - Escape 2 Africa (USA)
Madden NFL 2005 (USA)
Mario Hoops 3 on 3 (USA)
Mario Slam Basketball (Europe)
Mario Kart DS (USA/Europe)
Mario Kart DS (Kiosk Demo) (USA)
Marvel - Ultimate Alliance 2 (USA)
Marvel Super Hero Squad (USA)
MechAssault - Phantom War (USA)
Mega Man Star Force - Dragon/Leo/Pegasus (USA)
Mega Man Star Force - Dragon/Leo/Pegasus (Europe)
Mega Man Star Force 2 - Zerker x Ninja/Saurian (USA)
Mega Man Star Force 2 - Zerker x Ninja/Saurian (Europe)
Mini Ninjas (USA)
Mini Ninjas (Europe)
Moon (USA)
Moon (Europe)
Need for Speed - Underground 2 (USA)
Need for Speed - Underground 2 (Europe)
Need for Speed - ProStreet (USA)
Need for Speed - ProStreet (Europe)
Nicktoons Unite! (USA)
Okamiden (USA)
Open Season (USA)
Orcs & Elves (USA)
Pac-Man World 3 (USA)
The Penguins of Madagascar (USA)
The Penguins of Madagascar - Dr. Blowhole Returns Again! (USA)
Phantasy Star 0 (USA/Europe)
Pokémon - Diamond/Pearl Version (USA/Europe)
Pokémon - Platinum Version (USA/Europe)
Pokémon - HeartGold/SoulSilver Version (USA/Europe)
Pokémon - Black Version (USA/Europe)
Pokémon - White Version (USA/Europe)
Pokémon - Black Version 2 (USA/Europe)
Pokémon - White Version 2 (USA/Europe)
Rayman DS (USA)
Rayman DS (Europe)
Ridge Racer DS (USA)
SBK - Snowboard Kids (USA)
SBK - Snowboard Kids (Europe)
Sega Superstars Tennis (USA)
Sega Superstars Tennis (Europe)
Sideswiped (USA)
Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing (USA/Europe)
Speed Racer - The Videogame (USA)
Speed Racer - The Videogame (Europe)
Spider-Man - Web of Shadows (USA/Europe {En,Fr,De}/Europe {Es,It})
Spider-Man - Shattered Dimensions (USA/Europe)
Star Fox Command (USA)
Star Fox Command (Europe)
Star Trek - Tactical Assault (USA)
Star Trek - Tactical Assault (Europe)
Star Wars - Battlefront - Elite Squadron (USA)
Star Wars - Battlefront - Elite Squadron (Europe {En,Fr}/Europe {Es,It})
Star Wars - Battlefront - Elite Squadron (Germany)
Super Mario 64 DS (USA) (Rev 0)
Super Mario 64 DS (USA) (Rev 1)
Super Mario 64 DS (Europe)
Super Mario 64 DS (Japan) (Rev 0)
Super Mario 64 DS (Japan) (Rev 1)
Super Mario 64 DS (Korea)
Shenyou Maliou DS (China)
Super Monkey Ball - Touch and Roll (USA)
Super Monkey Ball - Touch and Roll (Europe)
Tales of Innocence (Japan)
Tenchu - Dark Secret (USA)
Tenchu - Dark Secret (Europe {En,Es,It}/Europe {En,Fr,De})
Tomb Raider - Underworld (USA)
Tomb Raider - Underworld (Europe {En,Es,It})
Tomb Raider - Underworld (Europe {En,Fr,De,Nl})
TrackMania Turbo (USA)
TrackMania Turbo (Europe)
Unknown Soldier - Mokuba no Houkou (Japan)
Wheel of Fortune (USA)
The Wizard of Oz - Beyond the Yellow Brick Road (USA)
X-Men Origins - Wolverine (USA)
X-Men Origins - Wolverine (Europe)
Zombie Shiki - Eigo Ryoku Sosei Jutsu - English of the Dead (Japan)

NOTES:
* If some regions are combined in one line, that means the ROMs use the same cheat as one region.
* Only clean unhacked ROMs work with widescreen.

