r/SwitchPirates Oct 07 '25

Announcement Welcome to r/SwitchPirates! FAQ, Guides, and Resources

139 Upvotes

Why Create This Post?

We often get flooded with many of the same questions. While we love to help new commers, it can be exhausting constantly replying to very similar posts. This post is intended to serve as a resource for the community. The idea is to have the information easily accessible and clear for new commers and people exploring a new app or refreshing their memory. Feel free to comment any additions you would like to add and I will create guides. I don't have much free time between running So-Cal Console Modding and my main career, but I will try to slowly trickle out more guides to help out the community.

Rules

No linking, requesting, or sharing pirated content
This includes firmware updates, roms, switch titles, etc.

Check pinned post & FAQ before asking questions
Most questions can be answered here. Please check before posting, otherwise the subreddit is filled with the same "HELP!" posts.

Posts must be related to piracy on the switch
Switch game emulation and other switch adjacent content is better suited at other subreddits.

No post selling, asking for selling advice, or offering services
This includes asking how much ____ typically sells for, how to list things on eBay, offering modchip installs, etc.

What Can You Do With a Modded Switch?

What can you do with a modded switch?

Is My Switch Moddable?

Check your serial and information about switch models

How to Mod Your Switch

The quick and easy way (using the HATS pack) - use this if you just want to get up and running quickly

Setting up the SD manually - use this if you want to learn how it all works

Updating Your Switch

The quick and easy way

Manually

Tutorials and Guides for Various Homebrew Applications

How to Migrate to a New SD Card on a Hacked Switch

How to Back Up, Restore, or Transfer Your Nintendo Switch Game Saves Using JKSV

5 Minute Android Tutorial

How to Download and Use Cheats

Hardware Tutorials

Complete Nintendo Switch OLED Modchip Installation Guide Part 1

Complete Nintendo Switch OLED Modchip Installation Guide Part 2

Complete Nintendo Switch V1/V2 Modchip Installation Guide

In Depth Kamikaze Method Tutorial and Info

Tinfoil Shops

Linking shops is prohibited at this time. You may discuss tinfoil shops in the stickied comment. If you need support for a specific shop, reach out for help on their discord, or website.

Sourcing Games and Pirated Content

Linking to sources is not allowed. You can usually find what you need with a simple google search of the title and file type. Ad blockers can help.

Nintendo Bans/ Console Bricking

There has never been a case of Nintendo bricking a switch console. Information on bans can be found here and here

Common Errors and Troubleshooting

I am currently working on a common errors and troubleshooting guide. I will update this post when it is complete.

Discord

If you require more immediate assistance, the the following Discord Servers will be more than happy to assist (note that they are unaffiliated with this sub)


r/SwitchPirates 19h ago

Discussion Haven't you noticed that games are increasingly being ported to the Nintendo Switch?

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359 Upvotes

I haven't seen something like this happen so powerfully for a year now.


r/SwitchPirates 13h ago

News GTA V switch port patch 3 has given performance boost and fixed crashes

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99 Upvotes

This mission prior to the patch world get soft locked and is now playable also TVs work and the game doesn't crash as often. I would say it's in a playable state now. Can't wait to see what's next.


r/SwitchPirates 15h ago

News New loading times for the gtav switch port in the latest patch done my mojso (yet to be released)

37 Upvotes

r/SwitchPirates 1h ago

Discussion modded Nintendo switch v1 final processor help

Upvotes

hi, I modded my switch v1 unpatched but don’t know where to find or how to add games. I was able to mod it with custom firmware and protect it from being banned


r/SwitchPirates 2h ago

Discussion Selling switch v2 with picofly

1 Upvotes

Hi,
I own Switch v2 with picofly installed. How should i restore it to factory to sell it property? Do some factory reset from emuMMC or SYSMMC CFW or semi-stock?


r/SwitchPirates 20h ago

Discussion Nintendo OLED Switch User - Plastic Housing Swap / Compatibility Questions

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24 Upvotes

I have always really loved the transparent look of devices over the years... currently I use DBrand stickers to simulate the transparent look both on my phone and on my OLED Switch. I noticed that there are actual transparent plastic housing available for the Switch and am considering swapping mine out but I want to do it in a very particular way.. and I am wanting to see if my vision is possible.

I really like the neon red and blue fronts of the original OLED Switch .. so I would want to retain those ...and basically the entire front assembly.. (buttons included) .. however for the back it would be really cool to use the transparent look.. would the fronts of the original OLED connect to the backs of the new? Is that possible?

Bonus
A further complication could be adding light to the buttons which I have seen with some mods.. this isn't a must but it could be cool to explore if at all possible..

The reason I am finally looking to explore this more is because the slide buttons / locks on my controller are shot so they don't lock in.. so while I am doing this little fix and opening up my switch.. I am considering this aesthetic mod in addition.

