My rant about Game Key Card games and Third parties

[fenixazul]

First of , this is a personal rant, as a person that loves to collect physical games.

I know that this is rant is useless and the only way nintendo and third parties can change this is if the sales of the key card games go down, but seems that the most probable case is that they just simply go 100% on Switch 2.

For some people, the incentive of buying a third party game on Switch instead of other platform was the physical format. Yes, some games on Swtich 1 were not fully on the cartridge but most games that had a reasonable size was fully included in the cartridge.

I am not sure, but I believe (correct me if I am wrong plz) that the Switch 1 cartridge were distributed in 8GB, 16GB and 32GB, being 32GB the most expensive and the one that you need to pay more. For Switch 2 as far as I know there are only 2 sizes: 8GB and 64GB. I dont know if nintendo is going to release 16GB and 32GB sized cartridges for Switch 2.

First of all, this was a bad decision from Nintendo. I KNOW that the third parties are choosing the key card, but come on, Nintendo should offer 16GB and 32GB cartridges too. I mean, I get that they made the game key card format to be more friendly with third parties, but if they dont sell their games because of this, then it will have worse situation than Switch 1. I can understand the use of game key card for massively big games like for example FF7 Remake that it is bigger than 100GB, and yes, making 128GB cartridges for just 5 or 6 games is not worthy. But that is the part that I dont like, Nintendo should had ONLY gave that option for those specific cases. I can undesrtand if they were shy to demand things to the third parties after the failure of the Wii U, but they are comming from the success of the Switch 1. When they needed to be "arrogant" they didnt, lol. Now every third party are using key card games even for games that are enough small to be packed in a 8GB card lol

Most people hated the Partner Showcase, but as a person that loves JRPGs and pixel art, I was very hyped, but if games that are actually capable to be packed in a switch 1 cartridge and they release as a game key card on Switch 2 is ridiculous, like for example Octopaht Traveler 0, which I REALLY want to buy for Switch 2 but I dont want to support the key card format. The worst part is that they dont give us the option to upgrade to Switch 2 version if you buy the Switch 1 version, something like other games like Shadow Labyrinth has.

I bought Cyberpunk even if I can buy it for Steam just because it is fully included in the cartridge, even the DLC. I already played Elden Ring on PC too and I would be happy to buy the Switch 2 version if it were a physical release like Cyberpunk.

I am happy that games like Cronos is going to be ported to Switch 2 but if it is not 100% physical (which is most probable) I will buy it for PC

Then again, hope that Nintendo changes their politics (based in the low sales of the game key cards) and start releasing 16GB and 32GB cards and promoting their use with the third parties. I am happy that the sales of cyberpunk were decent

Well this was my rant, wanted to make a thread of this instead of complaining in every other threads lol

Ok I finished my tantrum, I can continue with my life

 

[bpapa2016]

I am not sure, but I believe (correct me if I am wrong plz) that the Switch 1 cartridge were distributed in 8GB, 16GB and 32GB, being 32GB the most expensive and the one that you need to pay more. For Switch 2 as far as I know there are only 2 sizes: 8GB and 64GB. I dont know if nintendo is going to release 16GB and 32GB sized cartridges for Switch 2.

Well, why? Nobody knows the answer. I’ve only seen one theory that makes sense, but it’s just a theory. The reality is that there is probably a good reason for this, and it far outweighs that a small but vocal part of the audience cares this much about the supposed perils of Game Key Cards.

on Switch 2 is ridiculous, like for example Octopaht Traveler 0, which I REALLY want to buy for Switch 2 but I dont want to support the key card format.

Just stop. You’re really not going to play a game you want to over this? Well, you probably can wait out until it goes to other platforms…

 

[fenixazul]

Well, why? Nobody knows the answer. I’ve only seen one theory that makes sense, but it’s just a theory. The reality is that there is probably a good reason for this, and it far outweighs that a small but vocal part of the audience cares this much about the supposed perils of Game Key Cards.


Just stop. You’re really not going to play a game you want to over this? Well, you probably can wait out until it goes to other platforms…

I will probably buy digital on Switch 2, never said that I am going to private myself of the game just for this. and there is no reason to me to buy a PS5 or Xbox when I have a PC. Seems that games on PS5 are starting to come as "keys" like the case of Doom Dark Ages

EDIT : Better Idea, I will buy the Switch 1 version. Is a pixel art game so more power will no make too much difference

 

[gencid]

I think I need to do a rant thread about virtual cards. It used to be that all you needed to do to play digital games on different consoles is register your account. Now on top of that, I need to keep the 2 systems close? F that.

