“Ladies and Gentlemen, the Switch 2”
The Nintendo Switch 2 is evidently the hot topic of discussion today, and from observing the chatter on social media, it’s apparent that Don Mattrick and the Xbox One launch from 2013 are being referenced more than once!
Diving into this a little deeper, it concerns the Game-Key Cards that will be utilized by certain Nintendo Switch 2 titles. Typically, when there isn’t ample space to store a game on a cartridge, you will receive a modified cartridge that requires installing the game via the internet – and then you still need to insert it in order to play.
Game-key cards differ from regular game cards, as they lack complete game data. Instead, the game-key card serves as your “key” for downloading the full game to your device online.
Once it’s downloaded, you can play the game by inserting the game-key card into your device and launching it just like a traditional physical game card.
That’s what Nintendo claims, and now, here’s a look at some Xbox-related reactions we’ve noticed:
And by the way, it’s not just this Game-Key Card feature that’s stirring up Xbox One comparisons! Windows Central, for instance, has highlighted the similarities with game sharing and the new camera for the Switch 2:
Now, to be fair, I personally don’t view the Game-Key Card aspect as being closely related to the Xbox One launch and its initial emphasis on being a constantly online console, since it’s really just an evolution of the code-in-a-box method that has been utilized with various Switch titles to date. A lot of the frustration surrounding the Xbox One in 2013 was that you couldn’t play offline or resell games, which is not an issue with the Switch 2.
What it does indicate, however, is that once again, the preservation of physical games is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain. Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo all now embrace the concept of mandating downloads online for many games, and when these servers eventually shut down, some of these discs and cartridges may well become obsolete.
That is unfortunately how things seem to be progressing – and Nintendo is simply following the trend with a feature like this.
What do you think of the entire Game Key concept?