Brazil Sues Nintendo For EULA That Allows It To Brick Switch 2 Consoles

Nintendo is an aggressive company when it comes to protecting its valuable IP. It’s unafraid to flex its legal muscle against competitors or even its own users, as evidenced by the End User License Agreement (EULA) newly minted Switch 2 owners must agree to. The Brazilian government, however, is taking issue with some of the terms found within the EULA.

Nintendo updated its EULA a few weeks ago with some fairly draconian language. It seeks to exercise complete control of its platform to avoid the kind of piracy that spread during the original Switch's tenure. It states that users “acknowledge that if [they] fail to comply with the foregoing restrictions, Nintendo may render the Nintendo Account services and/or the applicable Nintendo device permanently unusable in whole or in part." Meaning any use that falls outside of what the company finds acceptable can lead to a bricked console.


The Brazilian Consumer Protection and Defense Program office based in Sao Paolo (Procon-SP) has requested Nintendo make changes to the EULA. The government watchdog says that clauses within the agreement are “abusive” towards Brazilian consumers who purchase the new handheld. Claiming that it includes “unilateral cancellation and without justification of subscriptions to the company’s services.”

Procon-SP is right to be concerned about how Nintendo's EULA might negatively impact its citizens. Users have already had their Nintendo Accounts banned from the company’s online services after using a specialized card to make loading their games more convenient. Some buyers of secondhand Switch 2 consoles have also received banned devices as well, with no real recourse for fixing the issue yet.

The government has given Nintendo 20 days to respond to this challenge. If the company’s history is any indication, though, it will likely fight this in court.