Current Events > Nintendo DMCA's Steam version of Dolphin

(+) Yeah! (+)

Fuck you Nintendo, there is no Wii or GameCube source code used for Dolphin.

https://www.pcgamer.com/nintendo-sends-valve-dmca-notice-to-block-steam-release-of-wii-emulator-dolphin/

Jokes on them...

nuff said.

Dolphin can challenge it and win if they want.

Is it just me, or does it seem like Nintendo has been getting more and more... overzealous with this stuff as of late?

Solar_Crimson posted...

Is it just me, or does it seem like Nintendo has been getting more and more... overzealous with this stuff as of late?

They do this every week for the past 15 years.

People really need to not announce these projects before releasing them, dunno how people are still fucking that up to this day, Nintendo consistently shuts them down midway. >_>

Hoodroar posted...

People really need to not announce these projects before releasing them, dunno how people are still fucking that up to this day, Nintendo consistently shuts them down midway. >_>

Literally attention seekers.

The people behind AM2R did it right.

Jagr_68 posted...

They do this every week for the past 15 years.

Yeah, it's like saying Disney is really copyright happy right now as though they aren't at all times trying to crush a twelve year old for drawing a picture of Mickey.

Solar_Crimson posted...

Is it just me, or does it seem like Nintendo has been getting more and more... overzealous with this stuff as of late?

nah they always been this way the go after game streamers aswell

Solar_Crimson posted...

Is it just me, or does it seem like Nintendo has been getting more and more... overzealous with this stuff as of late?

They've always been on the lookout to shut down stuff like this, but I think the Tears of the Kingdom leak send them over the edge and now they're just going completely scorched earth.

Hoodroar posted...

People really need to not announce these projects before releasing them, dunno how people are still fucking that up to this day, Nintendo consistently shuts them down midway. >_>

Woolie said it best

https://youtu.be/hqwP6uuYOWo

Solar_Crimson posted...

Is it just me, or does it seem like Nintendo has been getting more and more... overzealous with this stuff as of late?

nah nintendo is used to shutting stuff down but they've mostly left emulators alone
However the tears of the kingdom leak was the last straw and they have been shutting down everything. I wouldn't be surprised if they come for Yuzu and Ryujinx next

"Hey guys you know those old GameCube and Wii games that we refuse to put up for sale again? don't you go find other ways to play them either." - Nintendo

Solar_Crimson posted...

Is it just me, or does it seem like Nintendo has been getting more and more... overzealous with this stuff as of late?

they've always been like this

Solar_Crimson posted...

Is it just me, or does it seem like Nintendo has been getting more and more... overzealous with this stuff as of late?

They have always been this way.

Why would they put a nintendo emulator on steam though?

Tyranthraxus posted...

Dolphin can challenge it and win if they want.

If they spend copious amounts of money and resources to fight it in court. Bleem! eventually won its court case against Sony, but it was so expensive that it put them out of business.

Hoodroar posted...

People really need to not announce these projects before releasing them, dunno how people are still fucking that up to this day, Nintendo consistently shuts them down midway. >_>

The emulator has been around forever, this was just a steam release because it's legal to do so.

Chicken posted...

Why would they put a nintendo emulator on steam though?

Easy to update it without any bullshit, cloud saves, etc. Same reason that RetroArch is on there.

TheHoldSteady posted...

"Hey guys you know those old GameCube and Wii games that we refuse to put up for sale again? don't you go find other ways to play them either." - Nintendo

"Hey guys, you know those 3DS games that we refuse to sell you anymore because we completely shut down the e-shop for it? Here's a random system update so you can't modify your 3DS systems to still get them. Now go buy a Switch and a NSO subscription or we'll break your kneecaps." - Nintendo

There's nothing illegal about an emulator

Shitendo

Powdered_Toast posted...

The emulator has been around forever, this was just a steam release because it's legal to do so.

Doesn't matter what's legal when nobody wants to go to court with Nintendo over the stuff. That the emulator already exists is even more reason to not talk about the Steam version until it's actually done.

They must be terrified of 4K 60fps ToTK or even being playable on a Steam Deck.

Tyranthraxus posted...

Dolphin can challenge it and win if they want.

They probably shouldn't. With how shitty things have gotten in America lately, the courts probably would side with Nintendo now and make emulation illegal.

Tyranthraxus posted...

Dolphin can challenge it and win if they want.

Hoodroar posted...

Doesn't matter what's legal when nobody wants to go to court with Nintendo over the stuff. That the emulator already exists is even more reason to not talk about the Steam version until it's actually done.

This. Those with money dont need to be right in a civil case. Just run the other side out of money and you win by default.

Its not a bug, either. Its a feature.

Guess I should have added "more than usual" at the end of my post. >_>

Doesnt matter if Dolphin is in the right or wrong. Nintendo has the money to drag out the court case while Dolphin doesn't >_>

Solar_Crimson posted...

Is it just me, or does it seem like Nintendo has been getting more and more... overzealous with this stuff as of late?

Yeah, while they've always been like this, TotK leaking pushed them over the edge.

In the last month they went after Switch emulators, updating the 3DS to block homebrew and now this. In the last topic, I said expect way more.

NeonTentacles posted...

Doesnt matter if Dolphin is in the right or wrong. Nintendo has the money to drag out the court case while Dolphin doesn't >_>

Such is the nature of the justice system.

TheHoldSteady posted...

"Hey guys you know those old GameCube and Wii games that we refuse to put up for sale again? don't you go find other ways to play them either." - Nintendo

They likely plan to eventually add GameCube games to the subscription service. Maybe on the successor to the Switch

[LFAQs-redacted-quote]


No one wants to roll the dice, though. Because if they lose then we might wind up with a bad precedent.

