Nintendo's policies around YouTube have been restrictive, but the company is taking renewed action with emulation and ROMs in its sights.
Kotaku reports that a YouTube user by the name of "PangaeaPanga" has been hit by a takedown notice and the removal of a number of speedruns of Super Mario World -- and he's not alone. "YouTube just wrecked my channel," he tweeted.
Kotaku supplies an email reportedly sent by Nintendo's anti-piracy team that, in part, the company has its eyes both on tool assisted speedruns, "which require making a copy of a game’s ROM file, and running the copied ROM through an emulator."
The email also asks "that you please remove the video in question from your channel, and confirm that you will not post any videos using unauthorized software or copies of games, distribute or continue work on the modification, or take any other steps that would infringe Nintendo’s rights."
The company launched an affiliate program last year. It's the only authorized way to share YouTube videos of Nintendo games, and entitles the company to the cut of the ad proceeds.
Only games whitelisted by Nintendo are eligible for the program. It's worth noting that PangaeaPanga had posted not just vanilla Super Mario World videos, but those of hacks of the game, such as "Item Abuse 3," which Kotaku describes here in an earlier story.
It's also worth considering that this request comes as Super Mario Maker, which allows players to create their own Mario levels, is about to release; it's due in two days, and offers the first sanctioned way to "hack" classic Mario levels. For more on that game, read our analysis.
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