But yeah. Game key cards are glorified resellable digital codes. That's better than traditional download codes, but the benefits aren't worth the hassle for me.

 

[bpapa2016]

. It used to be that all you needed to do to play digital games on different consoles is register your account.

Eh, you had to do the whole primary console dance, which could be an enormous PITA depending on how much handheld you played outside of your home.

The new way is better.

 

[gencid]

Eh, you had to do the whole primary console dance, which could be an enormous PITA depending on how much handheld you played outside of your home.

The new way is better.

It's ok to admit that Nintendo can f off with these draconian overreach schemes.

 

[bpapa2016]

It's ok to admit that Nintendo can f off with these draconian overreach schemes.

The same could be said to you, but in reverse.

The use case I just described, which is one I used to live with, is now way better. Back when I used to use a Switch at home and a Lite on the go I had to keep the Primary thing in mind and there were definitely occasions where I'd be on a train with my Lite unable to play games b/c I had switched and forgot to switch back. If I still wanted to do this with Virtual Game Cards I'd just pop it in once and only need to come back every couple of weeks.

 

[dhay84]

I think I need to do a rant thread about virtual cards. It used to be that all you needed to do to play digital games on different consoles is register your account. Now on top of that, I need to keep the 2 systems close? F that.

But yeah. Game key cards are glorified resellable digital codes. That's better than traditional download codes, but the benefits aren't worth the hassle for me.

Yep, I hate it too. Nintendo treats it like a physical swap like you’re actually swapping a physical copy to a friend in digital form. But it’s not a physical card, it’s a virtual/digital exchange. So why do I need to be in the same room as you to lend one of my games to that person when internet exist? Lol Nintendo is going to Nintendo man.

OT: Yeah man, we’ve discussed this topic quite a bit here. I’m a digital buyer so it doesn’t really effect me all that much but I can see why keycards are such a turnoff physical buyers. The voices are apparently loud enough that Nintendo decided to do a survey in Japan on it, otherwise, they would’ve just annoyed it?

But yeah, I think it was Nintendo’s solution for third parties to put games on their console without third parties spending much on carts. I don’t think Nintendo expected the backlash to be this big or maybe they did. Regardless though, Nintendo themselves didn’t want no part of that potential backlash which why all of their games are on carts. Lol It will be interesting to see how much of an impact this will have on them this generation. No one knows quite yet.

 

[wratih9]

I feel your pain. I have over 350 physical games for the Switch (I have a huge collection to begin with for all consoles) and so far the Switch 2 has been disappointing in that regard. If a game was multi platform and ran reasonably well on the Switch, that was always my go to option if it was on the cart. Also most of the retro releases, indie games, and so on I simply just bought on Switch.

With the Switch 2, my understanding of the rumor is that there is only one cartridge size (64GB) and it adds $15 to the cost. So I get why most publishers are forgoing the cartridge option and doing the Key Card route. Money rules all and the key card keeps the margins in line. Keep in mind when they are selling a game for $70, that is then divided up among Nintendo, the publisher, and the retailer plus the costs of getting it to stores. So while we want to say they are being greedy (not that you said that OP), it's simply not the case. On a $50 game (Let's take Yakuza 0), it does not make sense to take $15 off the top to just produce it. That leaves only $35 to split between everything else. So from a business standpoint, I get it.

My understanding also is that with the need for faster read speeds, they turned to a newer standard (which is un Nintendo too) which does not have all the size options that regular cards have. The theory is that as time goes on they may have more options available or at least the costs will go down to cut into that $15 price. That really is the only hope to have a most robust physical option for the console. Otherwise they will have to charge more for the games that are on cart.

With that being said, I'm torn on Key cards. I will always prefer having the game on cartridge but the Key Card alleviates my biggest gripe about digital games on consoles. If I want to lend the game to someone, I can do that with a Key Card. If I want to sell the game, I can do that with a Key Card. I had this problem with the 3DS when it released as I was going all digital. We purchased a 3DS for my son and that's when I realized I would be rebuying the same game so that he could play the games even though I already had bought them digitally for my 3DS. From that point on I have been big into physical.

