Nintendo is Shutting Down Skyline Switch Emulator on Android

Skyline, a popular Nintendo Switch emulator available on the Android platform, is subject to removal following Nintendo's DMCA takedown notice.

Nintendo has been notorious for being strict in regulating its IP. From a simple hacked game to an emulator, the Japanese gaming giant won't stop until it purges the violators.

Nintendo Takes Down Skyline Switch Emulator

According to a report by Android Authority, the Skyline developers have confirmed that Nintendo is indeed requesting them to delete the emulator following legal concerns.

It should be noted that emulators are legal, but Nintendo has clarified that the case for Skyline is quite different. The software uses Lockpick, which Nintendo sees as reliable proof that the team copyrighted its Switch keys.

"We find ourselves in a position where we are potentially violating their copyright by continuing to develop our project, Skyline, by dumping keys from our own Switches," Skyline said on Discord.

Because of this, the team agreed to stop all means of development for the Skyline Switch emulator. Since the emulator is not illegal, the team won't erase any software builds of the app.

So far, the game publisher has only ordered Skyline to cease running under any Android-related work. However, according to one developer, they would instead focus on bringing an Android emulator that can run Windows games

The Gamer reports that Skyline won't resist fighting Nintendo for this legal action. Given Nintendo's history of going after hackers and developers, the team is not in the right position to wage a war against a powerful corporation in the video game community.

Before the Skyline takedown happened, Nintendo hacker Gary Bowser was imprisoned for a year. He will also pay the company 25% of his wages as a lifetime punishment for pirating the games.

Nintendo Wins Dispute Against Dstorage

Just last month, Nintendo Life reported that Nintendo won a dispute against Dstorage, a website operator which pirated some exclusive titles from its page.

The handler of the famous website 1fichier.com lost the legal battle after the judges sided with Nintendo's claims about the site's piracy methods.

As compensation, Dstorage will pay Nintendo $485,000 for the damages that it caused to the company's intellectual properties. The additional $27,000 will be for legal fees.

Surprisingly, the launch of Nintendo Switch in 2017 was spoiled when the US Department of Justice found out that a minor hacked it before its official release date.

At that time, Tech Times reported that then-17-year-old Ryan Hernandez was discovered to be actively participating in a computer hacking scheme with his associates.

The authorities said that the suspects launched a phishing technique that easily stole the data from a Nintendo employee. Once they accessed the credentials, they could download all Nintendo-related files.