Gaming giant Nintendo has filed a lawsuit against Tropic Haze, the company behind the popular open-source Switch emulator Yuzu, accusing it of facilitating game piracy.
Yuzu emulator sued by Nintendo
The lawsuit was filed in Rhode Island. It claims that Yuzu’s technology enables users to play pirated Nintendo Switch games on unauthorized devices such as PCs and Androids. Emulators themselves are not inherently illegal. However, Nintendo argues that Yuzu’s ability to bypass the Switch’s security measures, including decryption using “illegally obtained” keys, facilitates widespread piracy.
Nintendo points to the recent leak of “The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom” as evidence of Yuzu’s role in facilitating piracy. The lawsuit claims over a million copies of the leaked game were downloaded before its official release. 20% of download links pointed users towards Yuzu to play it.
Nintendo seeks to shut down Yuzu and is also demanding compensation for damages. The company claims that Yuzu generates revenue through Patreon and paid downloads. It also asserts that its Patreon income doubled around the time “Tears of the Kingdom” was released.
This lawsuit reflects Nintendo’s history of aggressively protecting its intellectual property. The company has won previous lawsuits against piracy websites and individuals, including notorious hacker Gary Bowser.
The outcome of this lawsuit remains to be seen, with potential implications for the future of game emulation and the ongoing battle against game piracy.
In other news, Nintendo has recently revealed several new Pokémon game news during the recent Pokémon Presents video announcement. This includes a new Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It is a sequel to 2022’s Pokémon Legends: Arceus. Additionally, there’s Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket. It’s a mobile game version of the franchise’s popular trading card game.
Source: Stephen Totilo on X
