Games

This is How Nintendo Tracked Down Switch Pirate

Published

1 month ago

November 15, 2024

Christoph Rediske

Key Takeaways

Table of Contents

Nintendo sued James Williams for selling pirated Switch games which led to a default judgment against him.
Williams’ mistake of connecting his online handles led Nintendo to track down his physical address.

How Nintendo tracked down an individual apparently responsible for selling pirated copies of Nintendo Switch games has come to light. The company’s legal teams seem to always be looking for those who would try to illegally profit off Nintendo’s property, and due to recent filings, there’s a bit of a clue into how one of these searches ended in an alleged pirate being handed a lawsuit.

Back in July, it came to light that Nintendo had sued an individual named James Williams for his alleged distribution and sale of large libraries of illicit Nintendo Switch games. Williams was accused of not only selling the games, but also helping others to play unofficial copies via a community he helped moderate. While Williams had apparently made quite a name for himself online, that also ended up being part of his downfall.

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According to legal documentation and court filings initially reported by Game File, James “Archbox” Williams made a number of mistakes that made him a relatively easy man to track down. According to the filings, law firm Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp was hired by Nintendo to investigate online shops offering pirated Nintendo Switch games back in 2023. Archbox apparently popped up in the firm’s hunt, and was brought to Nintendo’s attention. At that time, not much was known other than the Archbox handle and that they seemed to be located somewhere in Phoenix, Arizona, due to a history of postings they’d made on Reddit.

Where Did Nintendo Make the Connection to the Switch Pirate?

Exactly how Nintendo got from this basic information to tracking down Williams isn’t 100% known. By Feburary 2024, Nintendo had apparently connected Archbox to two accounts belonging to James Williams. It’s not clear if he had been using the exact same handle on a Nintendo account or connected email address, but that sounds as though it might be the case. From there, the game giant looked up the email addresses they had in its own Nintendo repair database and found that James Williams had an account there, too, and had previously requested repairs, giving Nintendo the physical address they needed to serve the lawsuit.

In the end, after claiming that he would cooperate, Williams failed to plead in court, resulting in a default judgment being handed to Nintendo. While the post history and alleged conduct of Archbox indicate that the individual had been doing this for a long time, it seems they weren’t very thorough in trying to hide their identity. Some prior searches for Nintendo pirates have led to jailtime, showing once again that it’s not worth trying to rip off Nintendo.

Nintendo Switch

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The Nintendo Switch is a hybrid portable and home console that aims to be the only gaming system anyone needs. The hybrid controller is an undisputed success because it provides a high degree of portable visual quality and converts easily into a home console.

Brand: Nintendo
Battery: 1 Lithium Polymer batteries required
Dimensions: 13.7 x 7.8 x 3.66 inches
Weight: 2.65 pounds