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How to DeKORify your Wii

I realized that while I’ve talked about Korean Wiis in the past, I never actually made a guide on how to “de-KORify” them (as in region change them to non-Korean regions). Here is that guide.

Why are Korean Wiis different? They have something called the Korean key. Nintendo changed the encryption key on the Korean software as a last ditch attempt to stop homebrew, which unsurprisingly failed. They also implemented a check in System Menu 4.2 and 4.3 to check if the Korean key was present. If it was present and the Wii’s System Menu was any region besides Korean, it would effectively brick the Wii by displaying Error 003 on startup.

The Korean Key is stored in the Wii’s SEEPROM. All we have to do to eliminate this issue is overwrite it in the SEEPROM with anything that’s not the Korean Key.

Requirements

Here are all the things you’ll need to de-KORify your Wii:

  • A homebrewed Korean Wii with internet access
  • An SD card formatted as FAT32 with enough space to store the needed apps and WADs
  • A computer with internet access and the ability to transfer files to the aforementioned SD card
  • WiiMod Lite (this is a homebrew app and should be placed in the apps folder on the SD card)
  • KoreanKii (this is a homebrew app and should be placed in the apps folder on the SD card)
  • NUS Downloader (this is a Windows application, extract it in a location that you can remember)

Two Methods

This is where the path splits:

  • If you have a Korean Wii running 4.3K and you are trying to get to 4.3U/E/J, use Method 1

  • If you have a Korean Wii running 4.2K or older and you are trying to get to 4.3U/E/J, use Method 2

Method 1:

  1. Open up NUS Downloader and navigate to Database > System > System Menu and choose the region of System Menu you are trying to change to
  2. Ensure the Pack WAD option is selected, then start the NUS download
  3. When it is complete, navigate to the directory you stored NUS Downloader in. The WAD will be located in titles/0000000100000002/51x, where x will vary depending on the region you chose.
  4. Copy this WAD to a folder on the root of your SD card named wads
  5. Eject your SD card from your computer and insert it in your Wii
  6. On your Wii, navigate to the Homebrew Channel and launch KoreanKii
  7. Once in KoreanKii, choose the option to remove the Korean key
  8. When it is complete, you can exit the app and return to the HBC
  9. Next, open WiiMod Lite. Select the WAD manager option
  10. It should automatically enter the directory with your System Menu WAD. Select the WAD and press A twice to install it
  11. When done, return to WiiMod Lite’s main menu.
  12. Navigate to the Region Changer option
  13. Once in the Region Changer, adjust the preset to match the region of the System Menu you just installed (for example, if you installed 4.3U, choose the United States preset) and save settings
  14. You can now exit WiiMod Lite and the HBC. Your Wii will return to the Wii Menu, where you will see that it has been region changed successfully, with no Error 003.

Please note that if you had Priiloader installed prior to starting this process, you will need to install it again when you are finished.

Method 2:

  1. Open up NUS Downloader and navigate to Database > System > System Menu and choose the System Menu version that matches the version you are currently on and the region you wish to change to
  2. Ensure the Pack WAD option is selected, then start the NUS download
  3. When it is complete, navigate to the directory you stored NUS Downloader in. The WAD will be located in titles/0000000100000002/xxx, where x will vary depending on the version and region you chose.
  4. Copy this WAD to a folder on the root of your SD card named wads
  5. Eject your SD card from your computer and insert it in your Wii
  6. On your Wii, navigate to the Homebrew Channel and launch KoreanKii
  7. Once in KoreanKii, choose the option to remove the Korean key
  8. When it is complete, you can exit the app and return to the HBC
  9. Next, open WiiMod Lite. Select the WAD manager option
  10. It should automatically enter the directory with your System Menu WAD. Select the WAD and press A twice to install it
  11. When done, return to WiiMod Lite’s main menu.
  12. Navigate to the Region Changer option
  13. Once in the Region Changer, adjust the preset to match the region of the System Menu you just installed (for example, if you installed 4.1U, choose the United States preset) and save settings
  14. You can now exit WiiMod Lite and the HBC. Your Wii will return to the Wii Menu, where you will see that it has been region changed successfully.
  15. Finally, run a System Update on your Wii through Settings to get it updated to 4.3. Once the update is complete, you’re all set!

Please note that if you had Priiloader installed prior to starting this process, you will need to install it again when you are finished.

Outro

Please let me know if you catch something wrong with this guide, I was pretty tired when I wrote it.

DISCLAIMER: I am not responsible for any damage that occurs to your Wii. You are following this guide at your own risk.