A US District Judge has handed Nintendo a £3.4 million ($4.5m) default judgment against James Williams, the former Reddit moderator known online as “Archbox”, after he failed to respond to a lawsuit over alleged Nintendo Switch piracy. The ruling, reported by TorrentFreak, confirms the full sum Nintendo sought in damages and comes after a legal battle that began in 2024 when the company tracked Williams down through his activity on r/SwitchPirates, the subreddit he moderated.
Williams, who operated under the handle “Archbox”, was the main administrator behind the popular piracy-focused community on Reddit. Nintendo had previously targeted other figures in the same scene, including Gary Bowser and the emulator software Yuzu, before turning its attention to Williams. The company’s legal team built its case by analysing his Reddit posts, which they say pointed to his role in running an unauthorised distribution network.
A £150,000 Price Tag Per Game
Nintendo’s claim rested on a strikingly simple calculation: the company asked for $150,000 for each of the 30 games Williams allegedly pirated. The list reportedly included some of the Switch’s most popular titles, such as The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Multiplying the per-game figure by the number of titles produced exactly the $4.5 million Nintendo sought, and the judge agreed with the company’s assessment.
In his ruling, the judge noted that although Williams had never formally answered the lawsuit, he could not have been unaware of it, given that he had previously hired a lawyer to object to a Google subpoena. The judge concluded that “Williams’ egregious infringement activities merit substantial punishment here”, and issued a permanent injunction barring him from distributing any pirated Nintendo games — not just the 30 named titles — and from encouraging others to do the same.
The judge also credited Nintendo for not separately seeking DMCA damages or attorneys’ fees, calling it a “gesture of reasonableness” that supported awarding the maximum copyright damages.
US District Judge
The Broader War On Switch Piracy
This case is part of a wider, ongoing effort by Nintendo to dismantle the Switch piracy ecosystem. The company has pursued several high-profile defendants over the years, each of whom has been accused of facilitating access to vast libraries of unauthorised Switch games available for download. Nintendo’s strategy has been to identify the key nodes in these networks — the moderators, the emulators, and the individuals who promote the “shops” that sell or distribute stolen content.
Williams’ role as a community moderator made him a central figure in Nintendo’s investigation. By tracking his posts, the company was able to piece together the scale of his involvement and the reach of the piracy network he helped sustain. The default judgment underscores how seriously Nintendo treats these cases, treating the failure to respond to legal proceedings as grounds for the maximum penalty.
The case also carries wider implications for the piracy community. Beyond the financial penalty, the permanent injunction means Williams faces ongoing restrictions on his ability to distribute or promote pirated content, a legal consequence that could extend well beyond this particular lawsuit.
Looking Ahead
While Nintendo has not announced any further steps in this specific case, the ruling reinforces the company’s commitment to pursuing piracy networks aggressively. The precedent set here — where a non-responsive defendant can face the full statutory damages award — may encourage rights holders to pursue similar claims with confidence.
The case arrives at a time when piracy remains a persistent challenge for the industry, with new tools and communities continually emerging to distribute unauthorised copies of games. Nintendo’s legal team has made clear that it will continue to hold individuals accountable for their role in these networks, regardless of how they attempt to evade the process.
Meanwhile, the broader piracy scene has its own history of irony. Last month, John Romero, the co-founder of id Software and the father of the Quake and Doom series, recounted a tale about when id Software worked with Taiwanese pirates to spread Doom — a reminder that the relationship between developers and piracy has often been more complicated than a simple story of good versus bad.
For Nintendo, however, the message is clear: piracy is a business, and the cost of running one can now come with a very specific price tag.
Switch pirate Gary Bowser behind bars
targeting emulator software Yuzu
court papers revealed Nintendo was seeking $4.5m in damages from Williams
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
recounted a tale about when id Software worked with Taiwanese pirates to spread Doom
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