The drawback that I see to key cards, is that if the servers go offline and I do not have it downloaded, I'm out that game. That is a big concern of mine but at the same time, none of the 3 major consoles have blocked that ability as of yet. I can still re download games that I bought on Wii, WiiU, and Xbox 360 even though those stores are not open. So that covers about 20 years. That's actually a good amount of time.

 

[bpapa2016]

The drawback that I see to key cards, is that if the servers go offline and I do not have it downloaded, I'm out that game. That is a big concern of mine but at the same time, none of the 3 major consoles have blocked that ability as of yet. I can still re download games that I bought on Wii, WiiU, and Xbox 360 even though those stores are not open. So that covers about 20 years. That's actually a good amount of time.

It’s just a weird thing to be concerned about. The Switch 2 launch is the biggest of all time. Nintendo likely wants to do a Switch 3, 4, and 5 out into infinity. That could change someday, but it’s just such an odd thing to be overly concerned about because for it to not go down that way, it will likely mean that Nintendo’s game console business is in some other sort of significant trouble.

 

[neo_bahamut1889]

Still better than garbage cloud versions

 

[MatthewGavin10]

I feel your pain. I have over 350 physical games for the Switch (I have a huge collection to begin with for all consoles) and so far the Switch 2 has been disappointing in that regard. If a game was multi platform and ran reasonably well on the Switch, that was always my go to option if it was on the cart. Also most of the retro releases, indie games, and so on I simply just bought on Switch.

With the Switch 2, my understanding of the rumor is that there is only one cartridge size (64GB) and it adds $15 to the cost. So I get why most publishers are forgoing the cartridge option and doing the Key Card route. Money rules all and the key card keeps the margins in line. Keep in mind when they are selling a game for $70, that is then divided up among Nintendo, the publisher, and the retailer plus the costs of getting it to stores. So while we want to say they are being greedy (not that you said that OP), it's simply not the case. On a $50 game (Let's take Yakuza 0), it does not make sense to take $15 off the top to just produce it. That leaves only $35 to split between everything else. So from a business standpoint, I get it.

My understanding also is that with the need for faster read speeds, they turned to a newer standard (which is un Nintendo too) which does not have all the size options that regular cards have. The theory is that as time goes on they may have more options available or at least the costs will go down to cut into that $15 price. That really is the only hope to have a most robust physical option for the console. Otherwise they will have to charge more for the games that are on cart.

With that being said, I'm torn on Key cards. I will always prefer having the game on cartridge but the Key Card alleviates my biggest gripe about digital games on consoles. If I want to lend the game to someone, I can do that with a Key Card. If I want to sell the game, I can do that with a Key Card. I had this problem with the 3DS when it released as I was going all digital. We purchased a 3DS for my son and that's when I realized I would be rebuying the same game so that he could play the games even though I already had bought them digitally for my 3DS. From that point on I have been big into physical.

The drawback that I see to key cards, is that if the servers go offline and I do not have it downloaded, I'm out that game. That is a big concern of mine but at the same time, none of the 3 major consoles have blocked that ability as of yet. I can still re download games that I bought on Wii, WiiU, and Xbox 360 even though those stores are not open. So that covers about 20 years. That's actually a good amount of time.

With my age, I do have any issues with the servers going offline. If they kept the Switch servers for another 20 years(the number you used) I will be in my 60s. Not sure how many games I will be playing then. But I don't see the servers going offline anytime soon anyway.

If it ever got to be an issue, I would just buy SD cards and download everything I could like a lot of 3ds people did.

 

[dhay84]

With my age, I do have any issues with the servers going offline. If they kept the Switch servers for another 20 years(the number you used) I will be in my 60s. Not sure how many games I will be playing then. But I don't see the servers going offline anytime soon anyway.

If it ever got to be an issue, I would just buy SD cards and download everything I could like a lot of 3ds people did.

This was literally my decision of going all digital as well. I’m 40 on the dot and if Nintendo was to take down the server in another 20 or 30 years from now, I would be 60 or 70 years old. If I’m bless enough to be around that long, I probably won’t care that much by then honestly. Can’t take games with you to the afterlife anyways. Lol

 

[fenixazul]

Still better than garbage cloud versions

yes, but as you can witness, the gaming media is evolving in this way

100% physical -> physical with digital for small games - >physical and digital as options -> only digital -> cloud and games as a service

 

[wratih9]

It’s just a weird thing to be concerned about. The Switch 2 launch is the biggest of all time. Nintendo likely wants to do a Switch 3, 4, and 5 out into infinity. That could change someday, but it’s just such an odd thing to be overly concerned about because for it to not go down that way, it will likely mean that Nintendo’s game console business is in some other sort of significant trouble.

