The result is the same but there’s a huge difference between getting legally threatened by a big company and being asked nicely.

Not really. Asking nicely can easily be a veiled threat.

The knowledge of having zero chance to be sued by Nintendo.

But that’s an excessively risk averse position to take. It doesn’t even really fit for Valve, although it’s common with lawyers. Hence why I don’t think Valve has the right lawyers for their ethos.