Nintendo is Producing New Switches Immune to the "Unpatchable Exploit"

It wasn't long ago we reported on a recently discovered exploit to the Nintendo Switch hardware that was considered unpatchable. This trick allowed Switch users to run custom firmware, homebrewed content, and even pirated games. In response, Nintendo is reportedly fixing their new and future batches of the console to solve this problem.

The report comes from SciresM, known hardware hacker. They claim that there are Switches on store shelves that are not vulnerable to the hack. The exploit is being referred to as "Fusée Gelée," which is French for Jelly Rocket. SciresM believes that Nintendo used an iPatch system to burn new protective code into the boot ROM of the system's Nvidia Tegra chip. This prevents the USB recovery mode overflow error that was crucial to the exploit.

While this update can easily be applied in the factory, it cannot be sent out to already deployed consoles. This may mean a greater interest in first-generation Switch consoles with hackers and homebrewers, though considering an estimated 18 million Switches have been sold since launch, they shouldn't be hard to come across.