Technology evolving will keep the games on the hardware they were released on regardless of popularity. Switch 2 thankfully figured out a way to do it via software.

The library's of most consoles are so vast that I miss games. I find games all the time on older consoles that are not able to be played unless you can find a physical copy (I'm excluding emulation). Just this year I completed The Punisher on the OG Xbox and really enjoyed it as a Punisher fan. Physical only release so that's how I was able to play.

Its not wide spread but its become more common for games to be delisted and it a few games even removed from digital libraries. I am not a fan of this.

With my age, I do have any issues with the servers going offline. If they kept the Switch servers for another 20 years(the number you used) I will be in my 60s. Not sure how many games I will be playing then. But I don't see the servers going offline anytime soon anyway.

If it ever got to be an issue, I would just buy SD cards and download everything I could like a lot of 3ds people did.

This was literally my decision of going all digital as well. I’m 40 on the dot and if Nintendo was to take down the server in another 20 or 30 years from now, I would be 60 or 70 years old. If I’m bless enough to be around that long, I probably won’t care that much by then honestly. Can’t take games with you to the afterlife anyways. Lol

Yes these are logical takes and I was on the cusp of going all digital until I had a son that wanted to play the same games I had already purchased. That's less of a concern now that's he's 20. But the fear remains.

And yes logically 20 years from now I will be lucky to even be still playing games. Hopefully by then I actually will have the time to work on this eternal back log.

 

[bpapa2016]

With my age, I do have any issues with the servers going offline. If they kept the Switch servers for another 20 years(the number you used) I will be in my 60s. Not sure how many games I will be playing then. But I don't see the servers going offline anytime soon anyway.

If it ever got to be an issue, I would just buy SD cards and download everything I could like a lot of 3ds people did.

This was literally my decision of going all digital as well. I’m 40 on the dot and if Nintendo was to take down the server in another 20 or 30 years from now, I would be 60 or 70 years old. If I’m bless enough to be around that long, I probably won’t care that much by then honestly. Can’t take games with you to the afterlife anyways. Lol

Sigh, something else I have been concerned about lol. Mario is celebrating 40 years this year, and I have "been there" for most of them (I got into Nintendo in 87 IIRC). In 40 more years I'll be 85. Who knows if I'll still be alive or gaming then, lol.

Something else to think about during my recommended-by-age Colonoscopy in the morning...

 

[dhay84]

Sigh, something else I have been concerned about lol. Mario is celebrating 40 years this year, and I have "been there" for most of them (I got into Nintendo in 87 IIRC). In 40 more years I'll be 85. Who knows if I'll still be alive or gaming then, lol.

Something else to think about during my recommended-by-age Colonoscopy in the morning...

Oh man colonoscopy. Here’s to good results. Good luck.

 

[Wes68]

There are many reasons why I have taken such a hard line stance against buying game key cards or the digital titles associated with them on e-shop.

• You are paying the same price, if not more, for less. No game data on the cart.
• They may save the company/publisher money...but how are they saving me money?
  • Key Cards reportedly cost anywhere between .50¢ - $1.00 for the publisher vs. the 64gb cart which some have speculated costs as much as $10.
  • They are charging $60-70 or now even $80 thanks to Nintendo's own Mario Kart 8 (and can anyone reasonably tell me that Mario Kart 8 costs as much as say Cyberpunk?)
  • We have had publishers assert these offset the rising development costs.
  • However, how many of these third party titles are PORTS? That is games that have already released elsewhere and have marginal development compared to being built from the ground up?
  • Yakuza 0 Director's Cut will be $50. You know how much that game costs on Steam right now? $20. (In fact each of the Yakuza titles on Steam are $20.)
  • Publishers that opt for a Game key card save money on a game they already published and already made money on, but are now expecting me to pay more while I get less in return for it. If they made these game key cards comparable in price to other platforms? Game Key cards might be better received. You would at least be saving money.
• Cost of storage and the space on the system.
  • Switch 2 with so many third-party titles being game key cards? That necessitates having to download....a lot of data.
  • Many regions have data caps and people may not be able to download 50-60gb. The Switch 2 released with a paltry 256gb of internal storage. Physical has beyond it's appeal to collectors, has been a way to circumvent the need for additional storage.
  • You need a new form of storage in SD Express. Buying another 256 or even 512gb will not go far.
  • A game like Star Wars Outlaws is 65gb on PC. You mean to tell me Ubisoft can't be bothered to compress the game by a 1gb to fit it on a 64 gb cart? Avatar Frontiers of Pandora is 90gb. Jedi Survivors is 155gb on PC. (that's from EA.) Cyberpunk + Phantom Liberty was over 100gb on PC. And they got it on to a 64gb cart.
  • I think you can see where I am going with this. Even that 1tb will fill up fast. And that will cost another $200. But won't someone think about the poor multi million dollar corporations? They may be saving money. But Switch 2 owners sure as hell aren't with game key cards.
• Concerns over preservation.
  
