Save File Hacking MLP For iDevices

After my initial success writing a save-file hacker for the Android version of the MLP game, I eventually got my friend to lend me her iPad so that I could get to work on an iOS version of the hack.

Unfortunately, the iPad is running iOS 6, which means I couldn't jailbreak it to get a decrypted dump of the MLP app. This means I couldn't disassemble it and reverse engineer the derivation of the GLUID, but fortunately the iOS version saves the complete GLUID in a plist file and the rest of the save-file format is the same.

Unfortunately, non-jailbroken iDevices don't let you sideload non-market apps, which means I can't just write an easy-to-use app as I did with Android. Further, even if I did write an app just for jailbroken devices, it's not clear to me that it could modify the save-game file which exists outside of its own sandbox. Consequently, we must resort to extracting the save-file from the device, modifying it on our computer, and then pushing it back.


So without further ado, here's how you can hack your save-file on any iOS device (no jailbreaking required).

***UPDATE

Gameloft issued a DMCA takedown request of the tool to Dropbox. While I don't think DMCA applies here (the tool was original software written from scratch and contained no copyrighted content), I don't particularly feel like starting a battle over it.

If you're looking for alternative options, here are some ideas other people came up with:

https://pay.reddit.com/r/MLPIOS/comments/139tit/the_ios_hack_youve_all_been_waiting_for_all_items/

https://pay.reddit.com/r/MLPIOS/comments/1349n8/hardcore_cheating_for_tons_of_coins_and_gems/

***

See the video tutorial here:

A word of warning first: if you're not careful you can lose your saved game and then you'd have to start over! When you download your saved game in step 3, make sure you keep a copy and don't accidentally delete it.

The first thing you'll need is i-FunBox which is a free application for Windows and Mac which we'll use to pull save files off the iPad and push modified save files back onto the iPad.

Step 1) Restart your iPhone/iPad. The My Little Pony game needs to be completely shutdown, and the only reliable way I found to do that is to restart the device.

Step 2) Open up your device in i-FunBox and find the "MyLittlePony" app under "User Applications". From there, go to the Library/Preferences folder.

In this folder find the "com.gameloft.mylittlepony.plist" file. Right-click on it and select "Open".

Once it opens, you should see something like the following screenshot. You need to copy the line under GAMELOFT_GLUID. This is your GLUID, which you'll need later. Paste it into notepad or write it down somewhere.

Step 3) Still in i-FunBox under the MyLittlePony app, go to the "Documents" folder.

In this folder is your current save file, named "mlp_save.dat". Right-click on it and select "Copy to PC" to save it somewhere on your computer.

Step 4) Open Chrome and go to the save-file tool I made: <REMOVED: SEE UPDATE AT TOP>
This tool works completely in Chrome and works more-or-less in Firefox, but I'm not sure about any other browsers. If you have any trouble using it, please try Chrome.

In the tool, select the mlp_save.dat file you saved in step 3 and then in the GLUID box, paste the GLUID you copied in step 2. If you've done everything correctly, you should see the rest of the fields populate with the data from your save file.

Change the rest of the fields however you'd like, and when you're done press the "Generate New Save File" button. Chrome should save a new file to your computer (by default named "NEW_mlp_save.dat").

Step 5) Return to i-FunBox, which should still be open in the "Documents" folder of the MyLittlePony app. Start by deleting the existing mlp_save.dat file (REMEMBER WHAT I SAID AT THE TOP ABOUT KEEPING A BACKUP?).

Select "Copy From PC" and select the file you downloaded in step 4. After you've uploaded it in i-FunBox, the last step is to rename it "mlp_save.dat" to match the file you just deleted.

Step 6) Start up the game on your iPad/iPhone! The first thing you should see is the Gameloft/Hasbro logos and the loading screen (and if not, you didn't do step 1 and you need to start over from the beginning >:( ). Once the game loads, you should see the new values!