Nintendo is seeking a California court’s assistance to compel Discord to reveal the identity of the individual responsible for last year’s significant Pokémon data breach, referred to within the Pokémon community as the “Teraleak.” This term reflects the extensive amount of information that was made public; the leaker claimed to possess the source code for the upcoming game Pokémon Legends: Z-A (though they did not disclose it), along with information on next-gen Pokémon titles, builds of previous games, and a wealth of concept art and lore documents.
Nintendo’s subpoena aims to “obtain the identity of the Discord user ‘GameFreakOUT,’ who shared infringing content,” noted James D. Berkley, an attorney representing Nintendo. Accompanying the request, Nintendo provided a partially redacted screenshot from the Discord server where the user GameFreakOUT shared a file, encouraging others to “enjoy.”
The Pokémon leaks surfaced around October 12, 2024, but Game Freak made an announcement on October 10, prior to the leak, stating that the company had been hacked. The statement indicated that the breach affected employee information, but did not confirm that confidential game data had been compromised.
While subpoenas like this do not automatically signal an impending lawsuit, it is highly probable that Nintendo will pursue legal action against the leaker; the company has taken similar steps in the past, notably concerning Pokémon, when images from a Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield strategy guide were disseminated online. Given the sensitive materials claimed by the leaker, such as an early version of the upcoming Legends: Z-A game, Nintendo would likely welcome a court’s support in preventing any further leaks of that information.
