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Suyu Emulator Taken Down Following DMCA Request
The Suyu emulator, which is a fork of the Nintendo-focused Yuzu project that is no longer active, has been removed from GitLab in response to a DMCA takedown request issued on Thursday. However, the open-source files for the emulation project are still accessible on a self-hosted git repository on the Suyu website, and the most recent compiled binaries can be found on an existing GitLab repository.
Despite the fact that the DMCA takedown notice has not been documented on GitLab’s public archive of such requests, a representative from GitLab has indeed confirmed to The Verge that the project was removed from the platform following notification “from a party authorized by the rights holder.” The specific identity of the requester and their representation have not been disclosed by GitLab, and a spokesperson for Nintendo was not immediately reachable to address inquiries.
An email distributed among Suyu contributors via the project’s Discord server includes the outlined rationale present in the DMCA submission:
Suyu, which is built upon Yuzu’s code, is found to be breaching Section 1201 of the DMCA. As with Yuzu, the primary goal of Suyu is to bypass Nintendo’s protective measures by utilizing unauthorized cryptographic keys to decrypt unofficial copies of Nintendo Switch games or ROMs during or right before execution without Nintendo’s authorization. Consequently, the dissemination of Suyu is also deemed illegal trafficking of circumvention technology.
A Discord moderator tied to Suyu under the username Princess Twilight Sparkle shared a message on Thursday evening indicating that due to the project’s “legal team,” Suyu will likely need to resort to using the self-hosted Git repository “in the foreseeable future. To regain access to our GitLab, legal action would probably be required, which poses a significant challenge… Appreciation for your cooperation.”
Troy, identified as a “Core Suyu Developer” within the Discord community, expressed that the DMCA takedown request came from an “unidentified origin” and that it is “impossible to substantiate” potential involvement from Nintendo. Troy added, “There is a chance that the individual who submitted this DMCA is a copyright provocateur, akin to those on YouTube, judging by the phrasing of the DMCA explanation sent to GitLab.”
Sharpie, a Suyu Discord moderator and contributor, informed Ars Technica that the team does not possess any additional insights apart from the current available information.
Recently, Sharpie detailed numerous measures to Ars that the developers of the project had implemented to mitigate probable legal repercussions, including a strict avoidance of “any commercial activity” and a firm stance against discussing piracy. Despite these precautionary actions, Sharpie acknowledged that “Suyu is presently situated in a legal enigma that we are endeavoring to navigate.”
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