Owners of ROM sites ordered to pay Nintendo more than $12 million

By Gabe Gurwin Published November 13, 2018

super mario bros — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Back in July, news broke that Nintendo had filed lawsuits against Jacob Mathias, the owner of the ROM-hosting sites LoveROMs.com and LoveRetro.co, as those sites had been hosting unauthorized Nintendo games for others to download and play through an emulator. Now, Mathias and his wife have been ordered to pay the gaming giant more than $12 million in damages.

A final judgment by United States District Court Judge Jennifer G. Zipps in a federal district court in Arizona has awarded Nintendo $12.23 million, with both parties responsible for paying their own legal fees.

According to TorrentFreak, Jacob Mathias and wife Cristian Mathias admitted that hosting the two websites “constituted direct and indirect copyright and trademark infringement, which caused Nintendo irreparable injury.” Furthermore, the two must relinquish all emulators and Nintendo games in their possession, and as requested in Nintendo’s original lawsuit filing, the rights to both websites will be transferred to Nintendo as well.

It’s not surprising that Nintendo would be this actively litigious regarding its older games. The company’s retro titles have been re-released countless times through programs like the Virtual Console and the Nintendo Switch Online service. Additionally, they can be purchased as part of the NES Classic and SNES Classic plug-and-play consoles, which have flown off the shelves since they were first introduced a few years ago.

Image used with permission by copyright holder

Right now, the only way to play most NES games on the Nintendo Switch is to become a Nintendo Switch Online subscriber. The program gives members access to a vault of classic games with added online play, and it also provides users with cloud saves and the ability to play other games online. Prior to its introduction this fall, playing the Switch online didn’t require any sort of subscription fee, but the $20 yearly cost for the program is substantially lower than it is for both the Xbox and PlayStation.

Hackers have already figured out ways to mess with the Nintendo Switch’s software to allow it to accept different ROMs than the ones included with the program. This is unlikely to stop in the future, though the threat of paying millions of dollars to Nintendo may well give some hackers pause before they start tinkering.

Topics

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…

Gaming

Ubisoft confirms Assassin’s Creed remakes are in the works

Basim perched on a ledge overlooking Baghdad

In a company interview with CEO Yves Guillemot posted on the Ubisoft website Thursday, the executive reveals that there are remakes of Assassin's Creed games in the works, although he doesn't specify which ones.

"Players can be excited about some remakes, which will allow us to revisit some of the games we've created in the past and modernize them," he says, implying that it could pertain to games made before Odyssey. "There are worlds in some of our older Assassin's Creed games that are still extremely rich."

Gaming

Surfaced patent shows what an Xbox streaming console would’ve looked like

An Xbox Series X sits next to both Series S models.

There have been a few Xbox devices that have never come to fruition, one of which was Keystone, a prototype for an affordable game streaming device you could hook up to your TV or monitor. Thanks to a surfaced patent, we've gotten an even closer look at what it would've potentially looked like.

The patent, first spotted by Windows Central, gives us a more complete view of the device. We've previously seen the Keystone in the flesh. Microsoft Gaming head Phil Spencer is known for hiding teases and interesting collectibles on the shelf in his office. In a 2022 X (formerly Twitter) post congratulating Bethesda on Fallout's 25th anniversary, you can see a small white device on the top shelf that's actually a Keystone prototype. Xbox told Digital Trends that it was a version of the device made before it decided to "refocus our efforts on a new approach.”

Gaming

Wordle Today: Wordle answer and hints for June 28

Someone playing Wordle on a smartphone.

We have the solution to Wordle on June 28, as well as some helpful hints to help you figure out the answer yourself, right here. We've placed the answer at the bottom of the page, so we don't ruin the surprise before you've had a chance to work through the clues. So let's dive in, starting with a reminder of yesterday's answer.
Yesterday's Wordle answer
Let's start by first reminding ourselves of yesterday's Wordle answer for those new to the game or who don't play it daily, which was "ORDER." So we can say that the Wordle answer today definitely isn't that. Now, with that in mind, perhaps take another stab at it using one of these Wordle starting words and circle back if you have no luck.
Hints for today's Wordle
Still can't figure it out? We have today's Wordle answer right here, below. But first, one more thing: Let's take a look at three hints that could help you find the solution, without giving it away, so there's no need to feel guilty about keeping your streak alive -- you put in some work, after all! Or just keep scrolling for the answer.

Today’s Wordle includes the letter D.
Today’s Wordle uses two vowels.
Today's Wordle can refer to a large number of animals, particularly livestock like cattle or sheep, that are moving together in a group.