Over the past 18 hours, news of an extensive hack targeting Pokémon developer Game Freak has been spreading across social media like wildfire. While the full extent of the breach was unclear last night, a clearer picture of the massive scope of the data leak emerged this morning.
Nintendo Wire has decided not to link to or host any stolen information from the hack. However, we have provided an overview of what occurred and what was stolen to give you a sense of the scope of the breach.
What happened?
According to a statement from Game Freak, a third-party actor gained unauthorized access to company servers in August 2024. The breach exposed personal data and email addresses of current and former Game Freak employees. Since the incident, the company says it has rebuilt and inspected the server infrastructure to strengthen security moving forward.
Game Freak’s statement. Translated via Google
Oddly enough, while Game Freak addressed the breach of staff information in its statement, there was no mention of the gigabytes of stolen data. If you’d like to read the full statement, you can find it right here.
What was taken in the Pokémon Hack?
As of this morning (October 13th, 2024), a massive amount of information has been leaked, including concept art and scrapped Pokémon designs from past GBA and Nintendo DS games, such as Pokémon HeartGold & SoulSilver, Pokémon Black & White, and Generation 3. It also appears that the full source code for HeartGold & SoulSilver has been leaked.
The breach reveals Pokémon lore, internal meeting notes, and plans for upcoming or scrapped anime projects and Hollywood films. Additionally, the leak contains minimal details about Pokémon Legends: Z-A and Generation 10, including development progress and code names for each project.
Gigaleak Gamefreak / Nintendo
Currently known and present on the Internet
There must be a total of 1TB (and only 4GB are really available)
No links will be posted for the moment on this account, for information purposes only while we check the sources.
Platinum full full source… pic.twitter.com/H0Atgx3Aco— SwitchTools (@SwitchTools) October 12, 2024
Keep in mind, as of right now, only a fraction of what was stolen has reportedly been released. I’m sure before the day is done, significantly more information will be released as well.
What happens next?
So, what happens next? Game Freak is undoubtedly aware of the breach, and the internet is already flooded with leaked images and documents. From here, it’s likely only a matter of time before a wave of cease-and-desist letters is sent to those hosting the stolen content. But as we’ve seen before, once the genie is out of the bottle, there’s no putting it back in.
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Written by Jason Ganos
Nintendo super fan since birth, Jason is the creator of Amiibo News and editor-in-chief at Nintendo Wire. One of his life goals is to provide the latest Nintendo news to fellow gamers with his natural know-how.
