Nintendo Intensifies Efforts to Combat Switch Piracy

Nintendo is stepping up its battle against piracy, honing in on individuals associated with Switch modder James “Archbox” Williams. Determined to protect its intellectual property, the company is involved in legal proceedings aiming to hold accountable those involved in selling pirated Nintendo content.

This isn’t new territory for Nintendo, as the gaming giant has a long history of leveraging the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) to dismantle channels that leak or distribute ROMs and emulators of its titles and consoles. Just earlier this year, Nintendo reached a $2.4 million settlement with Tropic Haze over its Yuzu Switch emulator, a project that has since been scrapped.

Despite a busy court year, Nintendo is pressing forward, looking to serve more legal notices. Recent filings in a Washington state district court reveal that Nintendo is targeting more suspects tied to piracy following an investigation into a well-known Switch pirate. The company tracked, sued, and won a default judgment against James “Archbox” Williams, who was also a moderator on the SwitchPirates subreddit—a community with over 216,000 members. To navigate through this tangled web, Nintendo is seeking permission to subpoena records from platforms like Reddit, Discord, and GitHub to uncover Williams’ alleged accomplices.

Earlier in June 2024, alongside the action against Williams, Nintendo filed another lawsuit against Modded Hardware, an entity accused of selling MIG Switch devices preloaded with pirated Nintendo games. Despite receiving a cease and desist order in March 2024, Modded Hardware’s Ryan Daly continued these activities until legal proceedings were initiated.

Nintendo’s track record shows it won’t back down from safeguarding its creations, especially with the anticipated release of the successor to its popular Switch console on the horizon. The outcome of these relentless legal efforts remains to be seen, but one thing is certain—Nintendo is not letting its guard down anytime soon.