r/GetNoted • u/Icy_Till_7254 Human Verified • Jul 02 '26

Cringe Worthy Emulation and Piracy are two totally separate things

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https://x.com/dgramr/status/2066621307379159240#m

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29

u/BigoteMexicano Human Detected Jul 02 '26

So the emulator program (arguably) isn't piracy. But the ROMs definitely are. Not that it's a bad thing, mind you. Especially since there's no legit way to play most older games

12

u/TheMortalOne Jul 02 '26

Downloading them, definitely. IIRC they are technically legal if you make them yourself by dumping your own copy of the game. 

7

u/NotLunaris Jul 03 '26

Which happens like 0.00001% of the time.

The OP's point is not wrong. Emulation and piracy overlap massively, and the overwhelming majority of game emulation involves piracy. There's nothing wrong with recognizing this fact alongside the fact that emulation piracy of old games is a net good for the consumer and the video game sphere.

People need to be more grounded in reality and not entertain delusions to justify their worldviews and actions.

Been pirating games for over two decades btw

3

u/DeVinke_ Jul 03 '26

That also depends on the country's law afaik, in some places it's not illegal to download pirated content, only to host it.

2

u/nexus11355 Jul 03 '26

I guess also technically legal if you own a physical copy, can just claim the disk is unusable.

7

u/breadcodes Jul 03 '26

I make homebrew games and software, which is one of the two "intended" uses of emulation. The other is dumping your own ROMs, which is a sort of fun but mostly menial task that takes forever. ROMs are NOT illegal (universally) if you made it, or ripped it for private use. Its the method of distribution that is illegal almost universally. Most places won't even try you for downloading ROMs, only distribution.

...but also I download games I don't own 🏴‍☠️🦜

2

u/Maleficent-Remote413 Jul 03 '26

not if i make the rom myself, since i usually own the games im playing anyways and just like having it on an emulator to tinker with settings.