In contrast to “Switch 2 exclusive”
- by Gavin Lane
Earlier today, Nintendo unveiled Digital Game Cards, a digital game-sharing feature for Switch 1 and 2. This means you can transfer your digital purchases between consoles and share them with people on your family Nintendo Account.
A display on Nintendo’s website outlining this forthcoming feature notes that “Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive games” can only be transferred between Switch 2 systems. However, it also mentions another term: “Nintendo Switch 2 Edition games.”
The keen-eyed folks at GVG (video below) spotted this information on the page and wisely pointed out that this suggests variations of existing Switch games that have been enhanced for the Switch 2. As of now, there’s no clear indication of which games might receive the “Switch 2 Edition” upgrade, but it does confirm their arrival.
The announcement reads as follows:
** Acceptable systems must be connected to a Nintendo Account to utilize virtual game cards. Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive games and Nintendo Switch 2 Edition games can only be accessed on a Nintendo Switch 2 system. To transfer virtual game cards between two systems, you can pair the systems using local wireless and an internet connection, but only during the initial pairing process. Up to two systems in total can be linked to a single Nintendo Account.
The recent discovery of a ‘hidden’ 60fps mode in Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition has spurred speculation that there might indeed be a Switch 2 ‘mode’ of some kind. Rumors from Gamescom 2023 suggested that Breath of the Wild was used to showcase the Switch 2’s capabilities at 4K 60fps behind closed doors, although that was said to be for demonstration purposes only, not a product for release.
Switch 2 is confirmed to be backwards compatible with the original Switch, so the phrasing here seems to imply that games may receive “Nintendo Switch 2 Editions” designed to fully utilize the more powerful hardware. It remains unclear whether these will be standalone, full-priced releases or if an upgrade path will exist for those who already own the original games.
This isn’t the only subtle detail that has emerged from materials related to today’s announcement. Chris Scullion over at VGC has noted a cheeky confirmation that the new button on the Switch 2’s Joy-Con is indeed a ‘C’ button, despite the input appearing as a solid black square in the demo video.
Exciting times ahead! Let us know below which direction you think Nintendo will take with these Switch 2 Edition games.
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Gavin first contributed to Nintendo Life in 2018 before becoming a full-time member the following year, working his way up to Editor. He can currently be found buried under a Switch backlog the size of Normandy.