To cap off two weeks of questions, confusion, and occasional solutions about Nintendo Swap 2 pricing, pre-orders, DLC, Swap 2 Version upgrades, controllers, and extra, this is one other bizarre state of affairs so as to add to the pile. In keeping with an FAQ from Marvelous on the upcoming recreation Rune Manufacturing unit: Guardians of Azuma, at the very least some Nintendo Swap 2 bodily cartridges will likely be suitable with the Nintendo Swap 1.
This comes from this Marvelous FAQ, which incorporates the next:
What’s the bodily “Nintendo Swap 2 Version”?
The Nintendo Swap 2 Version is a pink 64GB recreation card that features, in full, the Nintendo Swap recreation and the Improve Pack.
There’s no have to obtain the complete recreation: merely insert the cardboard into both a Nintendo Swap or Nintendo Swap 2 console, and the right model will launch mechanically.
Like most fashionable titles, there could also be small updates or patches out there at launch to supply minor fixes and enhancements, however relaxation assured: the entire recreation is on the sport card, able to play from day one.
This implies you should buy the Nintendo Swap 2 version of Guardians of Azuma, and slot it right into a Nintendo Swap 1 to play the Nintendo Swap 1 version of the sport 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 Swap 2 cartridges on the Swap 1.
We have recognized for some time that most Swap 1 video games will likely be suitable with Swap 2. We additionally know that video games which are unique to Nintendo Swap 2 (Mario Kart World, as an example), or Nintendo Swap 2 Editions of Swap 1 video games (The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Swap 2 Version, with all of the upgrades), will not be playable on the Swap 1. However the query of whether or not you’ll be able to simply take Swap 2 cartridges and plug them into the Swap 1 to get the Swap 1 model of the identical recreation has been up within the air up to now. Some gamers have noticed a picture within the Nintendo Swap 2 Welcome Tour that advised a tiny “notch” within the plastic of Swap 2 cartridges may stop that from being the case, however whether or not that notch is preventative or not stays to be seen.
It is also unclear as to how precisely many video games this can apply to. We all know that first-party and a few third-party bodily Nintendo Swap 2 Version video games will embody each the bottom recreation and the Swap 2 Version upgrades on the cartridge, whereas different third-parties could select to launch Swap 2 Version video games as obtain codes in bodily packaging. Moreover, some boxed Nintendo Swap 2 video games is not going to even have the sport on the cartridge, however as an alternative will comprise a game-key card that may mean you can obtain the sport when you insert it.
So primarily, while you buy a Nintendo Swap 2 boxed recreation at retail, you may be getting any of the next:
- A bodily Nintendo Swap 2-exclusive recreation cartridge that solely works on the Swap 2
- A Nintendo Swap 2 Version recreation that has a Nintendo Swap 1 model on the cartridge, in addition to a Swap 2 improve, that will or is probably not playable on each Swap 2 and in its base model on the Swap 1
- A game-key card that does not have the sport on it, however means that you can obtain the sport in query (and will or could not even be usable on the Swap 1 as effectively)
- A bodily field with a obtain key for the Swap 2 that will or could not work on the Swap 1 as effectively
If all this has your head spinning, you are not alone. It has been a complicated experience making an attempt to kind out what, precisely, you will be buying while you purchase boxed Nintendo Swap 2 video games, and Nintendo has been hesitant to step in and make clear issues simply far. We reached out to Nintendo for touch upon Marvelous’ FAQ, particularly asking if it is true that some Swap 2 cartridges will likely be playable on Swap 1 and if that’s the case, which. We’ll replace this story if extra data surfaces.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Yow will discover her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Bought a narrative tip? Ship it to rvalentine@ign.com.