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Nintendo Switch hackers are being banned from online services
Not long after its March launch last year, it was revealed that a GPU exploit in the Nintendo Switch could be used to run unofficial software, like pirated games and homebrew ROMs. Since then, the Switch's hacking community has grown, and the discovery of a new 'unpatchable' exploit last month has only made the console more attractive to pirates and homebrew fans.
Nintendo isn't taking the assault on its walled garden lightly, however, and is taking steps to crack down and dissuade users from taking advantage of the security holes.
The Japanese company has begun banning hacked consoles from its online services, sending error notifications when users attempt to log in. According to the message, "The use of online services on this console is currently restricted by Nintendo," and users will need to "Contact Customer Support via the Nintendo Support Website".
Also at Nintendo Life.
Previously: Nintendo Switch Homebrew Mode Coming Soon Due to NVIDIA Tegra X1 Exploit
Hacking Group Fail0verflow Shows Linux Running on the Nintendo Switch
The "Unpatchable" Exploit That Makes Every Current Nintendo Switch Hackable [Updated]
Related: Nintendo Switch is Fastest-Selling US Home Console
(Score: 2, Insightful) by nitehawk214 on Wednesday May 23 2018, @04:07PM (5 children)
Nintendo creates a great gaming system, but just can't help but fuck things up online.
This is just a constant of gaming. Like EA shutting down popular studios, or Sony shitting on their customers or Ubisoft being... Ubisoft.
"Don't you ever miss the days when you used to be nostalgic?" -Loiosh
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 23 2018, @05:11PM
yes, these game companies are slaveware pushers ran by dinosaurs in suits. they need to go extinct but stupid windows gamers are stupid.
(Score: 2) by frojack on Wednesday May 23 2018, @06:41PM (1 child)
Well, the gaming industry has been plagued with cheating hacks since the beginning. The PC gaming environment has a much harder time controlling this than the dedicated console market. But hackers going to hack because wining is more important than skill.
I see nothing wrong with trying to keep the playing field level.
Probably this is the wrong approach, and there should be some way to assure a standard software load when attached to the gaming network without preventing any other side use of the machine.
If Nintendo want's to lease the machines, Fine. Do that. But once you sell it you don't own it, and all you can/should insist upon is that it is returned to a factory status when gaming on their gaming network.
Android won't let you use Google Pay if your phone is in a jailbroken state. But you can use Google Pay it once you un-jailbreak the phone again. They don't want to have your credit cards in the phone if you are too stupid to lock up the phone.
Nintendo's problem is similar, but their approach is far more heavy handed. And "Contact Customer Support via the Nintendo Support Website" probably just signs you up for a DMCA violation lawsuit, or some other punitive action.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 24 2018, @04:11AM
How is having root access to your own device "stupid"?
(Score: 2) by Marand on Thursday May 24 2018, @03:44AM (1 child)
Unfortunately, this is probably a necessary thing. Some players have already been using using jailbroken Switches in Splatoon 2 to do things like unlock the expansion early and then play online vs. other players with content from it. It's only a matter of time before it escalates to full-blown cheating of the kind I've heard really ruined the first game's experience. Locking out these players is done for the same reason online-heavy PC games use all these annoying anti-cheat tools to attempt to do the same thing: because if you cheat offline it doesn't hurt anyone else, but if you start cheating online it becomes a negative experience for everyone else.
The phrasing in the summary makes it sound like Nintendo's being a dick about this, but I'm not sure what would be a better solution. Letting these people continue to have an easy avenue to cheating isn't one, it would just discourage all the honest people from playing. Maybe someone will come up with a way to switch between "legit" and jailbroken so that people interested in homebrew don't have to give up online play to do so? One can hope.
Though, to be honest, I fail to see the point. It's cool that you can do it, but there are plenty of other options for doing the non-cheat things one might want to do with a jailbroken Switch, while a big benefit of the console is its library of exclusives, some of which are made to be played online.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 24 2018, @07:43AM
So, you are saying that the problem is that console game developers still haven't learned the number one security lesson 30 years after the Morris Internet Worm brought security to the front of peoples minds:
Do not trust the client.