As the Nintendo Switch 2 sets sales records ablaze, one rising controversy is stealing the limelight: Big N's baffling and consumer-hostile strategy for selling physical games.
Even though gamers can continue to visit stores and pick up boxed versions of the game, not all of these cartridges are what they appear to be. To know what's inside the gamers' minds about Game-Key Cards, the video game giant surveyed some of them.
Game-Key Cards: Physical Boxes, Digital Hassles
Nintendo has employed a new system known as Game-Key Cards. The cards, although presented in the package format of old physical games, hold minimal or no game data. Instead, they function as a DRM device that makes users download the entire game digitally, Inverse reported.
Even once downloaded, the card has to be inserted to play the game, with no genuine offline ownership. In effect, buyers are purchasing a plastic key of access, rather than a playable cartridge.
Nintendo Surveys Fans Amid Backlash
This week, Japanese Switch 2 users were issued a Nintendo survey, designed to test public opinion about Game-Key Cards. As VGC reported via SwitchSoku, players are asked whether they know what the cards are, their opinions on the cards, and whether they would select a Game-Key Card over a regular eShop download.
Did you know that Nintendo Switch 2 packaged software includes a game card called a "Game Key Card"?
- I own Game Key Card software
- I don't own Game Key Card software but I know about it.
- I don't know about Game Key Card software.
Do you know anything about the characteristics of the Game Key Cards? Please select all that you know.
- If you have downloaded the main game data, you can start playing without connecting to the internet.
- When playing the game for the first time, you will need to download the game data via the internet.
- Free space on the device's internal memory or microSD Express card is required to download the main content.
- You can play the game on another console by downloading the game data and inserting the key card.
- You must insert the key card into the console to play the game.
- I never knew any of this.
After reading the above explanation, if you wanted to buy a piece of software and there was a Game Key Card or a download version available, which would you choose? Please choose the answer that applies.
- I want to buy Game Key Cards as much as possible.
- I would rather buy a Game Key Card.
- I can't choose either.
- I would rather buy the download version.
- I want to buy the download version as much as possible.
Game Preservationists Raise the Alarm
Preservationists and gamers have warned of serious dangers. The Game-Key Card system jeopardizes long-term access. If a user deletes the game, they'll have to download it again, and if the title is ever delisted from the Nintendo eShop, it may be lost forever.
This is not just an annoyance. It's a threat to the preservation of video games, similar to problems Nintendo has faced in the past, such as the shutdowns of the 3DS and Wii digital stores.
Trend Across the Industry, But Still a Problem
Nintendo is not the only one. PlayStation and Xbox also moved to selling physical boxes containing blank discs that only start a download. But that business has come under attack everywhere as wasteful plastic use, with no collector or ownership value.
Players increasingly see so-called "physical copies" as deceptive and ecologically wasteful, providing nothing more than a download license.
Nintendo Responds, But Blames Publishers
During a recent shareholder Q&A, Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa stood up for Game-Key Cards, arguing they support larger file sizes for games. He continued that it's the choice of game publishers, not Nintendo, to use them.
Nevertheless, Furukawa confirmed that Nintendo is monitoring customer reaction, not only to Game-Key Cards but also to general feedback regarding the Switch 2's $450 price, particularly from younger gamers.
But if Nintendo wishes to retain trust and goodwill, hearing what customers have to say about physical game formats will be important in deciding the direction of the Switch ecosystem.
