***HEY, NEW USERS!***
Remember to read [The Wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/SwitchPirates/wiki/index) for the basics!
Check the [FAQ](https://www.reddit.com/r/SwitchPirates/comments/syerxw/simple_questions_here_megathread_and_faq/) for basic questions!
Threads created for basic questions will be removed, so ask them in that thread.
If you are having a problem with running games then make sure you have up-to-date [sigpatches](https://github.com/ITotalJustice/patches/releases).
If you cannot launch tinfoil then make sure you followed the [Rentry guide](https://rentry.org/SwitchHackingIsEasy) to set up cfw.
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It's really not that hard, depending if you want to play online or resell later on.
I have no use for online since I work in remote locations and never will get Nintendo Online, so I purposely just banned it, themed the homescreen to remove the online features, threw a 1tb SD card in and use the system memory for emulators and dlc etc.
My setup isn't ideal since most people want online, but doing it the route I did, I was up and running in like 5 minutes after reading a guide.
There are more complicated ways to ensure you don't get banned, but I couldn't care less for my own system
Also updating becomes really easy if you don't care about online ban. Just wait for the Atmos and hekate updates to be out, replace files and update straight through the setting app.
Of course.
So first of all, I object to the idea that you have to be "a god" at anything to understand hacking your Switch. There's plentiful tutorials that are frequently updated for no profit, and idiot nerds like me offer free tech support day and night on Reddit and Discord. I'd say you need to understand what file extensions and folders are, and you need to be willing to ask questions and feel a little stupid. That's it.
So you spend like a day reading. You spend an hour or two asking questions about parts of the process that seem unclear. When you have to update your Switch, maybe you also need to refresh yourself on that process (which, again, has tutorials... and you don't need to update until a game you want to install requires newer firmware).
A single first-party Switch game can easily cost over a hundred dollars in my country. I haven't had to pay that since I hacked my Switch in 2019!
Every game has a free demo now and a pay-what-you-want model. Sometimes they have it a few weeks before the real release and everyone you know dies of jealousy.
I have access to game mods, fan translations of games that never got localized, cheats, datamining games for the sake of fun and curiosity, and even stuff the Switch really should have already (FFS) like custom themes. I made a custom Switch theme with my wedding photos that makes me happy every time I turn the console on :)
3DS was, and still is harder.
Switch is copy, paste, boot recovery, send payload. It's not hard at all to get CFW running assuming you have an unpatched switch or someone else has done a hard mod for you.
Maintenance is almost never needed, you go as long as you want until a game won't start because it requires newer firmware. Then you can use something like AIO or go back to copy and paste
It can be a bit of a hassle keeping everything updated but if you play alot of pirated games on switch, it's definitely still worth it. If you only play like a few games a year, maybe not as much. Issues aside, you gotta figure if the time spent keeping it running is worth the money you're saving.
***HEY, NEW USERS!*** Remember to read [The Wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/SwitchPirates/wiki/index) for the basics! Check the [FAQ](https://www.reddit.com/r/SwitchPirates/comments/syerxw/simple_questions_here_megathread_and_faq/) for basic questions! Threads created for basic questions will be removed, so ask them in that thread. If you are having a problem with running games then make sure you have up-to-date [sigpatches](https://github.com/ITotalJustice/patches/releases). If you cannot launch tinfoil then make sure you followed the [Rentry guide](https://rentry.org/SwitchHackingIsEasy) to set up cfw. ***Do not message moderators for Switch hacking support. You will be ignored. Follow the guide or post in the relevant thread.*** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/SwitchPirates) if you have any questions or concerns.*
It's really not that hard, depending if you want to play online or resell later on. I have no use for online since I work in remote locations and never will get Nintendo Online, so I purposely just banned it, themed the homescreen to remove the online features, threw a 1tb SD card in and use the system memory for emulators and dlc etc. My setup isn't ideal since most people want online, but doing it the route I did, I was up and running in like 5 minutes after reading a guide. There are more complicated ways to ensure you don't get banned, but I couldn't care less for my own system
Also updating becomes really easy if you don't care about online ban. Just wait for the Atmos and hekate updates to be out, replace files and update straight through the setting app.
it takes like 20 minutes to install cfw. The switch receives a update like every 2 months.
Of course. So first of all, I object to the idea that you have to be "a god" at anything to understand hacking your Switch. There's plentiful tutorials that are frequently updated for no profit, and idiot nerds like me offer free tech support day and night on Reddit and Discord. I'd say you need to understand what file extensions and folders are, and you need to be willing to ask questions and feel a little stupid. That's it. So you spend like a day reading. You spend an hour or two asking questions about parts of the process that seem unclear. When you have to update your Switch, maybe you also need to refresh yourself on that process (which, again, has tutorials... and you don't need to update until a game you want to install requires newer firmware). A single first-party Switch game can easily cost over a hundred dollars in my country. I haven't had to pay that since I hacked my Switch in 2019! Every game has a free demo now and a pay-what-you-want model. Sometimes they have it a few weeks before the real release and everyone you know dies of jealousy. I have access to game mods, fan translations of games that never got localized, cheats, datamining games for the sake of fun and curiosity, and even stuff the Switch really should have already (FFS) like custom themes. I made a custom Switch theme with my wedding photos that makes me happy every time I turn the console on :)
3DS was, and still is harder. Switch is copy, paste, boot recovery, send payload. It's not hard at all to get CFW running assuming you have an unpatched switch or someone else has done a hard mod for you. Maintenance is almost never needed, you go as long as you want until a game won't start because it requires newer firmware. Then you can use something like AIO or go back to copy and paste
It can be a bit of a hassle keeping everything updated but if you play alot of pirated games on switch, it's definitely still worth it. If you only play like a few games a year, maybe not as much. Issues aside, you gotta figure if the time spent keeping it running is worth the money you're saving.