The Nintendo Switch 2 console has a number of ways for developers and publishers to release new video game titles for customers to purchase.  The three primary methods are: 

1.)  Standard physical game carts with the games on the cartridges
2.)  Digital copies which can be downloaded from the Nintendo eShop
3.)  New “Game-Key Cards”, which allows players to play a game by downloading it, but only while the game-key card is inserted into the system.  

The new game-key cards do have some advantages and disadvantages when compared to digital downloads.  Unlike a download code which can only be used a single time, having a physical game-key card can be used any number of times, by any number of players, to download a game.  However, unlike a digital game which can be played at any time as long as it is installed on a Switch 2 console, titles downloaded via game-key cards require those game-key cards to be inserted into the Switch 2 console whenever a player wants to play their game.  Game-key cards give something tangible that players can lend out or sell, but digital games can be played at any time by the person who owns them, so there are advantages and disadvantages to both.  Game-key cards can certainly be preferable to some consumers over the idea of a “download code in a box”, since having a download code in a box isn’t really much different from simply purchasing a game digitally from the eShop.  

However, game-key cards do not offer any real advantages to consumers over standard physical game carts.  

The Switch 2 console has 256GB of internal memory storage, which can be expanded by microSD Express cards for up to another 2TB.  When a player wants to save game data, download a digital game, game update, or downloadable content, it takes up the user’s storage space, along with any saved image or video files, etc.  (Not to mention any data transferred from the original Nintendo Switch, for players who want to bring their Switch data over to their Nintendo Switch 2 console.)  With the new game-key cards, downloading the game takes up some of the user’s valuable time, and it also takes up a good chunk of their storage space.  The internal storage is limited, and microSD Express cards are fairly expensive.  This limits a player to how many games they can feasibly own and have installed at once.  This presents inconveniences and expenses to consumers that simply don’t exist with standard game carts.  When a player has a standard physical game cart, they can easily insert the game right into the Switch 2 console and play it right away.  No waiting for a download is required, and the game doesn’t need to take up space on a microSD Express card or the system’s internal storage, because the game is stored on and read off of the game cart itself.  This is very convenient for the user, and has been the preferred method for countless players to own their games for years!  

I would like to give an example of how a game-key card can limit the size of a player’s library.  The game “Yakuza 0:  Director’s Cut”, published by Sega, takes up approximately 53.7GB.  The game “Street Fighter 6 Years 1-2 Fighters Edition”, published by Capcom, reportedly uses up approximately 48.8 GB of memory.  These two games are both titles which are slated to be released as launch titles for the Nintendo Switch 2, available for purchase on June 5th when the system releases.  If a player was to purchase games of similar sizes, they’d be able to fit approximately five of them onto their console.  Although the Switch 2 supports microSD cards up to 2TB, the largest ones currently on the market only go up to 1TB, and cost a typical MSRP of around $200 USD.  One of these 1TB microSD Express cards could hold approximately 20 additional games around this file size range, though some games are larger and some are smaller.  Let’s say that a user purchases one of these 1TB microSD Express cards—the largest and most expensive currently available—and that they can play up to approximately 25 games.  This is without the player needing to inconvenience themselves with things like deleting games (which would need to be reinstalled if they want to play them again), or purchasing even more memory cards (which would need to be switched in and out of the system along with the game-key cards, and which should only be swapped when the system is turned off.)  This can impact both the customer and the publisher.  

For the customer, they need to think harder about which game-key cards are worth buying.  It takes up valuable space, and they can only have so many games.  The first Nintendo Switch console has been enjoying a lifespan of over 8 years, currently.  If the Nintendo Switch 2 console is to last a user 8 years, that user might want to enjoy more than 25 games over those 8 years.  If they don’t buy a compatible SD card, they may want to enjoy more than five games in 8 years.  (Or however many games even with smaller file sizes—the point stands that it is potentially a more limited amount.)  With games on standard physical game carts, players can buy and play however many games they wish.  But with the new game-key cards, it puts new burdens on the consumer to delegate how many games they buy and to manage their storage more frugally.  Consumers will need to spend more money and time to play games released on game-key cards.  Players who cannot or who are unwilling to make these compromises may simply not buy these games, or they will purchase fewer of them.  

