Nintendo Reportedly Cracking Down On YouTube Channels Featuring Emulation Content

I’m sure you are well aware of emulation and how abundantly easy it is to acquire not only emulators but retro games online to run on your computer. We’ve seen these emulators thrive over the years, and with them came the different devices that can run them. There’s even a sizable online market for devices that run emulated consoles and retro games. However, Nintendo is certainly not a fan of them.

Mainstream handheld devices might be easily recognizable to consumers. Things like the Valve Steam Deck have been incredibly popular, but you might not be aware of some of the smaller companies. There are manufacturers like Anbernic and Retroid that mainly focus on classic consoles and games rather than modern-day releases. So, if you were fond of taking a dedicated gaming handheld device that could play retro Sega, Nintendo, and PlayStation games, you might be well aware of some of the reviewers online who highlight these various devices.

Retro Game Coprs is a big channel that focuses on these devices. You’ll find a wide range of reviews of new and upcoming devices. The channel host, Russ, offers insights into the devices, where they thrive, and the various games you can expect the device to run. You’ll often find plenty of games being demonstrated from past Nintendo consoles. However, Russ has since taken to X and alerted followers that Nintendo has started to target the channel over the use of Nintendo games being featured.

Thanks to Time Extension, we’re discovering that Nintendo might soon be copyright-striking YouTube channels that feature their games being emulated. Nintendo is known for being very protective over its IP, so it wouldn’t be a shock if they began to strike down more YouTube channels that previously went by without any problems in the past with emulated content.

Emulation itself is a hot topic. You can make arguments for and against the use of emulation. Whatever side of the fence you’re on, if you run a YouTube channel or perhaps even stream emulated Nintendo games, you could find yourself with a copyright strike.