Nintendo has dug a grave for yet another major Switch emulator. Earlier this year, the company killed off Yuzu and now its closest competitor, Ryujinx has been targeted too. The funny thing about Ryujinx is that it was thought to be untouchable.
Back when Yuzu shut down, Ryujinx was reportedly deemed as “safe” due to its lead developer GDKChan being based in Brazil. Brazil has laws that allow for video game emulation but at the time, there was no clear proof that the developer was actually based in Brazil. It seems that wasn’t the case. Either that or Nintendo found some loopholes.
At the moment the Ryujinx web page is empty with no downloads available for the emulator. This was the first sign of bad news. Soon after, the social media pages for Ryujinx shared a statement claiming that Nintendo contacted the lead developer GDKChan and they offered an agreement to stop working on the project. The agreement apparently includes the removal of all assets and control of the emulator.
The post was then followed up by another statement claiming that an iOS port of Ryujinx was in the works. It was then followed by video footage of this emulator running on an iPhone. So Ryujinx was deep in development with big plans for the future.
Keep in mind that the developer behind the project, GDKChan has yet to make a public statement regarding the takedown. Everything we have heard has been from a source. However, Ryujinx is dead and all ongoing development around the emulator has seemingly stopped.
It isn’t clear what triggered Nintendo to pursue Ryujinx. The emulator was recently shown off running The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom at a much smoother frame rate than the Switch. The game also leaked weeks before launch which resulted in the ROM being pirated and played on PC through emulators. Nintendo likely got fed up with the situation and targeted Ryujinx as a punching bag.
Fans of the project have now criticized the emulator’s creator for “selling out” to Nintendo. While the facts aren’t clear, the statement regarding the takedown claims that GDKChan was offered an “agreement” to stop working on the project. Fans have assumed that this included monetary compensation. However, that hasn’t been made clear yet.
We don’t know if the developer was offered a deal to avoid legal fees and lawsuits or if Nintendo actually paid them to stop the project. At the moment, Suyu is one of the last standing Switch emulators around and it looks safe…. For now.
— Ryujinx (@RyujinxEmu) October 1, 2024