If you are a game publisher or company, consider if your goal is to sell your product to as many customers as possible.  If your game is not only competing with other games on the shelf, but also with how many games a player can feasibly play on their new system across its entire lifespan, you may be creating more of a burden for yourself in the long run.  Consider a customer’s basic feelings of things like, “I would like to play this game, but it takes up too much space”, or, “I would like to buy this game, but my memory card is almost full and I don’t have enough money for a new one.”  By having your game on a game-key card, you are adding a new barrier of entry to your game, which might cut into sales.

Game-key cards may cost less for a publisher to purchase and release games on, which can improve a profit margin, which we understand.  However, it unloads this extra cost onto the customer.  Instead of the developer manufacturing the game on cartridges themselves which contain the full game, it now pushes the cost onto the players.  In fact, one benefit of the game-key card is its ability to be shared between players… but for players who want to share a game-key card, now ALL players sharing the game need to have enough space for the game to be fully installed, and they can’t simply swap the card around to play it.  

This petition is for people to sign if they share one common opinion:

“Game-key cards are inferior to standard physical game carts, and selfishly inconvenience players with burdens that publishers should be more willing to offset themselves.  We would like to see more games released on standard physical game carts instead of on game-key cards, please.”  

We who sign this petition ask more of both publishers, and of Nintendo themselves.

For any companies making decisions on whether or not a game is released on a standard physical game cart or a game-key card instead:  Please consider making more games available on standard physical game carts whenever possible, and understand that it is preferred by many customers.

For Nintendo themselves:  Please try to provide more convenient options and pricing to developers so that it is more enticing for them to release their games on standard physical game carts instead of game-key carts.

Consumers would like to see fewer anti-consumer practices, and more convenient accommodations, in general.  For example, there are many games for the Nintendo Switch which will enjoy free updates for the Nintendo Switch 2, such as “Pokémon Scarlet” and “Pokémon Violet”, “Super Mario Odyssey”, “ARMS”, and “The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom”.  However, other Switch 2 games also featured on the first Nintendo Switch system require for the full game to be re-purchased in order for a player to enjoy its enhancements.  An example of this is “Sonic x Shadow Generations”.  While most games like this can be upgraded for free from a system like the Playstation 4 to the Playstation 5, the Switch 2 edition of the game requires a full purchase of $50 USD MSRP.  That’s insane!  Similarly, Nintendo offers paid upgrades for titles such as “The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom”, “Super Mario Party Jamboree”, and “Kirby and the Forgotten Land”, where the upgrades are more substantial.  Though the games are sold on standard physical game carts with the new enhancements included, the enhancements can also be purchased separately and downloaded digitally.  Games like “Puyo Puyo Tetris 2” on the Switch could theoretically be upgraded to “Puyo Puyo Tetris 2S” on the Swtich 2, but because this option is not given to the customers, even players who already own Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 on the Switch would need to pay a full-price $40 USD MSRP for the “2S” version of the game.  Instead of rewarding loyal customers who have purchased these games earlier on, this is more like a punishment to those players for not waiting before making their purchases.  

The game “Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition” is being released by CD Projekt Red with the entire game on a standard game cart.  The games “Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma”, “Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar”, and “Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion” are all being published on standard physical game cards by Marvelous USA.  These companies are impressing plenty of customers by continuing to fit their entire games on standard physical game carts, and this is a point of consideration that can earn them favor.  For companies like Capcom, Sega, Square-Enix, Spike Chunsoft, EA, and more, there’s no good reason why they cannot continue to offer their games on standard physical game carts as well.  Gaming is already becoming an increasingly expensive hobby for gamers, with rising prices of systems and games.  By keeping games on their carts, it can help save customers their important money and time.  

For publishers, even if the standard physical carts cost a little more, please consider splurging on them for the sake of your players.  Please consider free or inexpensive upgrades for players who already own your games on older hardware, too.  Please consider keeping microtransactions at affordable prices, and be careful not to overdo them.  Please don’t include “loot box” mechanics in your games which have players gambling with their money.  For players of all ages, please respect our money and our time.  By respecting your players, more of your players can respect you in return.  More than just making money, it helps to build brand loyalty, and to keep up a good reputation.  It’s understandable that the game-key cards are a new and experimental way to publish games with its own enticements, but for many players, it is simply not as appealing as a superior standard physical game cart.  Thank you for your consideration.