Nintendo has won its lawsuit against James Williams, an alleged moderator of the r/SwitchPirates subreddit and a purveyor of pirated Switch games — to the tune of $4.5 million. According to a report from Aftermath (via Kotaku), Nintendo won on a default judgment, meaning Williams never responded to the suit or appeared in court. Because he didn’t contest the case, the court handed Nintendo essentially what it asked for: the full $4.5 million in damages.
What the Court Ordered
Default judgments are what courts issue when a defendant simply doesn’t show up — no defense, no arguments, no trial. Beyond the damages, the court documents say Williams must also shut down any websites he runs where pirated Switch material is distributed. It’s a potentially life-ruinous sum for a single subreddit moderator — one Kotaku dryly contrasts with the energy Nintendo brings to companies and entities that actually have the money to pay these kinds of figures.
Part of a Bigger Crackdown
Nintendo first filed suit against Williams in 2024, as part of a larger crackdown on pirating activity around the original Switch. That same sweep famously targeted Ryan Daly, the owner of Modded Hardware — a site specializing in modded original Switches, mod kits and flash carts. Daly initially struck a deal with Nintendo: stop the illegal activity, and Nintendo would call off its lawyers. That didn’t happen. The case went to court, and Daly ended up owing $2 million and was forced to relinquish the hardware he used to mod consoles.
The Message Nintendo Keeps Sending
Two seven-figure judgments against individuals in barely two years make the pattern hard to miss: Nintendo treats Switch piracy as a threat worth litigating into the ground, one defendant at a time. Nintendo’s consoles continue to sell in enormous numbers — the Switch 2 era is now underway — and the company seems determined to make examples of anyone who builds a business, or even a community, around unauthorized copies of its games.
Whether a $4.5 million default judgment actually deters the piracy scene, or simply becomes the accepted cost of getting caught, is the question r/SwitchPirates and its neighbors will be asking themselves this week. One thing is certain: Nintendo’s lawyers aren’t slowing down.