Nintendo did not merely sue Reddit moderator James C. Williams, known online as “Archbox,” for $4.5 million: on September 23, 2026, a federal judge awarded the company that amount in a default judgment over copyright infringement. The phrase “nowhere near” came from Nintendo’s earlier argument that its requested $4.5 million would not adequately compensate it—not from the judge’s description of the final award.
What the court decided
U.S. District Judge Lauren King of the Western District of Washington granted Nintendo of America’s motion for default judgment and awarded $4.5 million in statutory copyright damages. The order also imposed a permanent injunction against Williams. The court’s September 23, 2026 order is the authoritative source for the result and the injunction.
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The damages calculation was $150,000 for each of 30 listed games. That is the statutory maximum per work applied by the court under 17 U.S.C. § 504(c)(2), not a calculation of 30 individually documented retail losses. Judge King wrote that Williams’ “egregious infringement activities merit substantial punishment here.”
Why Nintendo said the money was “nowhere near” enough
In an October 2025 motion, Nintendo argued that $4.5 million “is nowhere near an amount that would compensate NOA for the seriousness of Defendants’ conduct.” That was Nintendo’s position while asking for the award. The court later granted the same $4.5 million request and found it appropriate; the phrase does not mean the judge awarded more than $4.5 million or considered that sum insufficient.
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Judge King noted that a game could cost roughly $50 and that potential lost sales could reach hundreds of thousands of dollars. The order described the statutory maximum as “not an unrealistic estimate” of Nintendo’s actual damages. That was the court’s assessment in this case, not an independently audited count of lost sales.
What Nintendo alleged—and what default means
Nintendo filed the case in June 2024. Its complaint alleged that Williams operated online shops offering unauthorized Switch games, promoted them in the r/SwitchPirates Reddit community, distributed game copies, and helped users access circumvention software. Those details are allegations in Nintendo’s complaint, not findings from a contested trial.
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Williams did not answer the lawsuit. The court records that Nintendo served him, the clerk entered default, and Nintendo then sought judgment. As the order explains, factual allegations are generally taken as true after default except those concerning damages, and a plaintiff still has to establish the relief it is entitled to receive. The judgment is therefore a default judgment, not a jury verdict after both sides litigated the merits.
What the permanent injunction requires
The injunction bars Williams and people acting under his direction or control from specified copyright-infringing and circumvention conduct. It also directs him to disable online shops and social accounts used to offer or promote pirated Switch games. The exact restrictions are set out in the court order; the injunction is separate from the monetary award.
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Will Nintendo collect the $4.5 million?
The judgment establishes that Williams owes the award; it does not establish that Nintendo has been paid. TorrentFreak and Nintendo Life both note uncertainty about recovery. The cited sources do not report that Nintendo has collected the full amount.
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