For gamers who cherish the tangible thrill of building a library on their shelf, the future of physical media on the Nintendo Switch 2 is looking increasingly cloudy. New industry developments suggest that the console may see a significant pivot towards digital and "Game-Key Card" formats, dashing earlier hopes that technological advances would make traditional cartridges more affordable for publishers.
The shift, driven by stubbornly high manufacturing costs and emerging performance limitations, could reshape how players buy, own, and preserve their games for the next generation.
The Broken Promise of Cheaper Cartridges
When the Nintendo Switch 2 was first rumored, a central hope for both players and game publishers was that the cost of its physical game cards would come down. The current Switch uses proprietary cartridges, which are more expensive to produce than Blu-ray discs used by competitors. For the Switch 2, this cost was seen as a major barrier, especially for large, data-heavy games.
The spotlight fell on Macronix, a Taiwanese company and the primary producer of game cards for the original Switch. In August, optimism was high. The manufacturer hinted at a potential breakthrough by combining MLC NAND and 3D NAND technologies. This innovation promised not only to lower production costs but also to allow for cartridges in a wider range of sizes, potentially beyond the reportedly standard and limiting 64GB capacity.
However, that optimism has now been met with a sobering reality check.
A Manufacturer's Delay Dashes Hopes
A recent quarterly financial report from Macronix delivered disappointing news. The company's chairman cited significant research and development delays that have directly impacted its plans for the Switch 2. While he maintained a more hopeful outlook for the company's "ROM business" in 2026, this timeline is far too late for the console's critical launch window and subsequent software pipeline.
The implications of this delay were highlighted by the industry watchdog account, Nintendo Patents Watch on Bluesky. The account dissected the Macronix report, noting that with Macronix struggling, production for Switch 2 media currently falls to Rohm and another unnamed party. The social media presence suspects that Macronix is also grappling with the same skyrocketing costs of NAND flash memory that are plaguing the entire industry, making a cheap, high-capacity solution elusive for the foreseeable future.
With the anticipated cost-saving supplier unable to deliver, publishers are left facing a difficult choice: absorb a significant per-unit cost—rumored to be as high as $16 per cartridge—or seek alternative distribution methods.
Performance Issues Compound the Problem
The case for moving away from traditional cartridges isn't solely based on cost. Emerging reports suggest that the physical media itself may pose performance challenges for the more powerful Switch 2.
In a revealing statement, Final Fantasy 7 Remake director Naoki Hamaguchi indicated that the Switch 2's physical game cards could cause performance issues for data-intensive titles. It appears that the console's internal storage and even newer microSD Express cards can read data faster than the cartridges themselves. Furthermore, companies like Square Enix are finding that they can't even fit the complete game for massive titles like the Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy on the standard Game Cards, necessitating a large day-one download regardless.
This creates a worst-of-both-worlds scenario for physical buyers: a expensive cartridge that doesn't offer the full game and may actually load slower than a digital install.
The Rise of the Game-Key Card and the Preservation Problem
This perfect storm of high costs and technical limitations is why many industry observers predict a surge in the use of "Game-Key Cards." These are physical cards sold in stores, but they contain only a download code—no game data on board. For buyers, this means they can assemble a collection of cases and cards, but the actual game data resides on Nintendo's servers.
To install and play, a constant internet connection is required for a large, mandatory download.
For physical collectors, the situation is dire. The move towards Game-Key Cards and digital-heavy "physical" releases raises major red flags for game preservation. If the game's license is tied to a download code and the console's online servers are eventually shut down, these physical purchases become little more than decorative boxes, potentially rendering entire libraries unplayable for future generations.
As the Nintendo Switch 2's launch approaches, the dream of an affordable, robust physical game ecosystem is fading, forcing players to confront the realities of an increasingly digital—and impermanent—future.
