Nintendo Seeks $10,000 in Damages from Streamer for Early Paper Mario Stream

Image via Nintendo.

Nintendo is going after a streamer who shared gameplay of Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door before its official release.

As reported by Stephen Totilo of Game File, Nintendo's attorney asked for $10,000 in damages in court last week.

While this amount is much smaller than previous cases, it shows Nintendo's "determination" to send a message to others who might consider similar actions.

The leak happened just one day before the game's scheduled release on May 23, 2024. According to dataminer 'OatmealDome', who tracked information appearing online, the leak revealed details about the game's codename, its engine, and dialogue changes from the original version.

This isn't an isolated incident for Nintendo. The company has historically taken strong legal action against those who it believes encourage piracy of its games. A notable example came in 2022 when Nintendo won a massive $14.5 million judgment against Switch hacker Gary Bowser. At that time, Nintendo's attorney described the case as a "unique opportunity" to "send a clear message" about video game piracy.

Leaks of Nintendo Switch games have unfortunately become common throughout the console's lifecycle. Similar situations happened with other recent Nintendo titles including Super Mario RPG and Super Mario Bros. Wonder.

The Paper Mario game at the center of this case is a remake of the popular 2004 GameCube title. While story spoilers weren't as concerning for this remake (as the original game has been available for two decades), Nintendo still considers unauthorized early distribution a serious violation.