Nintendo May Sue Emulator Makers

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February 02, 1999 (2:38 PM EST)

By Malcolm Maclachlan,

Two programmers sparked an avalanche of responses last week when they released software on the Web that lets people play Nintendo64 games on their PCs.

The overwhelming response forced the two -- who use the names Reality Man and Epsilon -- to pull the software after only a few hours, but not fast enough to prevent potential legal action from Nintendo.

The software -- called Ultra High Level Emulator, or UltraHLE -- simulates the same video and audio experience for PC users playing the game as for those using Nintendo64 hardware. Although UltraHLE was only available online for a short time, it was downloaded hundreds of times and several mirror sites were set up.

UltraHLE wasn't the first Nintendo64 emulator, but the consensus in the emulator community is that it is the best so far.

According to ManBeast, the pseudonym of the main site editor of Emulators Unlimited, the website where UltraHLE first went up, it's so good that it may have forever changed Nintendo's method of dealing with the emulator community.

"They have been very active in the past year or so in shutting down illegal ROM distribution sites," ManBeast said in an e-mail interview. "But have not gone after any emulator author or site distributing emulators themselves."

The Interactive Digital Software Association, which represents companies such as Sony and Nintendo, has already shut down a number of sites distributing ROMs, software files of games. The online versions are playable on PCs, rather than on the original game consoles. While many earlier game emulators could play only demo versions of games, UltraHLE will support full versions of some of the most popular games including Zelda, Quake and Goldeneye.

Reality Man and Epsilon were caught off guard by the response to UltraHLE and are laying low for the time being, ManBeast said. They have issued a statement saying they did not intend the program to be a tool for piracy.

This explanation has not satisfied Nintendo. The company is looking into filing a lawsuit, said Nintendo spokeswoman Beth Llewelyn.

"Emulators such as this are illegal," Llewelyn said. "They obviously had to circumvent our security chip. It promotes continued piracy."

Last week, Sony sued Connectix over its Virtual Game Station, $49 software that lets people play Sony PlayStation games on their G3-based Macintoshes. Connectix released the software at the beginning of the year at MacWorld Expo '99.

The pending legal battle between Connectix and Sony promises to set an important precedent in the area of software emulation. Virtual Game Station will help Sony make money by increasing the market for PlayStation games, said Roy McDonald, CEO of Connectix. Sony makes more money off of game licensing than it does off of selling the PlayStations themselves, according to McDonald.

But most emulator makers are independent programmers, said ManBeast, not commercial-software companies with the resources to defend themselves in court.