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hacking your switch 1 - probably worth doing if you're not using it for anything else
Posted: Thu Jul 23, 2026 8:43 pm
by nycki
the switch 1 has a pretty cool homebrew community. you can run linux on it now (they've specifically ported Ubuntu and Fedora). and that means you can play any game that runs on linux, or can be easily emulated on linux.
also, if your switch 1 was made in 2018 or earlier, it has an unpatchable hardware exploit that makes it super easy to load custom programs at boot time. the exploit tool is designed to make no changes to the switch's internal storage, everything you do is saved on the SD card only. if you eject the SD card and reboot then its just a normal switch again! if it was made in 2019 or later it probably has patched hardware, but you can solder a bypass chip to it for about $50 in parts (and you can get someone on etsy to do it for you for around $100 in labor, last I checked).
so basically it's extremely low-risk and if you weren't using your switch anyway then hey now you have a pretty damn cool portable linux console. ive been using mine to play retro homebrew like o moku e mun :D
Re: hacking your switch 1 - probably worth doing if you're not using it for anything else
Posted: Thu Jul 23, 2026 8:56 pm
by Hardelli
Oh neat, good to know!
I need to ask my friend if his offer to yeet his old Switch at me or is it already in circulation somewhere else lol
Re: hacking your switch 1 - probably worth doing if you're not using it for anything else
Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2026 10:01 pm
by nanseki
i had a bit of cognitive dissonance seeing the switch 1 in the retro gaming category but as of posting the switch 1 is only a year younger than the wii was when the switch released
Re: hacking your switch 1 - probably worth doing if you're not using it for anything else
Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2026 11:01 pm
by Hardelli
nanseki wrote: Sun Jul 26, 2026 10:01 pm
i had a bit of cognitive dissonance seeing the switch 1 in the retro gaming category but as of posting the switch 1 is only a year younger than the wii was when the switch released
Hahah, I feel that. To me Amiga 500 is retro 
Re: hacking your switch 1 - probably worth doing if you're not using it for anything else
Posted: Tue Jul 28, 2026 7:01 pm
by Sapphii
No. I refuse. The switch cannot be retro gaming. No.
No, no, no, no.
Re: hacking your switch 1 - probably worth doing if you're not using it for anything else
Posted: Tue Jul 28, 2026 10:13 pm
by Hardelli
Sapphii wrote: Tue Jul 28, 2026 7:01 pm
No. I refuse. The switch cannot be retro gaming. No.
No, no, no, no.
Its too late now. Shh, its okay. It will be okay
Re: hacking your switch 1 - probably worth doing if you're not using it for anything else
Posted: Wed Jul 29, 2026 11:22 pm
by nycki
Sapphii wrote: Tue Jul 28, 2026 7:01 pm
No. I refuse. The switch cannot be retro gaming. No.
No, no, no, no.
for what it's worth, I wasn't counting the switch as retro so much as saying you can use it to emulate retro games, including retro pc games with dosbox :D
Re: hacking your switch 1 - probably worth doing if you're not using it for anything else
Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2026 6:44 pm
by Sapphii
Well I do have this switch (1) that is currently out of a job...