Nintendo blacklists Portuguese website for leaking Pokémon content

Nintendo has formerly blacklisted a Portuguese Nintendo games publication for leaking Pokémon Sword and Shield content before the game’s official release.

With collosal leaks coming out mere weeks before the game’s release date – including the entire Galarian Pokédex – Nintendo were reportedly “unhappy” with the state of leaked content.

Nintendo and The Pokémon Company quickly began investigating the source of the Pokémon leaks to figure out where the huge content drops originated. Unfortunately, the leak was traced back to a Portuguese Nintendo website: FNintendo.

“In early November, Nintendo identified a number of photographs taken from game play that revealed multiple new and unannounced Pokemon from Pokemon Sword and Pokemon Shield,” Announced Nintendo and The Pokemon company in a released statement. (Via VG24/7)

“These photographs had been posted online and Nintendo, together with The Pokemon Company, quickly identified the person responsible for these leaks, and took immediate action.

“These Pokemon were leaked by a reviewer for the Portuguese website FNintendo, who had received an early copy of the game for review purposes. Both he and FNintendo failed to handle confidential material, resulting in a clear breach of the confidentiality agreement between Nintendo and the media outlet. As a result, Nintendo will no longer work with FNintendo.”

“Nintendo will always protect its intellectual property and brands. Leaks hurt not just Nintendo, but the thousands of employees who work hard to bring games to market, and the millions of fans around the world who look forward to news and surprises.

These are the perils of early review copies and why websites – including ourselves – work so hard to abide to the rules laid out in official embargoes. There will always be a few bad eggs – Nintendo has frequently struggled with leaks recently – and those bad eggs often ruin things for everyone.

“We recognize it is impermissible to break embargo guidelines and we failed to handle the review materials with sufficient care,” FNintendo wrote in an apology statement. “We fully respect Nintendo’s decision to cancel the confidentiality agreement between our companies as a result of this breach of trust, and accept that we will no longer receive products from Nintendo, nor will we be invited to attend their events.”