Many Physical Switch 2 Games Don't Contain The Game At All

As pre-orders for the Switch 2 went live earlier this week, we started to learn more about many of the launch and post-launch games that will be available for Nintendo’s next big console. And it turns out that a lot of physical Switch 2 games are “Game Key Card” carts which, rather than actually containing the game on the cartridge, require an internet connection to download and play. This fact has upset many who feel it will make it harder to preserve and play games in years to come.

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Earlier this month, after Nintendo officially revealed the Switch 2 via a big Direct presentation dedicated to the console, we learned a lot more about it. And one of the most controversial pieces of info we discovered is that some physical games on Switch 2 won’t actually be physical games. Instead, players will get an essentially blank Game Key cart that acts as DRM. Once you put that cart in the Switch 2 you can then download and play the game. And if you want to play it later, you have to put the cart back in. Lose that cart and you’re screwed. But you can play the game offline as long as the cart is inserted.

Some players say this is better than the way some Switch 2 games shipped with just a digital code in a box, and I guess that’s true. These Game Key Cards can be traded to other players or sold and used over and over. But others point out that it’s just a digital game that now needs more plastic waste to be sold and used. And what happens when the servers are shut down one day? Will that 20-year-old copy of a game you love still be playable? Probably not considering that of the big three, Nintendo has the worst track record for keeping digital storefronts up and running. Go try to buy a Wii U or 3DS digital game.

So naturally people have been digging through store listings to try and nail down what games are and aren’t using Game Key Cards. Here’s Kotaku’s list so far. You’ll notice that all of Nintendo’s first part titles, like that new Donkey Kong game, are shipping on a physical cart.

Meanwhile, a lot of third-party publishers are using Game Key Cards. There are also a few games whose status, currently, we don’t know. We’ll update this list as more games are announced and we learn more ahead of the Switch 2’s June 5 launch.