Nintendo has been squashing any attempt at Switch emulation over the course of the last 12 months. However, they haven’t stopped at emulation. Nintendo has now set their sites on Pirates. What’s more, they’ve resorted to some pretty impressive sleuthing to catch their first one.
As first reported on Game File and later IGN. Nintendo tracked down a key player in the emulation and modification scene. They did so by analysing his Reddit comments and searching their database for related names. Finally finding that he had requested repairs. That was all they needed to send him a letter telling him to cease and desist.
But what did he do? Reportedly, “Archbox” aka James Williams has been modifying consoles so that they can operate outside of Nintendo’s predefined rules. This extends to downloading a game cart’s content and security keys as well as emulating other consoles. James is also one of the moderators of Switch Pirates, a Reddit group that has grown to thousands of users.
If that doesn’t sound like enough of a slam dunk for Nintendo, James reportedly failed to show up to court and as such the court by default ruled in favour of Nintendo. This is not a good move for emulation as it only serves to reinforce Nintendo’s case that all forms of emulation should be considered illegal.
If you are interested in reading about how Nintendo considers linking to emulation software an act of piracy in and of itself read here. Nintendo also acquired a new domain recently, you might be surprised to find out which.
