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Niigata Police Arrest Man for Offering Game Mod Service for Zelda Game
posted on by Rafael Antonio Pineda
Niigata police arrested a 27-year-old Chinese national on July 8 on suspicion of violating Japan's Unfair Competition Prevention Act through offering a game modification service for Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild game. Police stated that the suspect admitted to the charge.
According to police, the suspect lived in Toshima, Tokyo, and offered a service that took users' game save data for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and modified them to increase their characters' in-game abilities. The police allege that the suspect earned as much as 10 million yen (about US$90,700) through this in an 18-month period beginning in December 2019.
Police are also investigating if the suspect offered similar services for other games.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild launched for Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Wii U in March 2017. The game won Game of the Year at the 35th Golden Joystick Awards ceremony in November 2017, won Game of the Year at The Game Awards 2017 in December 2017, and won Game of the Year at The SXSW Gaming Awards ceremony in March 2018. Nintendo is developing a sequel to the game that will launch next year.
Sources: NHK News Web, NTV News 24 via Otakomu
