Nintendo Updates User Agreement: Violators Risk Switch Being Bricked

Nintendo has recently tightened its user agreement, implementing a more stringent policy against players who hack their Switch console, use emulators, or engage in any other "unauthorized use." As reported by Game File, emails have been sent to players informing them that the "Nintendo Account Agreement and the Nintendo Account Privacy Policy" have been updated. These new rules, effective as of May 7, supersede all previous versions and apply to both existing and new Nintendo Account users. According to Game File, there have been approximately 100 changes made to the agreement.

Prior to May 6, the agreement stipulated that users were "not allowed to lease, rent, sublicense, publish, copy, modify, adapt, translate, reverse engineer, decompile or disassemble all or any portion of the Nintendo Account Services without Nintendo's written consent, or unless otherwise expressly permitted by applicable law." However, the updated version for U.S. users significantly expands this clause:

"Without limitation, you agree that you may not (a) publish, copy, modify, reverse engineer, lease, rent, decompile, disassemble, distribute, offer for sale, or create derivative works of any portion of the Nintendo Account Services; (b) bypass, modify, decrypt, defeat, tamper with, or otherwise circumvent any of the functions or protections of the Nintendo Account Services, including through the use of any hardware or software that would cause the Nintendo Account Services to operate other than in accordance with its documentation and intended use; (c) obtain, install or use any unauthorized copies of Nintendo Account Services; or (d) exploit the Nintendo Account Services in any manner other than to use them in accordance with the applicable documentation and intended use, in each case, without Nintendo’s written consent or express authorization, or unless otherwise expressly permitted by applicable law. You acknowledge that if you fail to comply with the foregoing restrictions Nintendo may render the Nintendo Account Services and/or the applicable Nintendo device permanently unusable in whole or in part."

As highlighted by Nintendo Life, the agreement differs in the UK, where users agree that:

"Any Digital Products registered to your Nintendo Account and any updates of such Digital Products are licensed only for personal and non-commercial use on a User Device. Digital Products must not be used for any other purpose. In particular, without NOE's written consent, you must neither lease nor rent Digital Products nor sublicense, publish, copy, modify, adapt, translate, reverse engineer, decompile or disassemble any portion of Digital Products other than as expressly permitted by applicable law. Such unauthorised use of a Digital Product may result in the Digital Product becoming unusable."

While Nintendo has not specified what "unusable" means, the language suggests that the company may now have the authority to "brick" a user's console if it believes its rules have been violated. Additionally, changes to the privacy policy emphasize that Nintendo may monitor Switch users' online chats to maintain a "safe and family-friendly online environment" and to detect violations of the Nintendo Account Agreement and other harmful or illegal interactions.

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These updates may be a response to Nintendo's recent challenges, including high-profile piracy cases, as well as the upcoming launch of the highly-anticipated Nintendo Switch 2 on June 5. Pre-orders for the Nintendo Switch 2 opened on April 24, with the price set at $449.99. The demand was as high as expected, and Nintendo has warned U.S. customers who pre-ordered through the My Nintendo Store that delivery on the release date is not guaranteed due to overwhelming demand. For more information, check out IGN's Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order guide.