Read the emails: Valve helped Nintendo kick the Dolphin Emulator off Steam

The Dolphin Emulator logo, on a black background. | Logo: Dolphin

Did you hear the one about how Nintendo blocked the Dolphin Emulator from making its way to Steam, purportedly with a DMCA takedown? That’s not the whole story.

According to copies of communication that the Dolphin Team provided to The Verge, Valve helped Nintendo kick Dolphin out — first by bringing the Wii and GameCube emulator to Nintendo’s attention in the first place, and second by unilaterally deciding to pull the plug without giving Dolphin an out.

“We operate Steam as an open platform, but that relies on creators shipping only things they have the legal right to distribute”

Valve doesn’t dispute this. “Given Nintendo’s history of taking action against some emulators, we brought this to their attention proactively after the...

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