Codes by fintogive, RadDude McCoolguy, KazoWAR, RocketRobz, and Vague Rant

If you want to try this yourself, be sure to read all the documentation before attempting any part of the procedure. You will need to enable some game-specific cheat codes to play in proper widescreen if you don't want to use TWiLight Menu ++ (the latter has them built-in already and will automatically toggle them as needed). If you're having issues with TWiLight Menu ++ double-check that both the app and nds-bootstrap are up-to-date, that you followed the tutorial in the thread correctly and whether you're using a good unmodified dump of a compatible game (if the screen still appears stretched, try creating a blank wideCheatData.bin in <sdcard>:\_nds\nds-bootstrap).

:arrow: Source 1 (Sono's TWL Patcher)
:arrow: Source 2 (TWiLight Menu ++)
 
Last edited by RattletraPM,

NoNAND

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Go Sono! :D
Also I haven't been keeping up with the 3DS scene for quite some time now. Is it now possible to play DS games installed to the menu and run at full speed, not using a flashcart? If so I might want to try this out on that. :)
Depends on the game what you're trying to run.
I can't say for forwarded games redirected to the SD but thus far flashcard forwarders have been doing great for me.
Have a look at this guide here
https://gbatemp.net/threads/nds-forwarder-cias-for-your-home-menu.426174/
 
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Hello @Sono
I hope you don’t mind my question. But i’m a fan of Pokemon Mystery Dungeon explorers of sky (best pkm game ever) and wanted to know how i can make this game widescreen since it’s not supported in the list.
 

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Hello @Sono
I hope you don’t mind my question. But i’m a fan of Pokemon Mystery Dungeon explorers of sky (best pkm game ever) and wanted to know how i can make this game widescreen since it’s not supported in the list.
I'm not Sono, but I've done a few of the widescreen cheats for the games on that list. Unfortunately, 2D games are somewhere between extremely difficult and impossible to hack to add widescreen support. They're generally designed around displaying a specific number of tiles, so the "extra" tiles for widescreen just aren't sitting in memory waiting to be displayed. For 3D games it's a different matter, because the 3D world still exists in memory even in the parts that you can't see, so we can adjust the camera to show more of the game. For 2D games, you'll basically just have to keep playing in 4:3.
 

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Hello @Sono
I hope you don’t mind my question. But i’m a fan of Pokemon Mystery Dungeon explorers of sky (best pkm game ever) and wanted to know how i can make this game widescreen since it’s not supported in the list.

I'm not a romhacker, sorry :/

Also, 2D is afaik a different display mode in the DS "GPU", so it's impossible to do anamorphic 2D
 
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Go Sono! :D
Also I haven't been keeping up with the 3DS scene for quite some time now. Is it now possible to play DS games installed to the menu and run at full speed, not using a flashcart? If so I might want to try this out on that. :)
No that sadly will most likely never be a thing due to how the DS operates Though flashcarts are quite cheap you could get a good r4i for $20
 

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No that sadly will most likely never be a thing due to how the DS operates Though flashcarts are quite cheap you could get a good r4i for $20

Yeah I have a DSTWO so I'm fine, it's almost pointless for me but it would be really cool to do it without a flashcart and have the games on the home screen. Is this all because the flashcart has some special emulating hardware the 3DS doesn't or something?
 

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No that sadly will most likely never be a thing due to how the DS operates Though flashcarts are quite cheap you could get a good r4i for $20

Wait what? I can already play NDS games at full speed through the SD, and yeah, the compatibility hasn't made to the 100% yet, but it has improved greatly and the already supported games are the most popular, not to mention that this let's you enhance some things like the sound frequency (only with the 3DS/DSi) and clock speeds.
 

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Wait what? I can already play NDS games at full speed through the SD, and yeah, the compatibility hasn't made to the 100% yet, but it has improved greatly and the already supported games are the most popular, not to mention that this let's you enhance some things like the sound frequency (only with the 3DS/DSi) and clock speeds.

