As PlayStation and Xbox move toward a more digital future, Nintendo could become the last major platform where physical games still truly matter.
As PlayStation and Xbox move toward a more digital future, Nintendo could become the last major platform where physical games still truly matter.
Like Nintendo hasn’t been pushing their codes-in-boxes since before the switch 2 release.
What first party game was ever code-in-box?
Depends if you count Pokopia. But Pokemon is in that weird “sort of a Nintendo IP, sort of not” state.
Nintendo was not the publisher of Pokopia in Japan, and Gamefreak is an indie developer. But Nintendo did publish Pokopia worldwide and still chose not to put the game on cart, so not sure where the decision for that rests.
@[email protected] said “before the Switch 2 release”. And while I don’t like Game Key Cards, they are just barely above code-in-box because you can still trade/resell them.
It’s a special case, but the Switch 2 Mario Kart launch bundle came preloaded with Mario Kart World digital. All previous versions of Nintendo consoles with a bundle came with physical media.
But you could absolutely purchase a non bundle Switch 2 and a physical Mario Kart World (for $20 more).
And you’re right that so far every first party game has had both a physical release and a digital release.
Not true. If anything I’m trying to remember the last one that came with the physical game. The MK8 Wii U bundle was digital. As were the ALBW 3DS bundles. There’s probably a few though, between the 2/3DS and Switch there have been quite a few collectors’ editions. Some with game, some without.
Oh interesting! So there must have been different bundles because my Wii U Mario Kart bundle came with a physical copy of the game and a special red Mario controller + plastic wheel.
But looking online I do see the digital only bundle existed.
My Switch 1 didn’t come with anything bundled and I brought a physical copy of Breath of the Wild.
But when I bought my Switch 2 I saw Mario Kart was digital and Legends ZA was digital, so I assumed this was a new change over starting with this generation.
There’s been a LOT of bundles. Either way, we both learned something today. I’d call that a win.
This is why I love Lemmy lmao
People really really latched onto the key card narrative despite it all being 3rd party publishers making use of it. The lone exception as far as I know is Pokopia, which as a Pokémon title comes with all the usual fucky bullshit that comes along with TPC and GameFreaks… but it was published in the west by Nintendo themselves.
It may be the only one, but people have convinced themselves that it’s everything and no amount of facts will sway them otherwise.