To cap off two weeks of questions, confusion, and occasional solutions about Nintendo Switch 2 pricing, pre-orders, DLC, Switch 2 Edition upgrades, (*2*), and more, right here's one other bizarre state of affairs so as to add to the pile. According to an FAQ from Marvelous on the upcoming game Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma, at the very least some Nintendo Switch 2 bodily cartridges can be suitable with the Nintendo Switch 1.
This comes from this Marvelous FAQ, which incorporates the next:
What is the bodily "Nintendo Switch 2 Edition"?
The Nintendo Switch 2 Edition is a crimson 64GB game card that features, in full, the Nintendo Switch game and the Upgrade Pack.
There’s no need to obtain the total game: merely insert the cardboard into both a Nintendo Switch or Nintendo Switch 2 console, and the proper model will launch mechanically.
Like most trendy titles, there could also be small updates or patches out there at launch to supply minor fixes and enhancements, however relaxation assured: the whole game is on the game card, able to play from day one.
This suggests you should purchase the Nintendo Switch 2 version of Guardians of Azuma, and slot it into a Nintendo Switch 1 to play the Nintendo Switch 1 version of the game in the event you so select. If that is certainly the case, that is the primary time we're listening to of the power to play sure Switch 2 cartridges on the Switch 1.
We've identified for a whereas that most Switch 1 games will be compatible with Switch 2. We additionally know that video games which can be unique to Nintendo Switch 2 (Mario Kart World, as an illustration), or Nintendo Switch 2 Editions of Switch 1 video games (The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Switch 2 Edition, with all of the upgrades), gained't be playable on the Switch 1. But the query of whether or not you may simply take Switch 2 cartridges and plug them into the Switch 1 to get the Switch 1 model of the identical game has been up within the air to this point. Some gamers have spotted an image in the Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour that advised a tiny "notch" within the plastic of Switch 2 cartridges may forestall that from being the case, however whether or not that notch is preventative or not stays to be seen.
It's additionally unclear as to how precisely many video games this can apply to. We know that first-party and a few third-party bodily Nintendo Switch 2 Edition video games (*1*), whereas different third-parties might select to release Switch 2 Edition video games as obtain codes in bodily packaging. Additionally, some boxed Nintendo Switch 2 games won’t even have the game on the cartridge, however as a substitute will comprise a game-key card that can assist you to obtain the game when you insert it.
So basically, once you buy a Nintendo Switch 2 boxed game at retail, you could be getting any of the next:
- A bodily Nintendo Switch 2-exclusive game cartridge that solely works on the Switch 2
- A Nintendo Switch 2 Edition game that has a Nintendo Switch 1 model on the cartridge, in addition to a Switch 2 improve, that will or is probably not playable on each Switch 2 and in its base model on the Switch 1
- A game-key card that doesn't have the game on it, however means that you can obtain the game in query (and should or might not even be usable on the Switch 1 as properly)
- A bodily field with a obtain key for the Switch 2 that will or might not work on the Switch 1 as properly
If all this has your head spinning, you're not alone. It's been a complicated trip attempting to kind out what, precisely, you'll be buying once you purchase boxed Nintendo Switch 2 video games, and Nintendo has been hesitant to step in and make clear issues simply far. We reached out to Nintendo for remark on Marvelous' FAQ, particularly asking if it's true that some Switch 2 cartridges can be playable on Switch 1 and in that case, which. We'll replace this story if more info surfaces.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can discover her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to [email protected].