Welp, differing answers here, guess I'll have to see for myself. :P
 
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No that sadly will most likely never be a thing due to how the DS operates Though flashcarts are quite cheap you could get a good r4i for $20

Welp, differing answers here, guess I'll have to see for myself. :P

check the compatibility list.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1LRTkXOUXraTMjg1eedz_f7b5jiuyMv2x6e_jY_nyHSc/edit#gid=0

its always improving now and loads of games run at full speed too.

i would rather back this project then spend money on a DS flashcart these days.

now all the new ones have timebombs. which make the flashcarts stop working after a while.
 

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I'm not Sono, but I've done a few of the widescreen cheats for the games on that list. Unfortunately, 2D games are somewhere between extremely difficult and impossible to hack to add widescreen support. They're generally designed around displaying a specific number of tiles, so the "extra" tiles for widescreen just aren't sitting in memory waiting to be displayed. For 3D games it's a different matter, because the 3D world still exists in memory even in the parts that you can't see, so we can adjust the camera to show more of the game. For 2D games, you'll basically just have to keep playing in 4:3.
Aah ok thanks for the explaining!! :)

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

I'm not a romhacker, sorry :/

Also, 2D is afaik a different display mode in the DS "GPU", so it's impossible to do anamorphic 2D
No problem still thanks thought!!
 

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I'm not Sono, but I've done a few of the widescreen cheats for the games on that list. Unfortunately, 2D games are somewhere between extremely difficult and impossible to hack to add widescreen support. They're generally designed around displaying a specific number of tiles, so the "extra" tiles for widescreen just aren't sitting in memory waiting to be displayed. For 3D games it's a different matter, because the 3D world still exists in memory even in the parts that you can't see, so we can adjust the camera to show more of the game. For 2D games, you'll basically just have to keep playing in 4:3.

did you try metroid prime hunters and both zelda touch games? zelda with widescreen and analog stick patch would a great opportunity to retry those games.

edit: I didn't realized zelda is played mostly by the bottom screen, so it's useless.
 
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Shortly after @Sono released TWPatch, work started on a few other possible modifications for the 3DS's TWL_FIRM, aka the DS/DSi mode firmware. One of those in particular caught several people's attention: the widescreen patch, which allows you to play DS games in 16:10 resolution instead of the usual 4:3. Support for it was added in @Robz8's TWiLight Menu ++ since version 9.0.0, however, it couldn't be enabled properly as the new patcher wasn't out at the time. This all changed not too long ago though, as @Sono shared a preliminary TWL patcher with widescreen support for everyone to enjoy!

Unlike the first, this one comes as a standard Windows command-line application and its usage can be a little tricky for inexperienced users: you will first have to extract TWL_FIRM's exefs.bin using GodMode9, then run the program with your desired arguments and copy the output CXI to the correct location on your microSD card. Luckily, detailed step-by-step tutorials have already been posted, so don't panic! The patcher's usage and functions can be found its original post, while a guide specific to TWiLight Menu ++ has been added to its official GBAtemp thread (both linked in the sources).

Staying on topic, TWiLight Menu ++ has also just received an update, adding widescreen support for many more games! There are over 200 titles supported to date and the full list can be read below:


If you want to try this yourself, be sure to read all the documentation before attempting any part of the procedure. You will need to enable some game-specific cheat codes to play in proper widescreen if you don't want to use TWiLight Menu ++ (the latter has them built-in already and will automatically toggle them as needed). If you're having issues with TWiLight Menu ++ double-check that both the app and nds-bootstrap are up-to-date, that you followed the tutorial in the thread correctly and whether you're using a good unmodified dump of a compatible game (if the screen still appears stretched, try creating a blank wideCheatData.bin in <sdcard>:\_nds\nds-bootstrap).

:arrow: Source 1 (Sono's TWL Patcher)
:arrow: Source 2 (TWiLight Menu ++)

I followed all steps in the Twilight menu tab, but not a single game works in widescreen.
 

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I followed all steps in the Twilight menu tab, but not a single game works in widescreen.

Did you use the manual method or the Updater method? If you used the second, then is because that at the moment is needed to do the manual installation as there is some issue with latest TwilightMenu++ ver. to download through the updater.
 

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Finally, I can now play High School Musical in WIDESCREEN!!!!!

On the other hand, I don't see Super Princess Peach. I'd like to replay that game and complete it once again.
 
Last edited by ertaboy356b,
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