The Nintendo Switch 2 just got its international release recently, so attempts to hack or jailbreak the handheld console hybrid currently revolves around making use of its backwards compatibility. But it looks like the Mario maker has brought down the banhammer just as swiftly as they were attempted.

More specifically, Nintendo has started banning from online services Switch 2 devices that the company detects has been using the tool called MIG Switch. Some affected users have shared that their devices have been banned, with the only possible explanation being the use of the tool mentioned above, though it looks like the company doesn’t discriminate between backups of games people have bought or actually pirated copies.

For context, this is shaped like the average Switch game card, but with a microSD card slot. Users either dump legitimate ROMs into their microSD cards, or indeed put pirated copies in it, and once said card is slotted into the MIG Switch cartridge, the Switch reads games on the microSD card as it it was reading from an official game card.

That being said, those affected are still able to use their handheld console hybrids, and their associated Nintendo online account looks to be unaffected. But being online banned still means not being able to play multiplayer games, or even download games or their updates. But the company has mentioned in its Nintendo Account User Agreement that it retains the right to go for the nuclear option, at least for US-based accounts and devices.

Probably worth noting is the irony that the folks behind the MIG Switch, or occasionally also known as the MIG Flash, has just claimed that the tool is now “compatible with Switch 2”. The announcement post on X has since been nuked, for obvious reasons.

(Source: X, Reddit, Nintendo, Tom’s Hardware)

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