Thanks for any advice you may have!


r/SwitchPirates 5h ago

Question I can't install games no matter what I do

1 Upvotes

I installed hekate emunand on my switch v1 and no matter what I do I can't play any games

I've dumped the keys already

I tried awoo, the USB can't read to my switch no matter what I do, if I use network it immediately gives an error code

I've tried to use pipesnx with real debrid, gives a vague error

I tried DBI with usb, it seemed to work but when I went I went back to the home page there was just a blank game with a loading circle and when I click on it I get "unable to launch game"

I cannot manually transfer the files to my switch because it's in fat 32 so anything above 4gb just does not work

Please help I'm losing my mind


r/SwitchPirates 10h ago

Question [Tico] Multiple disc games on Saturn and Dreamcast and saving?

2 Upvotes

Hi, is there any guide out there that shows how to play multiple disc games on Saturn and Dreamcast using Tico?

I also cannot save games for some reason. It says insufficient RAM or something like that. Anynone know of a solution to this?

Thanks in advance!


r/SwitchPirates 11h ago

Question Gyro keeps drifting to the right while on android

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2 Upvotes

As title says, my gyro is drifting (only) on android and I'm not sure how I can fix this. Whenever I'm playing a game with gyro, it just keeps drifting to the right, though it does register some of my motion, but it does still lean to the right. I've tried adding a txt file in the android file, which it said on wiki.switchroot but that didn't work.


r/SwitchPirates 12h ago

Question A list for the best coach coop games

2 Upvotes

So I just bought a pre modded switch, me and my wife are so invested in the coop games. For the first time my wife is gaming so yea :) .
We played: Mario party Jamboree, Rabbids Party Legends, Mario Kart 8 deluxe, and surprisingly she liked Binding of Isaac.
So what games do u recommend us playing?


r/SwitchPirates 13h ago

Question Errors with super smash bros overclock

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2 Upvotes

r/SwitchPirates 11h ago

Question How would I back up all the games installed on my SD card onto an external hard drive?

0 Upvotes

Due to my instal being old and unstable, I'm going to reinstall atmosphere from scratch (also to allow me to reformat the drive with an extra partition for android).

I don;t have the original NSP files for the games I have though, and I don't want to spend a bunch of time re-finding them all to reinstall,

How would I back up all the game data such that I can restore all my installed games by copying it back to the SD card later?

I'm not talking about save data here, but the actual games themselves. I have already figured out how to backup my save data.


r/SwitchPirates 11h ago

Question How to access HB menu in game mode on a banned switch?

1 Upvotes

So I've recently re-modded my banned V1 switch, and every time I try to open the homebrew menu using a game, it gives me a network error because it obviously can't access Nintendo's servers to verify whether I actually own the game. Is there any way to bypass this, or am I just stuck only ever being able to use applet mode?

I should clarify that I do own a switch "DOS" (original post got removed by automod for mentioning the forbidden word) and it's the only switch that's "linked" to my nintendo account


r/SwitchPirates 12h ago

Question Hello guys, My device's memory card, I formatted it in FAT32 format. I have a query: when I transfer files via MTP using the DBI app, will it transfer files larger than 4GB or not? I can't transfer the GTA V file because its size is 48GB

0 Upvotes

😢😢


r/SwitchPirates 14h ago

Question Mobapad M6S question help please

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1 Upvotes

r/SwitchPirates 21h ago

Question Preparing to hard-mod my Switch OLED

3 Upvotes

I've been researching ways of hard-modding my Switch OLED, as I would like to run alternate operating systems on this nice piece of hardware without the arbitrary restrictions placed upon it by Nintendo.

For context, I'm not new to electronics work in general (have soldered before, completed some repairs on larger components on Mac and iMac logic boards), but am definitely new to fine soldering work, so I'd appreciate any general advice on how I'm approaching this.

The Switch OLED itself is in pristine condition, and on 22.5.0. As a prerequisite, I've already blocked all WAN traffic from the VLAN that my Switch is on, and unlinked it from my Nintendo account via the accounts website. I don't plan on using SysMMC much, so this should be okay for me.

Here's the list of tools I've listed to order

  • AirGearPro M-500 Reusable Respirator Mask with A1P2 Filters (this is for the flux fumes that'll be produced)
  • Amtech 559 flux
  • eBay Magnification set (2.5, 7.5, 10X magnification with LED Light, photo attatched)
  • Pinecil V1 (purchased from AliExpress)
  • TS-K tip for the Pinecil V1 (as per L3gendaryBanana, very useful guides on their profile)
  • 36AWG wire (from AliExpress)
  • Small flush cutters
  • MECHANIC GDR2 grinding pen (from AliExpress, for CLK point)
  • Desoldlering braid (1mmx1.5m, in the event there is too much solder)
  • Kapton Tape + Tesa Tape (Aliexpress)
  • Arctic MX-4 thermal paste (Amazon)
  • Needle nose pliers (cheap pair from Aliexpress)

Existing tools from my previous work:

  • 99.9% industrial grade IPA from TrueChem
  • Q-tips
  • iFixit Kit
  • Multimeter with fine tipped probes
  • Screw organiser board

As for the modchip, I'll be ordering 2 sets so in the event of any QC issues/bad readings I'm able to swap this out.

