Homebrew [WIP] Pretendo - Custom WiiU servers

RedDucks · Jan 30, 2018

[WIP] Open-source custom WiiU servers

We now have a Discord server!

Today I announce my, work in progress, custom Wii U and 3DS server project. The goal of this project is to recreate all currently implemented servers and endpoints that the Wii U and 3DS use, from the basics like authentication and accounts to custom game servers and the eShop.

Developers:
RedDucks(s) - Creator & Lead Developer / Maintainer
SuperMarioDaBom - PRUDP / All-around Developer
superwhiskers - (former) 3DS / Discord Bot Developer
mrjvs - Web Developer / Designer & All-around Developer
Rambo6Glaz - Homebrew Tools / All-around Developer
nybbit - Internal Tool Developer
Jip - Web Designer
Pika - Switch / All-around Developer
Shadów - Switch Developer
mrexodia - Wii U Developer
Please note that all references to "Switch" development is merely reverse-engineering work.
No custom Switch servers will be released any time in the near future.

Credits:
Kinnay - NEX Documentation & Development Assistance
Stary - Wireshark Plugin Development & Development Assistance

WARNING:
This project is still very much a WIP. It is nowhere near a production ready state and should not be used by everyday users, yet, as not all required API endpoints have been implemented

What is this useful for?

Preservation - The WiiU & 3DS, just like every console, has an EOL (End of Life). There will be a point when Nintendo shuts down all the Wii U and 3DS systems, services, and game servers that they depend on for many features. One of the goals with this project is to keep the Wii U and 3DS alive, and to prepare for the EOL.
Customization - With a custom server you have full control. Nintendo currently enforces certain things which may not be desirable to all (for example, requiring console-specific information to login and use services, as official accounts are tied to consoles). This could also become useful for tools like Cemu, which currently supports online play but requires dumps of console-specific files to get online (as, again, official accounts are tied to consoles). Custom servers could remove this barrier and allow anyone to go online with Cemu.

How can I help?

You don't have to know how to program to help out with this project! Here are a few different ways you can help:

Donations - We appreciate any and all donations! We accept bitcoin (1MXFrRvHRXfk1ugkdr72JqruTvMAmmgeZ4) and PayPal (https://paypal.me/pools/c/82vFIE7fLG) donations. This helps us keep the servers running, and get the hardware / games that we need. Consoles can brick, and having some donations would help us get back up and running again with little downtime.
Moral support - This can & will help us stay motivated, so even if its just dropping in to the Discord and saying hi is appreciated!

GitHub (source code & more information)
https://github.com/PretendoNetwork/Pretendo

GRAnimated · Jan 30, 2018

Can't wait for this to be used!

MrKatanaObiWan · Jan 30, 2018

Deleted User · Jan 31, 2018

You are not Nintendo! You're . . . you're . . . PRETENDO!

(Shout out to anyone who understands that reference)

emmanu888 · Jan 31, 2018

So this is going to be the Wii U variant of Wimmfi? This could be interesting, would also make custom content easier to play online.

Stuff like a MK8 version of CTGP-R and custom Splatfests in Splatoon 1 would be less dangerous on custom servers as a matter of fact.

RedDucks · Jan 31, 2018

GRAnimated said:
Can't wait for this to be used!

Hopefully soon it will be! A big issue is how interlink the PRUDP and HTTP sections are. For example the NEX tokens are retrieved via an HTTP request, but are used by PRUDP. Which is why I’m looking for someone to lend a hand.

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cruplezone said:
Cool, is miiverse on of the goals of this project?

It is but it probably won’t be done. There are already a ton of Miiverse clones already made. It’s more likely that I’ll try and “partner” with an existing Miiverse clone, like maybe Cedar or Foxverse, rather than creating another clone

jesus96 · Jan 31, 2018

I hope this is like wimmfi and you can ban the online hackers (mkwii days flashbacks)

Good luck!

huntertron1 · Jan 31, 2018

(are you able to reactivate multiverse with this method so i can watch people upload cringe posts)

RedDucks · Jan 31, 2018

Leafgreen26 said:
You are not Nintendo! You're . . . you're . . . PRETENDO!

(Shout out to anyone who understands that reference)

Flashgitz?

emmanu888 said:
So this is going to be the Wii U variant of Wimmfi? This could be interesting, would also make custom content easier to play online.

Stuff like a MK8 version of CTGP-R and custom Splatfests in Splatoon 1 would be less dangerous on custom servers as a matter of fact.

That’s one of the end goals (custom game servers), yes. However the WiiU uses PRUDP for its game servers, and each game seems to implement a different “flavor” of the protocol (slight differences and variations). So it’s gonna be a while before that’s possible here

Sonic Angel Knight · Jan 31, 2018

Is this also for 3DS? You know maybe kinda for the people who was banned for using CFW?

