Nintendo Switch Physical Vs Digital Full Guide!

In this video, we take a look at both Physical & Digital switch games. This video should help you decided which format is better and multiple reasons for each.

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By Anton Retro
**This Video is for Educational Purposes Only**

[jigeahah]

I buy physical as much as possible, somehow buying digital games doesn’t feel like I own the game instead just a permission to play it.

[octabodemes]

I'm on the middle about this. I stick with physical versions for the big name games like Botw, Kirby and the Forgotten Land, Smash Ultimate, Mario Kart, Mario Strikers, Splatoon 2&3, etc.
But I buy the digital version of indie/less known games since they were/are much cheaper in digital and get on Sale constantly. So far haven't found much of an issue with either so it seems like a preference thing👍

[warp]

Thanks for the great explanation! Surprised that the digital versions of some games actually cost more than physical copies, that seems backwards!

[anthonyrosique]

What I like about physical games is that it saves you storage and you don’t have to think about your SD card getting loaded that much.

[bookid]

I personally go for both physical and digital though I sometimes lean a lot more on physical and it usually comes down to what game I’m looking forward to and the file size
However I never see myself going all digital, I like having digital games but I don’t want all of my games to be digital. I can definitely see myself going all physical at some point but for now I go for both

[FaithFallRepentGraceRepeat]

I love physical games. I just wish they had the booklets with them. I don’t like the Switch having to be connected to WiFi to play certain games.

[repeteRC]

“You can taste the cartridge” lol
I always love the smell of a brand new game being opened !

[dan]

I am going to explain to everyone why physical games are superior to digital downloads. I will discuss the many benefits of owning an actual physical game (i.e. long-term ownership, resale value, ease of borrowing, interchangeability between any Nintendo Switch console, etc.). First and foremost, you must understand that all digital games have an expiration date. The expiration date of your digital games occurs when two things happen:

1. Online support for the console has ceased.
AND
2. Your game console finally breaks/dies.

Once online support for your console is discontinued, the digital games on your microSD card will not be able to be played on any other Switch console. The downloaded games are encrypted and are meant to be played on the specific Nintendo Switch console that you originally downloaded them to. In the absence of online support, and when your console eventually malfunctions or breaks, your games will be inaccessible.
I will explain below why we as the consumer should not buy into the digital media push. We should strive to buy a physical game every time, and should avoid digital downloads when possible.
Those who prefer digital downloads will be sad/mad in 15-20 years from now when they realize that their hard earned money has vanished. I will explain here with the example of our friend Bob. Bob prefers digital downloads and almost his entire collection of Nintendo Switch games are digital. Unfortunately, Bob did not think ahead to the future and he did not anticipate the concept of the aging console. One cold winter day, in the year 2041, Bob discovered that his Nintendo Switch had finally broken as it no longer worked at all. Bob is wanting to play some good old classic Nintendo Switch games from back in the day. He has great nostalgia for this grand old console. Unfortunately his Nintendo Switch is dead, so he goes to eBay and purchases another Switch that is in good working condition. Bob thinks that all of his digital games are safe and sound on his microSD card that he has safely backed up over the years. Bob did not realize that those digital games on his microSD card are encrypted and are only capable of being played on his old Nintendo Switch console that recently died. Bob says, "that's okay, I will just connect my newly purchased Switch to the eShop and re-download my games. Unfortunately, Bob is dismayed when he discovers that there is absolutely zero online support for the Nintendo Switch now in the year 2041. Bob did not realize that his games on his carefully backed up microSD card would not work on his newly purchased Nintendo switch in the year 2041.

Nintendo says on their website:
• "Software downloaded to a microSD card on one system will not be playable on a different system."
• "Do not swap data between multiple microSD cards, or swap your microSD card between multiple systems. Use a single microSD card with one system."

Poor Bob. He lost a lot of money buying all of those digital games. He totally did not see this coming. If he did, he might have purchased more physical copies rather than those blasted digital downloads. It is a fact that at some point in the future, all online support for your Switch will cease completely.

Again, digital games will one day be inaccessible when:
1.Online support for the console has ceased.
AND
2. Your game console finally dies.

There are other reasons why physical games are superior to digital games. I have discussed these other reasons below, but the concept of the aging console (as discussed above) is by far the most important and most compelling reason to always buy physical games as often as possible. History shows us that most consoles are going to fail/malfunction far sooner than the game cartridges will fail. Look to the Atari, Master System, NES, SNES, Genesis, etc., as an example of how game cartridges are still going strong when taken care of.

