If a game is only released in physical form, it won’t be preservable for the future because only a small portion of the game will be on the data carrier.
The launch of the Nintendo Switch 2 earlier this year brought a radical shift in retail releases with the introduction of Game-Key Cards. These cards essentially bridge the gap between physical and digital releases, requiring users to download the entire game to their system while using the cartridge as an access license. Although the community has voiced strong dissatisfaction for valid reasons, it appears that Game-Key Cards are here to stay—even if Nintendo attempts to solve the issue that led many developers to adopt this format over traditional cartridges.
On Bluesky, Nintendeal wrote that the Big N is producing smaller-capacity Nintendo Switch 2 cartridges, which would allow more developers to release proper retail editions of their games. Due to the chip shortage, however, it will take time before these become widely available. This is not the only reason it will take longer for more Nintendo Switch 2 games to receive traditional retail releases. Despite their smaller capacity, these cards will remain expensive due to rising material costs, meaning Game-Key Cards will not disappear.
The widespread use of Game-Key Cards in the retail distribution of Nintendo Switch 2 games is reportedly due to physical cartridges being available only in 64GB versions, which are too expensive for smaller games and insufficient for larger titles. While Nintendo’s reported decision to produce lower-capacity cartridges is a step in the right direction, under current circumstances developers will continue to prefer Game-Key Cards to reduce costs and overcome technical limitations—disappointing fans of physical releases.
This will make it difficult to find a major AAA title that is fully available on a cartridge.
