3DS Random Game Launcher

Can't decide what to play? Let your 3DS pick a random installed title and launch it.

Download

View on Universal-DB — install with Universal Updater on your 3DS.

After a new GitHub Release is published, Universal Updater picks it up automatically (usually within a few hours).

1. Open Universal Updater on your 3DS
2. Search for "3DS Random Game Launcher"
3. Install the CIA (Home Menu icon) or 3DSX (Homebrew Launcher)

Manual install: download the latest .3dsx or .cia from GitHub Releases.

• 3DSX: copy to /3ds/ on your SD card, launch from Homebrew Launcher
• CIA: install with FBI or Universal Updater, launch from the Home Menu

What it does

• Picks a random eligible title from your library and launches it
• Shows a readable name (from the title's SMDH icon when available, offline catalog as fallback)
• Reroll as many times as you like before launching
• Filter what can be picked: native apps, Virtual Console, DSiWare, demos, DLC, patches, system titles, and more
• Scan SD card and/or NAND (both configurable)
• Unlisted mode for homebrew and titles not in the database (requires a readable SMDH name)
• Options saved to SD — your filters and preferences persist between sessions

While viewing a pick, use L/R to page through game, detail, and technical info screens.

Controls

Button	Action
A	Launch the selected title
Y	Reroll
L / R	Change info page
X	Quick toggle unlisted/homebrew-only mode
SELECT	Options / filters
START	Exit

In the options menu: Up/Down to move, A to toggle or restore defaults, B or SELECT to close (saves settings).

Community

• r/3dshacks discussion
• GBATemp release thread

Feedback & contributions

• Report a bug or request a feature
• Pull requests welcome
• Distribution details: docs/distribution/UNIVERSAL_UPDATER_SETUP.md

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Building (developers)

Dependencies: devkitPro with devkitARM and 3ds-dev libraries.

git clone https://github.com/selloa/3DS-Random-Game-Launcher.git
cd 3DS-Random-Game-Launcher
make

The build reads semver from VERSION and writes to dist/, e.g. 3DS-Random-Game-Launcher-v<VERSION>.3dsx. See docs/VERSIONING.md.

make does not regenerate banner PNGs — it only embeds icon.png in the .3dsx SMDH. To refresh store/CIA banner artwork (including the version label), run build.bat banners (Windows) or ./build.sh banners (Linux/Mac) before build_cia.bat.

# Windows (PowerShell — preferred if cmd/app picker acts up)
./build.ps1 release
./build.ps1 debug
./build.ps1 banners
./build.ps1 clean

# Windows (batch)
./build.bat release
./build.bat debug
./build.bat banners
./build.bat clean

# Linux/Mac
./build.sh release
./build.sh debug
./build.sh banners
./build.sh clean

CIA builds: run build.bat banners then build_cia.bat (Windows) or ./build.sh banners before packaging — see tools/README.md. Uses prebuilt tools in tools/bin/ — no submodules.

Debug build: make DEBUG=1 — adds -debug to output filenames and verbose logging.

Project map

Path	What it is
source/	App source (main.c, title_picker.c, title_smdh.c, settings.c, ui.c, …)
Makefile, build.bat, build.sh	Build .3dsx homebrew
build_cia.bat	One-step .cia packaging (Windows)
meta/banner-src/	Config-driven banner generator — see meta/banner-src/README.md
dist/	Versioned build output (gitignored)
scripts/	Python tools to refresh the title database
meta/	Distribution assets — see meta/README.md
tools/	CIA build binaries, RSF, and tooling docs
docs/	Developer and tester documentation

Documentation

• docs/README.md — full doc index
• docs/VERSIONING.md — semver and releases
• docs/TITLE_RESOLUTION_ROADMAP.md — title lookup roadmap
• docs/MAIN_C_FUNCTIONALITY.md — how main.c works
• docs/TESTING_GUIDE.md — testing checklist

Game database

The offline catalog in source/title_database.c maps title IDs to display names (8,700+ entries). Regenerate with scripts/build_title_database.py.

Sources (see docs/TITLE_RESOLUTION_ROADMAP.md):

1. hax0kartik/3dsdb — regional eShop JSONs
2. ghost-land/3dsdb — bulk category JSON
3. 3dsdb.com — XML gap fill

On-device, SMDH names take priority over the catalog when available.

What's next

Ideas for future versions:

• GUI overhaul — proper UI instead of console text
• Game carousel — browse picks with covers
• Favorites / blacklist — customize the random pool
• Play stats — track what you actually launch

Credits

• einso — original concept and implementation
• DevkitPro team — 3ds-examples app_launch template
• 3DS homebrew community — keeping the scene alive

Started as a proof-of-concept; this fork adds SMDH title resolution, filtering, persistent settings, and a rebuilt offline catalog.

License

MIT License — Copyright (c) 2025 selloa

See LICENSE for the full text.

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