3DS:Virtual Console/Extraction

Virtual Console games are usually identical to the original game, as Nintendo tries to avoid modifying ROMs directly and instead uses patches. And even when modified, these modifications are usually somewhat easy to undo. This means the original game can be extracted and used identically to one that came from a cartridge.

Required Reading
This tutorial works for NES, SNES, GB, GBC, GBA, and Game Gear (WIP) VCs.

Note that ROMs from three consoles are altered in VCs, as follows:

NES VC ROMs use a non-standard TNES header that only works in the Virtual Console, and must be converted back after dumping. This guide walks through how to convert the header.

SNES VC ROMs are altered for more efficient playback in the Virtual Console, and if not restored after dumping the audio will be unusuable in other emulators. This guide walks through how to restore the ROM.

Game Gear VC ROMs are compressed into a unique archive type, and may have patches directly added into the ROM itself. This guide will walk through how to decompress the archive once more info is collected, but as the patches are nondestructive it does not revert them.

What You Need

 * The latest release of (the GodMode9   file)
 * If extracting an NES game: tnes2ines.gm9
 * If extracting a SNES game:
 * The source code of (obtainable by the Download ZIP option in the Code button)
 * snesvcsplit.py
 * A version of Python 2.7
 * If extracting a Game Gear game: MArchiveBatchTool, obtained from

Section I - Prep Work
In this section, you will set up the necessary files to extract a VC game.


 * 1) Power off your console
 * 2) Insert your SD card into your computer
 * 3) Copy   from the GodMode9   to the   folder on your SD card
 * 4) Copy the   folder from the GodMode9   to the root of your SD card
 * 5) If you are extracting an NES game, copy   into the   folder on your SD card
 * 6) If you are extracting an SNES game, extract the vcromclaim   into a folder and place   into this folder
 * 7) If you are extracting a Game Gear game, extract the MArchiveBatchTool   into a folder
 * 8) Reinsert your SD card into your console

Section II - Accessing the Game Files
In this section, you will mount the VC game's internal files.


 * 1) Hold the  button and power on to open GodMode9
 * 2) Press the  button, then press  on the Title manager option
 * 3) Press  on   and wait for the search to complete
 * 4) Once it completes, all titles that you have installed will appear
 * 5) Find the VC that you wish to extract a ROM from and press  on that title, then choose to Open title folder
 * 6) Press  on the main game file - usually named   - then choose NCCH image options..., then Mount image to drive and press  again to confirm
 * 7) The internal files of the chosen game will appear

Section III - Dumping the ROM
In this section, you will copy the ROM out of the VC, and fix its structure if it is an NES/SNES game.

What console does the chosen game originally come from? Your ROM is now extracted and can be used in an emulator.
 * -|NES=
 * 1) Go into the folder
 * 2) Press  to select the file that appears, then choose
 * 3) Press, then go into   ->
 * 4) Select the copied file and choose a mirroring if it asks, then let the script run
 * 5) Rename the ROM so its file extension is


 * -|SNES=

Your ROM is now extracted and can be used in an emulator.
 * 1) Go into the folder
 * 2) Press  to select the file , then choose
 * 3) Press + to power off the console
 * 4) Take the SD card out of your 3DS and put it into your PC
 * 5) Copy   into the vcromclaim folder
 * 6) Right-click anywhere in the empty space inside this folder and click on the option that opens Command Prompt, PowerShell, or the terminal
 * 7) * If no such option appears, open this window manually and use  or similar commands to move the terminal into this folder
 * 8) Run the following two commands one at a time:
 * 9) If desired, change  's filename to a name of your choice
 * 1) If desired, change  's filename to a name of your choice
 * 1) If desired, change  's filename to a name of your choice

Your ROM is now extracted and can be used in an emulator.
 * -|GB/GBC=
 * 1) Go into the folder
 * 2) Press  to select the file that appears, then choose
 * 3) Press  until you return to the drive list, then go into
 * 4) Place the cursor on the copied ROM, press +, and change the file extension to match the console it came from:   for Gameboy,   for Gameboy Color
 * 5) If desired, also change the ROM's filename to a name of your choice

Your ROM is now extracted and can be used in an emulator.
 * -|GBA=
 * 1) Go into the folder
 * 2) Press  to select the   file, then choose
 * 3) Press  until you return to the drive list, then go into
 * 4) Press  on the   file, choose GBA image options..., then choose Rename file and press  to confirm


 * -|Game Gear=


 * 1) Go into the folder
 * 2) Press  to select the file that appears, then choose
 * 3) Press + to power off the console
 * 4) Take the SD card out of your 3DS and put it into your PC
 * 5) Copy the ROM from   into the MArchiveBatchTool folder
 * 6) Right-click anywhere in the empty space inside this folder and click on the option that opens Command Prompt, PowerShell, or the terminal
 * 7) * If no such option appears, open this window manually and use  or similar commands to move the terminal into this folder
 * 8) WIP