  • I get it. Some people don't care about what-ifs or maybes years down the road. But I do. I am someone who will always be a proponent of physical media. But we are seeing an industry that increasingly wants you to own nothing. We have plenty of evidence of this already.

The next bit is sort of tangential but i feel somewhat tangentially related to why I feel physical media is important. But it's more broad than the topic of key cards and touches on Stop Killing games, payment processors removing certain content, and the prevalence of older games...so I'll put it in a spoiler box.

Spoiler: State of the industry

Ubisoft isn't the only studio that orders you to destroy your games once support ends​

https://www.thegamer.com/ubisoft-eula-clause-destroy-your-games-is-not-new-or-unique/
I frankly don't care what company does it. It's bullshit and shouldn't even be a thing. There is no way in hell a company is going to tell me what I can do with a physical copy of a game I purchased. This is why people will say if buying isn't owning? Piracy isn't theft. Companies are actively trying to take away / control not only our access to digital titles but physical as well.

And that's why Stop Killing Games is important and has received widespread attention. There is the whole thing with Pirate Software who is frankly a douche canoe. But even game companies are trying to lobby against this and misrepresent what Stop Killing Games is actually asking for.
https://www.gamesindustry.biz/stop-being-dismissive-about-stop-killing-games-opinion

Stop being dismissive about Stop Killing Games | Opinion​

Misrepresenting the requests of the Citizens' Initiative or declaring them impossible is unlikely to fly in front of the European Commission

European Citizens' Initiatives require a million verified signatures and are thus relatively rare, meaning that they're taken pretty seriously by the European Commission when they do pass. With over 1.4 million signatures gathered, it seems very likely that Stop Killing Games has exceeded the requirements, even given that some of the signatures will probably turn out to be invalid.

Such initiatives aren't just given a symbolic few minutes of parliamentary time – the Commission conducts an investigation of the issue, including holding meetings with the initiative organisers and other stakeholders, conducting a public hearing in the European Parliament, and preparing a formal response. There's no guarantee that they will do as the initiative asks, of course. But if they opt not to take action, they're still required to file a full report and conduct meetings explaining their reasoning.

The industry response to Stop Killing Games has tended to be pretty dismissive – a little lip-service to the importance of keeping consumers happy, a lot of hand-waving about how what's being asked is impossible. But the reality that the European Commission (and potentially the UK Parliament) will now be obliged to consider this issue has clearly rattled a few cages.

Responses now – such as those from industry organisation Video Games Europe, and recent statements from Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot – remain dismissive, but with a rather different tone. There's more lip service to the aims of the campaign (presumably because effectively calling a million of your most passionate consumers a bunch of naïve mooks isn't great PR in any circumstance), but the hand-waving about impossibility has been joined by some fairly bad-faith mischaracterisation of what Stop Killing Games is even asking for.

At its core, the ask is that online games should have an end-of-life plan that clearly and honestly lays out which aspects of the game can continue to function without support, and that, within reason, provides the frameworks required for players to continue to enjoy the game they've paid for.

Whether that's realistic or not is a complex subject – it certainly differs from game to game, and some online titles are absolutely designed in ways that would make this kind of post-shutdown operation extremely costly to implement or even outright impossible to achieve. What this is not, however, is a demand that publishers and developers must continue supporting their online games forever.

People like Pirate Software and the Games industry are acting out of self preservation in mischaracterizing what is being asked for. Stop Killing Games is not asking that developers support a game infinitely. That's frankly ridiculous. What they are asking for is that a publisher/developer have plans to leave games in a playable functional state at the end of support for that game.

