Nintendo DMCA wipes 144 Switch modchip firmware repos and Citron Neo from GitHub
Four November 6 notices also hit the Citron Neo emulator and two Yuzu copies. Installed modchips keep working, but firmware updates just got harder to find.
Stories on esportz.fun are written by the esportz.fun team under house pen names. About our authors
Nintendo has used four DMCA notices to clear a large slice of Switch hacking projects off GitHub. The notices are dated November 6, 2026 and were published in GitHub's public DMCA archive this week. They target modchip firmware for SX Core, SX Lite, Picofly and HWFLY, the Citron Neo emulator and two leftover copies of Yuzu.
The largest single takedown hit a Picofly firmware repository and all of its forks. GitHub says it disabled the whole network of 144 repositories because it had more than 100 forks and Nintendo said they all infringed in the same way.
What's confirmed
Four notices, three kinds of project. Each notice was filed by an authorised agent acting for Nintendo, and each asks GitHub to remove the entire repository rather than individual files. One covers modchip firmware, one covers the Citron Neo emulator, and two cover Yuzu builds for Android and desktop.
The firmware network: 144 repositories. The firmware notice names a Picofly repository. GitHub's note on the published notice says it processed the takedown against the parent repository and all 143 forks. Tom's Hardware reports that firmware for the SX Core and SX Lite chips sat in the same network.
Citron Neo: 71 repositories. For the emulator notice, GitHub says the parent repository was being actively forked when the notice arrived, so it disabled the whole network of 71 repositories that Nintendo had identified.
Nintendo's argument. The notices say Switch consoles and games use technological protection measures, or TPMs. For modchips, Nintendo says the firmware bypasses the console's boot sequence so that pirated games can run. For emulators, it says the software gets around game encryption that relies on the console's cryptographic keys, the files known as prod.keys. The notices list US copyright registrations for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild among the protected games. Tom's Hardware reports that Nintendo also cites the US Department of Justice's criminal case against Team-Xecuter, the group behind the SX line of chips.
Who is affected. Tom's Hardware notes that modchips already installed in consoles keep working, but owners lose an easy place to download firmware updates or reflash chips. IGN, citing TorrentFreak, says copies of the firmware are still hosted elsewhere on GitHub.
Background
Modchips exist because of hardware history. Tom's Hardware explains that the earliest Switch units shipped with an exploit in recovery mode that Nintendo could not patch with software. Later revisions, including the Switch Lite and OLED models, closed that hole. Hacking those consoles means soldering a small chip such as a Picofly to the motherboard, and that chip needs firmware to perform the voltage glitch at boot. The method does not work on Switch 2.
Nintendo's fight with Switch emulation has been running for years. Yuzu's developer shut the project down in March 2024 after settling Nintendo's lawsuit for US$2.4 million, and Ryujinx stopped development that October. IGN notes that in 2024 Nintendo removed around 8,500 copies of Yuzu by targeting 12 mirrors on GitHub. The new notices also land days after emulators were shown running the Ocarina of Time remake on PC, a link IGN draws but Nintendo does not make.
My take: what it means for players
I've been around PC emulation long enough to remember when an emulator was a hobby project you found on a forum, not a legal battlefield. What this sweep shows is that Nintendo has stopped going after one project at a time and now goes after whole fork networks. That is the real change. GitHub's rule about processing an entire network when there are more than 100 forks turned one Picofly notice into 144 removals.
For people who just want homebrew, overclocking or save backups on an old Switch, this is collateral damage. Tom's Hardware is right that modchips do much more than piracy, and Nintendo's notices only talk about piracy. The comparison I keep making is with Dolphin, the GameCube and Wii emulator, whose planned Steam release was shelved in 2023 after Nintendo objected. The project itself carried on, but the episode showed that Nintendo picks the distribution point, not the code, as its pressure point. GitHub is the same kind of choke point.
My practical advice: if you already run a modded first-generation Switch, nothing changes overnight. If you were planning to buy a modchip for a patched console, expect harder-to-find firmware, more mirrors of unknown origin and more risk of malware dressed up as a download. That is a worse outcome for everyone, including Nintendo.
What we don't know yet
- Counter notices. GitHub says it told affected owners how to file a counter notice. Whether any developer will do that is not known.
- Other hosts. Tom's Hardware raises the question of self-hosted Git servers. Nintendo has not said whether it will chase firmware off GitHub.
- More notices. IGN suggests Nintendo may not be finished, but there is no official word on further takedowns.
- Switch 2. No modchip method for Switch 2 has been reported, and Nintendo has not commented on the console in these notices.
Quick facts
| Key | Value |
|---|---|
| Notices | Four, dated November 6, 2026, published by GitHub |
| Firmware network | 144 repositories (Picofly parent plus forks) |
| Chips named | SX Core, SX Lite, Picofly, HWFLY |
| Emulators named | Citron Neo (71-repository network), Yuzu copies |
| Legal basis | DMCA anti-circumvention of Switch TPMs |
| Installed modchips | Keep working, per Tom's Hardware |
FAQ
What did Nintendo take down on GitHub?
Four DMCA notices from November 6, 2026 removed a 144-repository network of Switch modchip firmware, a 71-repository Citron Neo emulator network and two copies of Yuzu.
Does this break modchips already in my Switch?
No. Tom's Hardware reports installed chips keep working, but firmware updates and reflashing become harder because the main download sources are gone.
Which modchips were affected?
The notices name firmware for SX Core, SX Lite, Picofly and other chips, used on Switch models that cannot be hacked through software alone.
Can Switch 2 be modded with these chips?
No. Tom's Hardware says this modchip method does not work on Switch 2.
More: Ocarina of Time on Switch 2 gets a 343MB day-one patch.
Sources: GitHub DMCA archive (four Nintendo notices, November 6, 2026); Tom's Hardware; IGN. Image: Tom's Hardware feed image.