Same reason why no one wants to go to court over lets plays and streaming, because losing (which can happen despite being logically and morally in the right) would screw over many people and give publishers even more power over coverage and criticism.

I can't believe someone is bold enough to post an emulator to Steam, of all places. Sure, you can probably slink by in the poorly lit corners of Google or Apple, but Steam just seems like playing with fire.

darkbuster posted...

I can't believe someone is bold enough to post an emulator to Steam, of all places. Sure, you can probably slink by in the poorly lit corners of Google or Apple, but Steam just seems like playing with fire.

Being offered for free so they don't profit from it, and there's no roms or bios included.

darkbuster posted...

I can't believe someone is bold enough to post an emulator to Steam, of all places. Sure, you can probably slink by in the poorly lit corners of Google or Apple, but Steam just seems like playing with fire.

Remember that time someone tried to put a World of Warcraft private server up?

Isn't retroarch already on steam?

FL81 posted...

If they spend copious amounts of money and resources to fight it in court. Bleem! eventually won its court case against Sony, but it was so expensive that it put them out of business.

Bleem! Had a lot of disadvantages that Dolphin doesn't have. If dolphin started a GoFundMe for legal defenses that shit would be covered in no time at all.

[LFAQs-redacted-quote]

Doesn't matter. Like someone earlier said, nobody wants to fuck with them.

An emulator I'm not gonna mention folded ASAP earlier this month because the people doing it were a bunch of young high schoolers and simply couldn't risk it, even if they would have had a good argument.

[LFAQs-redacted-quote]


They sent the request to Valve itself, and its down to them what gets approved or rejected for Steam. They would probably reject the emulator solely to avoid being associated with it.

Its the same thing on YouTube. A takedown request is just asking Google to take it off their platform, which they obviously have the right to do. The only way to keep it down afterward is to take it to court.

So whether or not Nintendo has power, or the legality of emulators as a standalone, isnt really relevant. It just comes down to how willing Valve is to get involved.

Jagr_68 posted...

They do this every week for the past 15 years.

^this

Dark_Arbron posted...

They sent the request to Valve itself, and its down to them what gets approved or rejected for Steam. They would probably reject the emulator solely to avoid being associated with it.

Its the same thing on YouTube. A takedown request is just asking Google to take it off their platform, which they obviously have the right to do. The only way to keep it down afterward is to take it to court.

So whether or not Nintendo has power, or the legality of emulators as a standalone, isnt really relevant. It just comes down to how willing Valve is to get involved.

Valve will take it down to comply with DMCA. That's not even a question.

They won't hold it against the developers though and if they win in court it'll go back up.

[LFAQs-redacted-quote]

what they lack in legal standing, they make up for in copious amounts of money

Looks like Dolphin oofed up and included unauthorized keys.

https://twitter.com/LuigiBlood/status/1662255762649874433

ImagineUsngAlts posted...

Looks like Dolphin oofed up and included unauthorized keys.

This is almost certainly legal. I say almost because a supreme court ruling could always throw shit out of whack and who fuckin knows with the current SCOTUS.

https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-5th-circuit/1539625.html

DMCA targets the circumvention of digital walls guarding copyrighted material (and trafficking in circumvention tools), but does not concern itself with the use of those materials after circumvention has occurred.). The issue, therefore, is not whether the technological measures that effectively controlled access to MGE's software were circumvented at some point, but whether the actions of GE/PMI's own representatives amounted to circumvention. The DMCA defines circumvention broadly to include not only disabling protections, but also avoiding or bypassing them. See 17 U.S.C. 1201(a)(3)(A). We, however, do not construe bypass or avoid to encompass use of a copyrighted work subsequent to a circumvention merely because that use would have been subject to a technological measure that would have controlled access to the work, but for that circumvention. So broad a construction would extend the DMCA beyond its intended purposes to reach extensive conduct already well-regulated by existing copyright laws.

Edit: Apple also lost a similar case related to the jailbreaking of phones because of this and if APPLE can't win I don't think Nintendo has a chance.

Tyranthraxus posted...

Valve will take it down to comply with DMCA. That's not even a question.

They won't hold it against the developers though and if they win in court it'll go back up.

I still hope Valve will be onry enough to throw around some fuck-me-money and go to bat. Not like Nintendo will ever cave to be on Steam

Tyranthraxus posted...

This is almost certainly legal. I say almost because a supreme court ruling could always throw shit out of whack and who fuckin knows with the current SCOTUS.

*Six months later*

In a landmark ruling, the Supreme Court passed a controversial decision by a 6-3 vote, declaring that emulators of old gaming systems is now illegal. Furthermore, they also added that game developers have the right to recall prior sales of games, without compensation to the purchaser, stating that the media is still the property of the developer and they can do whatever the fuck they please with it at any time. This ruling will have broad reaches, as it is not limited to the gaming industry, but all forms of media.

The_Popo posted...

*Six months later*

In a landmark ruling, the Supreme Court passed a controversial decision by a 6-3 vote, declaring that emulators of old gaming systems is now illegal. Furthermore, they also added that game developers have the right to recall prior sales of games, without compensation to the purchaser, stating that the media - including physical media - is still the property of the developer and they can do whatever the fuck they please with it at any time. This ruling will have broad reaches, as it is not limited to the gaming industry, but all forms of media.

This ruling would affect a lot more than that. Tractor Farmers are fighting the same battle as we speak against John Deere and winning everywhere. A ruling here against dolphin would reverse functionally years of steady judicial trends that circumventing DRM for legally purchased software is not a copyright violation in any capacity.