Buying used games has always been a part of gaming culture. Now, Nintendo bizarelly banning some accounts for playing used games.
Whether it is trading cartridges, snagging cheap used games, or borrowing from the library, playing someone else’s game has been accepted for decades until today.
The launch of the Nintendo Switch 2 has suddenly made that old tradition a risky choice.
Some early adopters are finding themselves banned from online services simply for inserting secondhand Switch 1 cartridges into their new consoles.
Why Are Switch 2 Consoles Being Banned?
The issue stems from Nintendo’s strict anti-piracy system, which can flag a console if a game cartridge is identified as having been duplicated.
Many players getting banned aren’t the ones doing the copying. What they actually bought was a cartridge that had been previously “dumped,” where its data was extracted and saved digitally (usually on MIG flash carts), while the physical copy was sold separately.
When the clone and physical cartridge appear online at the same time, Nintendo’s system treats it as piracy and automatically bans all involved consoles, no matter who pirated the game.
Is This Only Targeting Pirates?
It’s not just pirates feeling the effects because everyday customers who purchased games the usual way are being affected too.
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+ 3For example, a Switch 2 player shared that they picked up a handful of used Switch 1 cartridges from Facebook Marketplace. After installing updates and playing the games, their console was banned overnight.
They couldn’t access the eShop, download newly purchased games, or use online features at all. Other users have had the same experience after checking out titles from public libraries, only to realize too late that someone else had previously cloned the game.
What Happens If You Get Banned?
Although the system looks brutal, players who show evidence of legally buying the game with photos of cartridges or marketplace listings have successfully had their bans reversed after contacting Nintendo Support.
click to enlarge+ 3Support teams are said to respond quickly and empathetically as long as the pirated copy wasn’t used by the player. Some even confirmed that once unbanned, the same cartridges can be safely used or resold.
Still, it’s a troubling sign of how Nintendo is handling secondhand game security. The company is clearly trying to wipe out piracy, especially after the rise of MIG flash devices, which make it easy to load pirated copies onto unofficial cartridges.
Can You Tell If a Used Game Is Safe?
Many fans are calling this system unfair, especially since it’s impossible to know if a used game has been dumped before.
click to enlarge+ 3Even worse, there’s no warning. You only find out something’s wrong when your console suddenly loses access to the eShop or multiplayer services. At that stage, it comes across less as fighting piracy and more like getting punished unfairly.
For now, anyone buying used Switch 1 games for their Switch 2 needs to be extra cautious. Keep proof of purchase, save photos of what you bought, and avoid sketchy sellers when possible.
This might not be enough to avoid a ban, but it’ll help if you ever need to fight one. In the end, the most secure option is to stick with new or digital games, though not every player has that option.
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