Not in my house!
Piracy on the DS was kind of a big deal, which is why Nintendo has been taking measures to ensure that the same filth doesn’t infect the 3DS ecosystem. The 3D handheld has remained more or less untainted thus far, but the only thing stopping hackers from breaking down those barricades is time. It’s in Nintendo’s best interest to go on an early offensive.
Earlier today, Nintendo announced that it has filed suit against a South Florida-based website called HackYourConsole.com. In addition to selling various brands of DS flashcarts, the site is also accepting pre-orders for the Gateway 3DS, the very first 3DS flashcart. Further firmware updates will likely kill the Gateway, sure, but Nintendo is not about to let this business stay in business.
The press release also repeats the words of Renegade Kid’s Jools Watsham: “Piracy on the Nintendo DS system has a huge impact on games sales. It can affect everyone involved, including the many honest players out there. If independent studios, like ours, are unable to recoup the money they invest into game development, through the sales of their games, we will unfortunately see fewer independent games developed in the future.”
For people who argue “but what if I only want it for homebrew,” we all know what these devices are primarily intended for. I understand people’s desire to use the handheld they’ve purchased however they see fit, but these kinds of devices do nothing to improve the health of the machine. And with the 3DS only just starting to see a global turnaround, it doesn’t need anything impeding its progress.
Nintendo Files Lawsuit against HackYourConsole.com [Business Wire]
