After Nintendo filed a lawsuit against the popular Yuzu emulator for the Switch, the platform has officially shut down. Fans visiting the website are now greeted with a message from the developers stating that it’s the end.
In addition, both Citra and a 3DS emulator are being taken down and closed to address the repercussions, according to a report from XDA Developers.
We viewed Yuzu as a tool to enhance the gaming experience for Nintendo Switch players by offering games in higher resolution, improved graphics quality, and smoother frame rates. This was particularly important as the console is now considered outdated, with newer games like the latest Pokemon titles struggling to run smoothly.
The message reads:
“Hello, Yuz-ers and Citra fans: We write today to inform you that Yuzu and Yuzu’s support of Citra is being discontinued, effective immediately.” Yuzu’s team then added that they have always been against piracy and that it was never their intention in the first place since the platform was made for their love of Nintendo and its games.” They added, “But we see now that because our projects can circumvent Nintendo’s technological protection measures and allow users to play games outside of authorized hardware, they have led to extensive piracy”.
The developers have chosen to take action, stating that they “cannot let this continue” and announcing plans to “disable their code repositories, close their Patreon accounts and Discord servers, and ultimately shut down their websites”.
As reported by XDA Developers, Yuzu resolved the case by agreeing to a settlement of $2.4 million and shutting down its Patreon, websites, and all official channels for distributing the emulator.
The Yuzu developers also used their official X (formerly Twitter) account to communicate the message to their fans and users:
Nintendo is recognized for enforcing strict rules regarding their games and consoles, as exemplified by their response to Yuzu. This action by the Japanese company sparked significant discussion on various social media platforms like YouTube and X. Numerous YouTubers, such as Some Ordinary Gamers, expressed their opinions on the situation by creating three videos critiquing Nintendo’s actions.
