The 3DS was a different beast than its predecessor. Nintendo had learned from the rampant piracy of the DS era and locked their new system behind layers of proprietary encryption. The ROM inside that cartridge wasn’t just a file; it was a scrambled puzzle of bits that required a specific handshake from the console’s hardware to unlock.
The decrypted ROM changed the way the game was remembered. It allowed the game to be played on early emulators, where the resolution could be bumped from the 3DS's humble 240p to a crisp 1080p. It allowed for the "Undub" projects, where fans meticulously swapped the English voice files for the original Japanese cast while keeping the English text. Tales of the Abyss Decrypted 3DS (EUR/USA) ROM
Celes wasn't interested in piracy. She was part of a team working on a "Fan Translation Compatibility" patch. They wanted to ensure that the European and North American versions of the game could eventually host the high-quality textures and bug fixes the community had been brewing. To do that, they needed a decrypted ROM—a version of the game’s code that could be read, edited, and understood by a computer. The 3DS was a different beast than its predecessor
Technical or differences between the PS2 and 3DS versions The decrypted ROM changed the way the game was remembered
If you're looking for more info on this specific game, I can help with:
Years later, when the 3DS eShop finally closed its doors and physical copies of Tales of the Abyss became rare collectors' items, the work of those early decrypters lived on. The game was no longer trapped on a dying piece of hardware. Because of a few sleepless nights and a deep love for a story about finding one's own identity, the world of Auldrant was preserved—bit by decrypted bit—for a new generation to discover.