Nintendo Switch 2

[Mike S]

I think you'll be glad to know they're not the only 3rd party games that have also avoided being GKCs on physical, to my knowledge there's also these at the time of writing (courtesy of this page):

• Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma
• Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion (It's sadly a GKC outside of the USA for some reason)
• STORY OF SEASONS: Grand Bazaar
• MARVEL Cosmic Invasion
• Yooka-Replaylee
• Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection
• The Binding of Isaac: Repentance+
• Pastry Panic!
• Order Up!!
• RUSHING BEAT X: Return Of Brawl Brothers
• Bandit Trap
• ChromaGun 2: Dye Hard
• Sonic Racing: Crossworlds (This is a big one IMO, considering it's from SEGA and that they previously put their Switch 2 launch games on GKCs and they confirmed it'll be on a regular cartridge. It's possible this change was in response to the backlash considering it's releasing in early 2026 instead. Hoping this edition sells well to send another message to SEGA and the larger 3rd parties)

In addition to what I shared above, I personally disagree. That kinda sounds a bit defeatist to me when there's 3rd party games that are GKCs on Switch 2 that are full games on the disc on PS5 (Hence discs though, I get it), but especially how there has been existing pressure against them to the point where even shareholders have raised concerns:

Nintendo president says the company worked with third parties on Game-Key Cards, explained the impetus for their creation (UPDATE)

What a card

gonintendo.com

Nintendo Surveys Switch 2 Fans About Controversial Game Cards That Require Downloads

Nintendo is surveying Switch 2 players about Game-Key Cards, physical cartridges that still require downloads after growing backlash from gamers.

www.player.one

Not only that, this could also be chalked up to how the tech is expensive right now because it's new, since word on the street is that the cartridges run on the same technology as MicroSD Express cards, which do not normally have a size below 128GB. So it's possible that Nintendo pushed for a 64GB size for their cards, but they also should have aimed for more sizes, which hopefully could be on the horizon if these are saying anything.

旺宏(2337)第二季EPS低於預期，受匯損與NOR價格疲弱拖累，下半年仍以庫存去化為重心 | 優分析UAnalyze - 掌握全球財經脈動，洞悉商業新趨勢

如封面圖表所示，該公司存貨水準還是偏高，顯示終端需求低迷使得庫存去化速度偏慢。

uanalyze.com.tw

Even so, some 3rd parties straight up cheaped out on games that could have easily fit on a 64GB cartridge, like Street Fighter 6 (50GB), Yakuza 0 (47GB), and (most egregiously so far) Hitman Signature Edition (61GB). So overall, it's partially on both Nintendo for not pushing for more size options (granted that could have been hard right now because of the base tech, assuming it's true), and 3rd party publishers themselves for cheaping out on their larger games. I hope it's not too long before the tech doesn't become as expensive, much like the regular MicroSD cards, because I wanna have hope that one day we'll get reissues of these games that aren't Game Key Cards.

Aside from the much weaker sense of ownership, I always felt like GKCs defeated the purpose of minimizing how much data gets used up on the system by buying physical, they feel like convoluted digital purchases in the end, even if you can at least resell the card now, so I think the criticism they get is justified since I worry about the precedent they could set when used that broadly. It'd be easier to see them as the solution to things like Code In A Box games or even an unusually monster sized game like FF7 remake Intergrade (90GB, a little more justifiable since how often is a console game that big) if it wasn't for how many of them there are from the major 3rd parties (and that's not factoring in Pokopokia going that route, which is concerning since The Pokemon Company is doing that despite being the owners of a massive media franchise).

All that said, I hope this doesn't stain too much of the Switch 2's lifespan. Those proper physical games need all the support they can get.

I generally agree but a good amount of the GKC are also cheaper than the “base” $70 price for Switch 2. That likely wouldn’t be the case if they were fully on the cart.

 

[BriefCasey]

I get that, but I feel like alienating physical collectors with GKCs just potentially shoots sales of the port in the foot. I'd imagine in the advent of GKCs, some people probably would be okay with paying a little more if it means having everything on the cartridge, not to mention depending on the game, it might not always have to be that price except for certain games released on both iterations of the Switch.

 

[Mike S]

I get that, but I feel like alienating physical collectors with GKCs just potentially shoots sales of the port in the foot. I'd imagine in the advent of GKCs, some people probably would be okay with paying a little more if it means having everything on the cartridge, not to mention depending on the game, it might not always have to be that price except for certain games released on both iterations of the Switch.

I get that but I’m not speaking for myself. Downloadable games are taking over whether we like it or not.

 

[BriefCasey]

I don't deny they've been increasing in popularity, I just don't want it to get to the point where physical media goes completely extinct, and I know I'm not the only one on that hill.

Physical and digital should still coexist like they have this past decade, and even then there have been examples over the years that have shown the significant flaws of digital storefronts, like games being delisted from Steam, etc because of rights or licenses expiring among other reasons.