You’d think Nintendo’s full focus would be on the Switch and forthcoming OLED model, but there’s still at least a small team of developers working on the 3DS in Japan. This is proven by the fact a new system update has just been released for Nintendo’s last handheld.
As VGC reports, the official patch notes for Version 11.15.0-47 of the 3DS system software simply state it’s for improved system stability. However, dataminer OatmealDome took a closer look at the patch and discovered Nintendo has updated both the handheld’s recovery mode and the internet browser. Oatmeal suggests the browser update may be to fix a possible exploit.
The browser included with the 3DS has been used before to hack the system, most notably for the spider exploit and the browserhax exploit. So it’s not impossible Nintendo closed a security hole. Earlier this year the Wii U received a surprise system update, but that seemed to be just for an SSL verification code change rather than security purposes.
Of all the gaming hardware companies, Nintendo is the one that takes the hardest line against its console and handhelds being hacked in order to play pirate games or allow homebrew games development. The 3DS has a huge library of 1,300 games to play, and even though Nintendo stopped manufacturing all models last year, it’s still a popular platform. It makes sense that Nintendo would want to continue to protect its platform from exploits long after it stopped selling the hardware.
