In a groundbreaking move against video game piracy, Japanese authorities have made their first arrest related to the modification of Nintendo Switch hardware. On January 15, a 58-year-old man was apprehended on suspicion of violating the Trademark Act. He allegedly modified second-hand Switch consoles by welding specialized parts to their circuit boards, enabling them to run pirated games. These modified consoles, loaded with 27 illegally accessed games, were sold for ¥28,000 (approximately $180) each. The suspect has confessed to the charges and is under further investigation for potential additional violations.
Nintendo has been at the forefront of the fight against video game piracy. In a notable case from May 2024, the company targeted 8,500 copies of the Switch emulator Yuzu, following its takedown just two months earlier. Nintendo's lawsuit against Yuzu's creator, Tropic Haze, highlighted that the highly anticipated game The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom was pirated over one million times before its official release in 2023.
Legal actions against piracy are intensifying. Nintendo successfully sued the game file-sharing site RomUniverse, securing $2.1 million in damages in 2021 and over $12 million in 2018. Additionally, they blocked the GameCube and Wii emulator Dolphin from being released on the PC gaming platform Steam.
This week, insights into Nintendo's stance on piracy and emulation were shared by Koji Nishiura, Assistant Manager of the Intellectual Property Division at Nintendo. He clarified the complex legal landscape surrounding emulators, stating, "To begin with, are emulators illegal or not? This is a point often debated. While you can’t immediately claim that an emulator is illegal in itself, it can become illegal depending on how it’s used."