Think about it in terms of GPU's. Nvidia just said they will be ending support of game ready drivers for Maxwell and Pascall GPU's. That doesn't mean those GPU's will cease to function at that point. Rather it just means they will not but supported going forward meaning more titles increasingly won't support that older hardware but that older hardware will continue to play the games you have.

The reason the Industry is against this is that people are increasingly playing older games. Why? Because games are increasingly becoming more expensive. Just look at the prices above. Sony, MS, and Nintendo too are also increasing prices on old hardware and accessories/peripherals. And now companies like Nintendo that once prided themselves on being affordable for families and the family friendly company; were the ones to break the dam charging $80 for Mario Kart World. And MS tried to follow suit with games like Outer Worlds 2 and then dropped the price back to $70. (This is all while laying off countless staff and gutting studios I might add).

PC gamers spend 92% of their time on older games, oh and there are apparently 908 million of us now​

https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-indu...d-there-are-apparently-908-million-of-us-now/

data further shows, in Newzoo's own words, that these 908 million "PC players are heavily skewed towards older, live service games."

The data shows that from January 2024 to December 2024, 67% of player hours on PC were spent on a game that was six or more years old. A further 25% of player hours were spent on games that were two to five years old, and the remaining 8% of time was spent on games that are less than two years old.

Newzoo's data further breaks down that 67% chunk. Within this:

• 7.1% of the total hours spent were on Counter-Strike: Global Offensive / Counter-Strike 2
• 6.4% were in League of Legends
• 6.2% were in Roblox
• 5.8% were in Dota 2
• 5.4% were in Fortnite

Those are live service games yes. But they all have one other thing in common. (with perhaps the exception of Counter-Strike). They are all free to play games. And the industry (sony especially) have chased the live service trend with their own live service failures. Charging for Concord for example. And the reality that many of these publishers miss is that live service games (the most successful) ones are free to play and that people have already picked their poison. WarThunder in my case. Even the MMO space is littered with the corpses of the "WoW killer" and WoW is going on 20 years old and still able to charge a sub.

But there is more truth to that then you might think. Even in the console space. Speaking personally? I bought a game I already owned elsewhere on Switch 2 over a new Mariokart at $80. And yes it was third party. Cyberpunk 2077. Because it was all on the cart.

Beyond that, I've also been playing Baldur's Gate 3 again. So gamers going back to older titles isn't limited to just PC or live service titles. And game publishers are afraid that they will lose sales on new titles to used better titles.

I mean hell. How many people went back to Mario Kart 8 after unpopular changes made to World?

Steam Users Are Banding Together To Contact Visa Over Removal Of Adult Games​

https://www.thegamer.com/steam-gaming-industry-visa-payment-processors-adult-games-banned/

If you weren't aware? Various shall we say... 'adult' video games are being targeted on platforms like Steam and Itch.IO. And it's not the platform holders. It's a bunch of karens in this group called collective shout who are pressuring payment processors to remove games from these platforms. It's not just about these 'adult' games. It's about far more. It's about a group of individuals who are exerting influence and control in what you the customer chooses to spend money on. Where does that end? They are now going after horror games. And if they exert this kind of pressure on one genre? Who's to say they don't then target M rated games like GTA VI, etc?

At the end of the day Payment Processors have one purpose. Processing payment.

TLDR: For all these companies crying the blues about rising development costs to the point they are looking to use game key cards to offset those costs?

Is saving $9.50 per unit worth it in the long run if your sales are impacted to the point a third party cites sales being even lower than their lower expectations? They are already charging a higher price for many of these ports and they expect me to believe that even if they had to pay more for a physical cart that the game (An older game at that) wouldn't be profitable?

As I noted above many of these games are already on other platforms elsewhere. Folks may have double dipped previously because of the novelty of playing those games on the go. And that novelty may be there for some yet who don't have another platform where they already played these games. But it's not there for me anymore when I have a Steam Deck. And you have other devices coming out like the Xbox Handheld, etc.

Coupled with the need to download these games? Having to insert a physical cart makes digital less convenient, and keycards make physical less convenient. They may be less shit than codes in a box. But just because they don't smell as bad doesn't mean that they themselves are also not a steaming pile of shit. It's like Chicken Shit versus Cow Shit. (I live in a rural area). But cow/barnyard shit is no where near as bad as Chicken shit (because it has amonia in it.).

Would I like to play FF7 remake on Switch 2 for example? Sure. But do I want to pay $60-70 for a game key card where I have to download 100gb? Not really. Not when I can just play it on Steam Deck where I have more storage to work with; without having to dump another $200 for additional storage. A keycard version of that game literally offers me nothing I can't already get elsewhere. The only thing they could do is if it were physical.

