Switch modders arrested for selling consoles with ‘improved’ performance

A group of four men have confessed to selling modified Switch consoles that they claim have better performance than the official version.

Nintendo has always made it clear that it doesn’t care for people messing around with or modifying its hardware, and it especially doesn’t like it when people try to sell that hardware for profit.

Perhaps the most infamous example of this is Gary Bowser, who was slapped with a fine of £11 million for selling modified Nintendo Switch consoles; something he’ll never fully pay off in his lifetime.

And yet this has done little to dissuade people. In fact, just this week, four men in Japan are now facing criminal charges for selling Switch consoles that were purportedly modified to play pirated games and to feature ‘improved performance.’

According to Japanese news site YTV (as translated by Automaton), four men are accused of modifying 45 Switch consoles and selling 15 of them via social media last year.

They are estimated to have made 600,000 to 900,000 yen from those sales, which is around £2,837 to £4,256. It’s not said how much each individual Switch sold for, but they must’ve gone for as low as 40,000 yen, which is about £189; less than the console’s usual £259.99 price tag.

Of the four men, two of them are just 18 and 19 years old, with the other two being in their 20s and 30s. The group has confessed to what they were doing, saying they were ‘just trying to make some pocket money.’

The group was referred to prosecutors by the Kyoto Prefectural Police, who had been investigating them after receiving direct consultation from Nintendo.

It’s unclear if the consoles truly didimprove performance, but whether or not that claim is valid seems to be irrelevant. What the group is really in trouble for is for potentially violating Japan’s Trademark Act and thus infringing on Nintendo’s trademark rights.

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Whether any of the group will face prison time remains to be seen, but it’s not out of the question. Last year, another man in Japan, who was in his 50s, was handed a prison sentence of two years for doing the exact same thing.

This marked the first instance in Japan’s history of someone being arrested in relation to modifying and selling Switch consoles, and to receive a prison sentence for it. Although the sentence was later suspended, meaning the man in question wouldn’t go to prison so long as he behaves himself.

He did still receive a 500,000 yen fine, which is around £2,365. Not a small sum but certainly not as massive as the one Gary Bowser was given.

So, it’s likely the group of four will be met with the same punishment of a suspended prison sentence and fines, though whether it’ll be a collective fine or individual ones for each member remains to be seen.

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