The Unsympathetic Pirate: Why Gamers Are Siding With Nintendo in a $4.5 Million Piracy Lawsuit

2025-10-07

Image credit: Photo by Diane Newbill on Unsplash

Nintendo’s legal battles against piracy and emulation are a familiar story in the games industry, often casting the company as a corporate Goliath against individual creators and fans. But in a striking departure from this well-worn script, a new lawsuit has galvanized the gaming community in an unexpected direction: squarely into Nintendo’s corner.

The company is pursuing a default judgment of approximately $4.5 million against Mikel Euskaldunak, the alleged moderator of the r/newyuzupiracy subreddit. According to legal filings, this isn't a simple case of unauthorized game sharing. Nintendo of America accuses Euskaldunak of orchestrating a large-scale for-profit infringement operation, distributing pirated copies of marquee Switch titles like Super Mario Odyssey and Metroid Dread, trafficking in circumvention devices, and selling hardware pre-loaded with illegal software.

This lawsuit follows Nintendo's recent high-profile settlement with the developers of the Yuzu emulator, signaling an escalation in its aggressive legal strategy. Yet, where previous actions have drawn criticism from players concerned with game preservation and fair use, this case has been met with widespread community condemnation—aimed not at Nintendo, but at the defendant.

The reason for this dramatic shift in sentiment lies in a series of allegations that paint the defendant not as a digital preservationist, but as a bad actor who violated core community tenets. Reports indicate that Euskaldunak crossed a critical line by not only attempting to profit from piracy but also by allegedly doxxing a prominent and well-respected YouTuber, Modern Vintage Gamer, who covers topics in the retro gaming and emulation scene.

This combination of alleged commercialization and malicious personal attacks has effectively stripped the defendant of any community sympathy. The narrative has shifted from a debate over the ethics of emulation to a near-unanimous condemnation of an individual’s actions.

With the defendant having failed to appear in court to address the allegations, Nintendo is now seeking a default judgment. The $4,562,300 figure is not arbitrary. According to the company's legal team, it's a calculation based on statutory damages: $150,000 for each of two major copyright infringements, supplemented by a charge of $200 for each of more than 21,000 alleged trafficking violations.

In a statement from its legal filing, Nintendo underscored the gravity of the situation, asserting that the requested damages are more than justified. "This amount, while significant," the filing reads, "is nowhere near an amount that would compensate Plaintiff for the seriousness of Defendant’s conduct."

While the case awaits a final judgment, its impact on the gaming landscape is already clear. It serves as a stark reminder that the conversation around piracy is rarely black and white. In this instance, the alleged actions of one individual—profiting from the work of others and targeting community members—have rewritten the familiar story. The community's response suggests that while players may debate the nuances of corporate policy, they draw a firm line at greed and harassment, creating the rare spectacle of the fanbase and the corporation standing on the same side.