 

[SegaMac]

As a physical collector myself, I'm still debating on whether to even buy game key cards. On the one hand, I can resell the item, but it also feels completely pointless to purchase because it still fills up space on my SD card. However, if I purchase the digital copy, I have that forever regardless of the key card (until the servers shut down of course) and its more convenient. And if I'm going to download a game, it's usually because I already know I'm not going to sell it anyway.

So I guess for these keycard offerings, I'm going to prefer purchasing the digital version.

It really sucks.

 

[fenixazul]

As a physical collector myself, I'm still debating on whether to even buy game key cards. On the one hand, I can resell the item, but it also feels completely pointless to purchase because it still fills up space on my SD card. However, if I purchase the digital copy, I have that forever regardless of the key card (until the servers shut down of course) and its more convenient. And if I'm going to download a game, it's usually because I already know I'm not going to sell it anyway.

So I guess for these keycard offerings, I'm going to prefer purchasing the digital version.

It really sucks.

I wil probably buy FF7 remake on Game Key card because the game is huge, so it is understandable , but others I dont know, at least with Octopaht Traveler 0 I have the option of buying for Switch 1 but the new RPG Eliot , I really wanted to support third party efforts on the Switch 2

At least , the Mortal Kombat Legacy Kollection is comming 100% physical confirmed. It is ironic how western developers are more willing to offer 100% physical cards when Nintendo is more popular for Japanese developed games..

 

[neo_bahamut1889]

yes, but as you can witness, the gaming media is evolving in this way

100% physical -> physical with digital for small games - >physical and digital as options -> only digital -> cloud and games as a service

If buying isn't owning, then piracy isn't copyright infringement

 

[fenixazul]

If buying isn't owning, then piracy isn't copyright infringement

dude, then you have the right to pirate all the games available on Gamepass?

I mean, then PC gamers are going to become pirates, PC gamming has been 100% digital for 20 years now

 

[Wes68]

I wil probably buy FF7 remake on Game Key card because the game is huge, so it is understandable , but others I dont know, at least with Octopaht Traveler 0 I have the option of buying for Switch 1 but the new RPG Eliot , I really wanted to support third party efforts on the Switch 2

At least , the Mortal Kombat Legacy Kollection is comming 100% physical confirmed. It is ironic how western developers are more willing to offer 100% physical cards when Nintendo is more popular for Japanese developed games..

It is a huge game. But so is Cyberpunk+Phantom Liberty. Well over 100gb on PC iirc? They somehow compressed it to a 64gb cart. Square could do the same if they really wanted. And most of Remake is hubs and corridors. Now Rebirth? That's a different ball game. But even Star Wars Outlaws is something like 65gb and they can't compress it 1gb to get it on to a cart?

 

[gencid]

The same could be said to you, but in reverse.

No, I am going to rant about it because it is terrible, draconian and worse than before in every practical way. And I will buy fewer digital games or just Nintendo games in general because of this BS.

 

[SegaMac]

I wil probably buy FF7 remake on Game Key card because the game is huge, so it is understandable , but others I dont know, at least with Octopaht Traveler 0 I have the option of buying for Switch 1 but the new RPG Eliot , I really wanted to support third party efforts on the Switch 2

At least , the Mortal Kombat Legacy Kollection is comming 100% physical confirmed. It is ironic how western developers are more willing to offer 100% physical cards when Nintendo is more popular for Japanese developed games..

Not opposing your decision, but I'm genuinely curious as to why you'd get a keycard version of FF7 Remake when its just a download?

 

[SegaMac]

I wil probably buy FF7 remake on Game Key card because the game is huge, so it is understandable , but others I dont know, at least with Octopaht Traveler 0 I have the option of buying for Switch 1 but the new RPG Eliot , I really wanted to support third party efforts on the Switch 2

At least , the Mortal Kombat Legacy Kollection is comming 100% physical confirmed. It is ironic how western developers are more willing to offer 100% physical cards when Nintendo is more popular for Japanese developed games..

Not opposing your decision, but I'm genuinely curious as to why you'd get a keycard version of FF7 Remake when its just a download?

