"90 percent" of US DS gamers use R4, says ELSPA

ELSPA has issued a startling figure regarding DS piracy in a UK newspaper, claiming that up to 90 percent of American DS owners are playing illegal games using R4 carts.

“The implications are massive. In America it's thought 90 percent of Nintendo users are playing pirated games because of R4s," said John Hillier, manager of ELSPA's Intellectual Property Crime Unit. “That's the real danger – you may think you're getting a good deal but using the R4 is risking the future of the games industry."

Hillier reinforced the point in the story that playing downloaded ROMs is, obviously, illegal. Even selling R4s is an infringement of UK copyright and patent laws and can put you inside for up to two years.

Going to prison is one thing. Going to prison for playing a hooky version of Cooking Mama on your pink DS is another. Think on, cyber-thieves.