RedDucks · Jan 31, 2018

Sonic Angel Knight said:
Is this also for 3DS? You know maybe kinda for the people who was banned for using CFW?

I’m afraid not, at least not right now. Some things will probably still work on the 3DS, because the WiiU and 3DS share many endpoints. But I don’t currently have a 3DS with homebrew (my 3DS is latest FW which seems to be a bitch to get homebrew on), so I wouldn’t be able to properly test things. I also don’t know much about the 3DS.

Sonic Angel Knight · Jan 31, 2018

Okay, so this means that people who play on a real wii u can play online with people who play on the cemu emulator as well? Does that also mean I don't need my wii u files to allow the emulator to play online?

RedDucks · Jan 31, 2018

Sonic Angel Knight said:
Okay, so this means that people who play on a real wii u can play online with people who play on the cemu emulator as well? Does that also mean I don't need my wii u files to allow the emulator to play online?

That’s one of the goals! Currently barely anything is implemented so you can’t currently do anything really, but theoretically yes once more things are implemented you should be able to play on Cemu without the WiiU system files, and even play with Cemu players on a WiiU

Sonic Angel Knight · Jan 31, 2018

RedDucks said:
That’s one of the goals! Currently barely anything is implemented so you can’t currently do anything really, but theoretically yes once more things are implemented you should be able to play on Cemu without the WiiU system files, and even play with Cemu players on a WiiU

Would that mean there could be problems people using cemu have performance issues due to some underpowered pcs connecting to other players?

Deleted User · Jan 31, 2018

RedDucks said:
But I don’t currently have a 3DS with homebrew (my 3DS is latest FW which seems to be a bitch to get homebrew on), so I wouldn’t be able to properly test things. I also don’t know much about the 3DS.

Homebrewing a 3DS is super simple on latest firmware. Just follow https://3DS.guide and you will be just fine.

RyanAnayaMc · Jan 31, 2018

Whoa, this project seems great. I suppose it is only a matter of time until the Wii U dies with its online. Just one thing - the whole friends system will still work, right?

RedDucks · Jan 31, 2018

Leafgreen26 said:
Homebrewing a 3DS is super simple on latest firmware. Just follow https://3DS.guide and you will be just fine.

I’ve already checked out that guide when I first got my 3DS. I have the O3DS latest FW, which requires that I have a 2nd 3DS with homebrew already on it in order for this to work. Either that or I have to hard-mod, which I won’t risk doing. I should have been more clear by what I meant: by “it’s a bitch” I meant it’s more difficult and less straight forward than on the WiiU, which at the minimum just requires the browser. I have looked into flashcarts but all the sites I find for them look really sketchy.

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RyanAnayaMc said:
Whoa, this project seems great. I suppose it is only a matter of time until the Wii U dies with its online. Just one thing - the whole friends system will still work, right?

Yes, but since things will be tied to the accounts on the custom server, it would mean you could only friend people from the same custom server. To get your old friends from the official servers to work on the custom server, you would need to have them register on the custom server and then re-friend them using that account

Deleted User · Jan 31, 2018

RedDucks said:
I’ve already checked out that guide when I first got my 3DS. I have the O3DS latest FW, which requires that I have a 2nd 3DS with homebrew already on it in order for this to work. Either that or I have to hard-mod, which I won’t risk doing. I should have been more clear by what I meant: by “it’s a bitch” I meant it’s more difficult and less straight forward than on the WiiU, which at the minimum just requires the browser. I have looked into flashcarts but all the sites I find for them look really sketchy.

Oh. I understand. Yeah I wouldn't do system transfer or hard mod either. I hacked mine with a flashcart. I would reccomend either https://nds-card.com or https://3DS-flashcart.com if you do ever choose to order one. NDS-Card if more highly related but takes like a month to get here, while 3DS-flashcart (which I have ordered from 3 times with no problem) only takes a week if you live in the U.S

RedDucks · Jan 31, 2018

Leafgreen26 said:
Oh. I understand. Yeah I wouldn't do system transfer or hard mod either. I hacked mine with a flashcart. I would reccomend either https://nds-card.com or https://3DS-flashcart.com if you do ever choose to order one. NDS-Card if more highly related but takes like a month to get here, while 3DS-flashcart (which I have ordered from 3 times with no problem) only takes a week if you live in the U.S

Cool, I’ll check those out. I’ve been wanting to buy one I just couldn’t find any info on legit sites. I’ll probably make a 3DS branch of the repo after I start work there, like how I have a Cemu branch

Deleted User · Jan 31, 2018

RedDucks said:
Cool, I’ll check those out. I’ve been wanting to buy one I just couldn’t find any info on legit sites. I’ll probably make a 3DS branch of the repo after I start work there, like how I have a Cemu branch

Awesome! Also, I made a mistake. The link is http://3ds-flashcard.com/

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