 

[SegaMac]

I wil probably buy FF7 remake on Game Key card because the game is huge, so it is understandable , but others I dont know, at least with Octopaht Traveler 0 I have the option of buying for Switch 1 but the new RPG Eliot , I really wanted to support third party efforts on the Switch 2

At least , the Mortal Kombat Legacy Kollection is comming 100% physical confirmed. It is ironic how western developers are more willing to offer 100% physical cards when Nintendo is more popular for Japanese developed games..

Not opposing your decision, but I'm genuinely curious as to why you'd get a keycard version of FF7 Remake when its just a download?

 

[SaintAvalon]

Game key card is better than just a digital code as you can at least trade it, i think this is a better direction then the other of just a digital code,

Pick your poison, they are going to do one or the other which do you want?

I won't buy any physical that doesn't contain the game in it's entirety as i want to not trade it, but be able to use it even if the store goes offline.

 

[SegaMac]

I wil probably buy FF7 remake on Game Key card because the game is huge, so it is understandable , but others I dont know, at least with Octopaht Traveler 0 I have the option of buying for Switch 1 but the new RPG Eliot , I really wanted to support third party efforts on the Switch 2

At least , the Mortal Kombat Legacy Kollection is comming 100% physical confirmed. It is ironic how western developers are more willing to offer 100% physical cards when Nintendo is more popular for Japanese developed games..

Not opposing your decision, but I'm genuinely curious as to why you'd get a keycard version of FF7 Remake when its just a download?

 

[SegaMac]

So sorry guys. Didn't mean to quadruple post. Something is wrong with my internet.

 

[neo_bahamut1889]

dude, then you have the right to pirate all the games available on Gamepass?

I mean, then PC gamers are going to become pirates, PC gamming has been 100% digital for 20 years now

No just making fun of ubisoft's bullshit mantra. If we pay for something, we should have every ethical and moral right to own it, fuck all digital and zero ownership futures.

Who gives a shit on what out of touch draconian investors and CEOs say? You buy it, you should legally own it.

 

[fenixazul]

No just making fun of ubisoft's bullshit mantra. If we pay for something, we should have every ethical and moral right to own it, fuck all digital and zero ownership futures.

Who gives a shit on what out of touch draconian investors and CEOs say? You buy it, you should legally own it.

100% physical, like in the SNES,N64, and GC ages

 

[fenixazul]

Not opposing your decision, but I'm genuinely curious as to why you'd get a keycard version of FF7 Remake when its just a download?

Collector purpose,

 

[neo_bahamut1889]

100% physical, like in the SNES,N64, and GC ages

Yup, digital "purchase" just to be glorified rental license bullshit is a huge factor on why piracy is rampant. Want to kill piracy? Provide better services to your customers instead of removing consumer rights.

 

[Dannondorf]

I keep hearing that all the Switch 2 games in the Partner Direct are Game Key Card only? Would someone mind clarifying that for me, as well as how we know? I don't recall seeing that in the Direct, but I may have missed it.

 

[fenixazul]

I keep hearing that all the Switch 2 games in the Partner Direct are Game Key Card only? Would someone mind clarifying that for me, as well as how we know? I don't recall seeing that in the Direct, but I may have missed it.

You can go to the pre-order page and Octopath Traveler 0 and PErsona 3 has been confirmed as game key card for Switch 2

Dragon Quest I & II 2D-HD remake also confirmed to be game key card

EDIT : Also Cronos too

 

[Dannondorf]

You can go to the pre-order page and Octopath Traveler 0 and PErsona 3 has been confirmed as game key card for Switch 2

Dragon Quest I & II 2D-HD remake also confirmed to be game key card

How incredibly disappointing.

 

[e1622]

This was literally my decision of going all digital as well. I’m 40 on the dot and if Nintendo was to take down the server in another 20 or 30 years from now, I would be 60 or 70 years old. If I’m bless enough to be around that long, I probably won’t care that much by then honestly. Can’t take games with you to the afterlife anyways. Lol

Hey if there is an after life , all the games will be in the cloud

 

[fenixazul]

This was literally my decision of going all digital as well. I’m 40 on the dot and if Nintendo was to take down the server in another 20 or 30 years from now, I would be 60 or 70 years old. If I’m bless enough to be around that long, I probably won’t care that much by then honestly. Can’t take games with you to the afterlife anyways. Lol

I am planing to be buried with my games and my mini-figure lego collection as an Pharaon. Also some plutonium so nobody is going to raid my tomb in the upcomming centuries

 

[fenixazul]

This image hurts my eyes