Why are Nintendo consoles so popular to hack?

[Nickp2517]

I feel like it’s tradition almost. Anytime Nintendo releases a new console is pretty much guaranteed to be hackable. How is this so? I think it’s just simply amazing

 

[jefffisher]

pokemon is the most fun game to hack, what are you going to do if you hack the xbox put grunts in different places on halo?

 

[ry755]

Because Nintendo sucks at security

 

[brunocar]

because their security is a joke, sony made that mistake twice with the PSP and the PS3, and has made their newer products more closed than an apple laptop, meanwhile, the DS allowed any cart to go in it, just like all of the gameboy prior to it, then the DSi just blocked some specific carts, so people just bypassed it by disguising non official carts as offcial ones, then the 3DS showed up and it was the same thing all over again, until people started finding even more exploits.

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pokemon is the most fun game to hack, what are you going to do if you hack the xbox put grunts in different places on halo?

halo modding is actually very active

 

[Chary]

Compared to Sony and Microsoft, Nintendo's been notorious for leaving their consoles wide open for hackers.

The original Xbox used to be a very popular console to hack...until the 360 came along and made you require soldering a chip. That drives off 99% of people. The Wii, 3DS, and Wii U all have been simple to crack without requiring external hardware.

 

[kuwanger]

What ry755 said. People try to hack nearly every console, but consistently Nintendo is close to the worst at providing sufficient security. Beyond that, portables are funner to hack because you can carry them with you to show off, which is why people hack their Android phone and their Nintendo handheld.

PS - And I can sort of PS that you can't hack a system that isn't closed, so that's why the focus on PCs and the like is mostly overclocking and the like. Hack the world or at least your laptop.

 

[zoogie]

I think because Nintendo makes such kid and family-friendly consoles, it's just more subversive and fun to hack them.

 

[Sonic Angel Knight]

Probably cause they have more interesting systems or more fun games. I can't answer that from a hacker prospective but from a consumer, I think is just the popularity of it. Maybe people like knowing they can do stuff like this to one of the most popular companies. I just like the way people create these hacks. I'm not trying to make fun of anyone but it's just too funny. A hack using a paper clip, a magnet, a flash cart, visiting a web browser page, a battery, save data, it's so insane how many ways it can be done.

 

[Deleted User]

Nintendo has been known to make a lot of odd decisions regarding their systems that are dated and confusing to most people, such as region lockout, restrictive digital transfer policies, and a lack of proper Virtual Console support for systems that are more than capable of playing the games. Many may choose to simply not play on Nintendo systems and opt for less restrictive systems, such as competing consoles and PC, but due to their first-party game offerings, this may or may not be an option for some people. As such, many like to open their systems by force.

Plus, people who are more in-line with the PC Gaming mentality might also want to mod their Nintendo games, as they do with their other games. Doing so isn't possible unless you turn to hacking said system, or emulating it on PC (the latter of which is less practical, as emulators, especially FOSS ones, take time and effort to develop, and usually don't come out until near the end of the console's life span at least).

On top of that, Nintendo systems tend to have a personality to them; they're not just PCs like the Xbox One and PS4 are. Your average Nintendo console is unique, in terms of both hardware and software. They're always running some sort of custom OS Nintendo designed in-house, and so part of the challenge and fun for hackers is to study and exploit said OS.

 

[slaphappygamer]

Also Nintendo makes great hardware...excluding the wiiu. People love to play them.

 

[SG854]

Because people like Nintendo.

 

[Catastrophic]

So they can justify spending money on a Nintendo console.

 

[Bitchplease]

Preference

 

[Taleweaver]

It's been said already: security isn't up to par with the competition. If you could hack sony's or microsoft's console with "just" software tricks and/or nintendo had you opening up your machine to install some extra chips you got from "the internet", then I'm sure that the first ones would be more popular.

Also Nintendo makes great hardware...excluding the wiiu. People love to play them.

The wiiu was only unpopular by those who didn't buy one. This is of course an open door (those who don't want one don't get one and those who have one aren't unbiassed either), but it doesn't say anything of the hardware in itself. And on that ground, I'd say the wiiu wasn't bad hardware either.

 

[MrCokeacola]

Nintendo makes the best consoles, so that's why duh.

 

[migles]

i remember this thread. just a few months ago!
but it was created saturday, how can this be?
ho lol in the bottom of this page similair threads: https://gbatemp.net/threads/why-the...always-the-first-only-consoles-hacked.493584/

 

[weatMod]

because their security is a joke, sony made that mistake twice with the PSP and the PS3, and has made their newer products more closed than an apple laptop, meanwhile, the DS allowed any cart to go in it, just like all of the gameboy prior to it, then the DSi just blocked some specific carts, so people just bypassed it by disguising non official carts as offcial ones, then the 3DS showed up and it was the same thing all over again, until people started finding even more exploits.

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halo modding is actually very active

>more closed than an apple laptop,

but they boot windows and PS4 is hacking scene is coming along nicely
even though a little lat since ps5 is rumored to be announced soon

 

[brunocar]

>more closed than an apple laptop,

but they boot windows and PS4 is hacking scene is coming along nicely
even though a little lat since ps5 is rumored to be announced soon

by apple laptop i meant the actual hardware, not the software

 

[HaloEliteLegend]

Adding to all of the above, I know plenty of people looking to hack their Switch in order to get basic features every other console has, such as save backups and a web browser. Someone needs to knock on their door and tell them restricting useful, basic features is NOT the way to prevent hackers from hacking your system, as it only punishes non-hackers after the console is inevitably blown wide open.

 

[guisadop]

nintendo games are usually overpriced.