News hardware Nintendo Switch: a new feature that will make many people angry is coming to the console
Published on 08/25/2022 at 17:55
Irdeto, a company that has long marketed a solution against game piracy, has just announced that it now offers its solution for Nintendo Switch games. Something to scare many players.
If you’re a fan of PC gaming, you’ve probably heard of Denuvo, a DRM intended to protect titles against piracy. This solution is developed by Irdeto and its operation remains particularly secret. However, we do know that to work, Denuvo uses a strong encryption system and forces players to remain permanently connected to the Internet so that the software makes regular checks concerning the authenticity of the copy with which it plays.
In summary, Denuvo has developed a reputation as a DRM that is mostly burdensome for gamers who have paid for their game. prevent their games from being pirated.
Denuvo is coming to Nintendo Switch, hide your joy
On Wednesday August 24, Irdeto announced via a tweet that its DRM Denuvo was going to land on Nintendo Switch. Important detail: this is not a partnership with Nintendo.
“Nintendo consoles have long suffered from piracy issues and the Switch is no exception. Even if a game is protected against piracy in its PC version, the version released on Switch can be emulated upon release and played on PC, bypassing the strong protections offered on the PC version., Explain the company.
The aim of the Switch version of Denuvo is therefore to protect Nintendo’s console games from any attempt at PC emulation.. We understand the “anti-piracy” approach here, but we are also entitled to wonder whether, as for games in PC version, Denuvo might well harm people who just want to play their games quietly.
A DRM that could block streamers
In itself, playing an emulated game of which one has a legal copy is tolerated by law, and this approach is also frequently practiced by streamers who emulate Nintendo Switch games on PC to be able to broadcast their games online. A priori, Nintendo has never cracked down on this practice. The arrival of Denuvo could therefore hurt streamers whose activity focuses on Nintendo Switch games.
Obviously, the DRM should prevent the arrival of Switch game ROMs on illegal download platforms. However, it is impossible to tell the difference between the two practices: Denuvo therefore risks impacting everyone without making a difference.
Unchanged gaming performance
As for the big question regarding the performance of Denuvo-powered games on Switch, Irdeto wants to be reassuring by explaining that the DRM will have no impact on them.
A priori, this anti-piracy security will primarily concern games from publishers other than Nintendo, which offer the same game on different platforms. Nintendo is not directly affected by this announcement.and the games of the manufacturer could therefore be spared by this protective measure.