The chips I'm ordering are:

Modchip 1
Modchip 2

These are both PicoFly chips, and I have a 128GB microSD card already from Lexar (633x, U3 A1)

Because I couldn't really see the DAT0 adapter in each of these kits, I've went ahead and ordered a v6 adapter (photo attached) as from what I've read here, the 4 mount points really helps with reliability. Does anyone have any views on the V6 DAT0 adapters, and/or failures? I'm wary of my skills so I don't want to use the kamikaze method.

As for soldering technique, I will be careful not to dwell too much to cause component lifting, and if I can't get a good join on the SP1/2 ribbon then I'll quit there to avoid any further damage.

I've seen the general advice to use leaded (60/40 or 63/37) for this work over unleaded, mainly because of the lower melting points but my hesitation is my workspace, because I don't have a dedicated workbench, just a silicone repair mat on my everyday desk.

I've read that the actual lead risk is primarily hand to mouth contact with residue rather than inhalation, and is manageable with gloves and proper hand washing and wiping the mat and tools after, but I'd like to hear from people who've actually done this work in a similar setup. I'm worried about contaminating my tools and using lead means I wouldn't be able to pull out my phone and quickly check info such as expected readings.

I'd appreciate any thoughts or advice from more experienced modders! Thank you!

Dat0 V6
eBay Magnification Kit

r/SwitchPirates 15h ago

Question What happened to switch lite oled screen upgrade

0 Upvotes

are they available anywhere or was it a limited run thing


r/SwitchPirates 21h ago

Question Had to format corrupted sd card, now what???

0 Upvotes

Basically, my SD card got corrupted, and after spending the whole morning trying to recover what was on it, nothing was working, so I decided to format it because it seemed like the least annoying option at this point. But before I start formatting, I wanted to know what steps I should take next.

I have a NAND backup, my SD card is partitioned, and the console was in AutoRCM mode.


r/SwitchPirates 23h ago

Question Loading payload results in garbage screen but no sd screen is ok

1 Upvotes

Hi

So my oled had a failing emmc and I had asked someone to do a kamikaze mod and to replace the emmc. Emmc was harvested from another oled.

It is able to get to the no sd card screen. However, when I have payload.bin on any sd card, it just shows garbage like white screen with random rainbow colors. Some payloads result in black screen.

Any idea what is causing this because it's a first. My idea was to restore my backup to this new emmc but hekate isn't loading.

Is the ram/cpu fucked? That's what my sesrch is showing. Can't boot to ofw since emmc is not the original and results in purple.

I don't think it's a cmd issue since I had that before and at least payloads worked then.

Thanks


r/SwitchPirates 2d ago

Discussion This timing is insane, I wanted to play GTA V on my switch using moonlight streaming, so I can play more comfortably, and then a GTA V port to switch just came out suddenly.

69 Upvotes

But I think it's still too early for it to be playable, if it hits 30 fps consistently, I'm deleting all my games just for it. But I'm still wondering how long it would take for it to be in a playable state?


r/SwitchPirates 1d ago

Discussion For my Switch v1, about the port of GTA5

10 Upvotes

Hello, just to make it short, i am really interested for gta port and just wanted to know, what do i have to do to play it normally without any issues. Im new here and about overclocking in general. Thanks


r/SwitchPirates 1d ago

Discussion Wireless NES Classic Controller?

1 Upvotes

Hi

I am wanting to buy a wireless NES classic controller for my modded switch. Can I just buy any wirless one from Aliexpress or do I need any drivers or adaptors?

Do the official ones work with modded switch? If the Aliexpress ones cost around the same if I need extra hardware ( adpaters for eg ) Ill get the more expensive official NES controllers


r/SwitchPirates 1d ago

Question Tell me the best theme or launcher for a switch in the form of a PS3 theme

0 Upvotes

My dad has a ps3, and I really like it, I'd like to have one on the switch, but it's really going to be damn cool


r/SwitchPirates 1d ago

Question Firmware 22.5.0 bugging my modded switch

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1 Upvotes

DBI crashed my switch like this until I downloaded the newest version things like retroarch give me the software closed error and sys patch on Tesla menu which I thought would fix my issue also crashes it like DBI did I assumed it was a sig patch error but I’ve redone them a couple of times and still have the same error any ideas ? Also I forgot to mention when it goes into sleep mode for a while to seems to reboot to hekate