Other reasons why physical games are superior:
An important facet to consider is resale value. If I purchase The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and several years later I decide that I would like to sell that game, I can. I can sell the game to someone because I actually own a physical game. And if you haven't gone online recently to see how much old games are selling for these days you really should. Check out eBay and look up some classic games from the NES, SNES, Genesis, etc. Physical games hold their value over time, and some of them become collectibles which sell for large sums of money when in good condition.

Another reason why physical media is superior is seen in the example of borrowing. If you choose to purchase digital media, allowing someone to borrow a game becomes technically difficult and requires some trust and perhaps multiple steps to accomplish. However with a physical game, it is simply one step. Hand the game over to your sibling or buddy and start playing that great new game.

The following point is less talked about among the gaming community, but it is definitely worth discussing. Most parents prefer buying their kids physical games. Children easily understand that they have to share the game with their siblings and take turns playing it. Online sharing with their sibling is too abstract for kids to fully understand (i.e. Johnny can't play Mario Odyssey on his Switch when Susie is already playing Mario Odyssey on her Switch). Kids will not understand this whole concept of the primary versus secondary home console that Nintendo requires you to set up when you transfer digital data from one console to another. And parents don't want the hassle of the online component of re-downloading the games to the new console they just bought because Johnny keeps accidentally dropping and breaking the system. As a parent, it is just plain annoying that console companies believe that I have the time to figure out how to transfer this game and that game to this console from that console and connect to the internet when that fails, etc. Parents want to just buy the physical game, give it to their kids, tell them to share it with their siblings, and get on with the more important things in life.


The Digital Arguments:
Some people make the argument for digital by saying "I just want to have all my games with me on the go." That is a silly reason to be ripped off into buying a temporary digital copy. The Switch game cards are so small that you can literally pack over 100 games in a small case. They make cases that literally hold over 100 Switch game cards. And who needs that many games with them at one time anyways? Other people will say something like "I don't like changing out my game card for another game card. It's too much work." That is not only silly, but it is also lazy. If you want to wake up one day in 15-20 years from now (like our friend Bob discussed above) and realize you lost/wasted a ridiculous amount of money, then just buy digital downloads. If you like the idea of not actually owning anything tangible that holds actual resale value, then just buy digital games. Those who prefer digital downloads over physical media have not thought ahead into the future. Perhaps they are forgetting the most important concept: the concept of the aging console. I'll repeat it one last time for you.

All digital games will expire and become inaccessible when:
1.Online support for the console has ceased.
AND
2. Your game console finally dies.

Remember, once online support for your console is discontinued, the digital games on your microSD card will not be able to be played on any other Switch console. This is because the downloaded games are encrypted and are meant to be played on the specific Nintendo Switch console that you originally downloaded them to. In the absence of online support, and when your console eventually malfunctions or breaks, your games will be inaccessible.

I hope this helps you make an informed decision about which is right for you. I also hope that this helps us send a clear message to all console companies that physical games are here to stay. Hopefully this has inspired you to resist the digital download option, and embrace the many benefits of owning an actual physical game (i.e. long-term ownership, resale value, ease of borrowing, interchangeability between any Switch console, etc.).

[당신은더미입니다]

i like physical games but having to pull it out every time to change game was inconvinient. physical game should act as installer aswell instead of duplicate function of digital

[davidvila]

For indie/arcade games (even Mario Kart) I always go digital at this point. Don't want to swap cartbridges often for games I usually play here and there. Exceptions would be games so unique and exceptional like Hades that of course I'll also get the physical version even having the digital version on Switch and Steam.

For special games (usually adventure/action related with longer history) or the ones that mean something else for me, then physical. I still keep a small physical collection though, they even feel more special this way.

[roboticdreamer]

I like physical video games. You actually have it, so there's the excitement of it coming in/getting it at the store, it makes a good collection on a shelf, there can be extra goodies sometimes (for example, Totally Spies: Cyber Mission gave a sticker sheet, holographic card, and fake certificate for the spy organization), and you can let others borrow it, or sell it.

[hypefogg]

I go digital even though I grew up with physical and here are my reasons, 1. You can't lose the game unless you lose the system itself which also makes physical copies unplayable too obviously. 2. No waiting for shipping or having to drive to the store and hope they have the game when you can instantly buy and download the game digitally. 3. Doesn't take up physical space, I hate having to look for and bring my games with me so I prefer only having to bring the console itself, and even though the games take up a decent amount of digital space, you can easily buy a half terabyte card for the same amount of a single game.

[DerTendou]

I buy most of the time the physical version but I have to admit that I would have saved a lot of money going the digital route. I'm not talking about first party games but everything else. Physical Switch games tend to be very collectible and some of them are really hard to get. Digital games on the other hand seem to be more expensive at first but boy, when you are patient and there are sales, you sure are saving a lot of money. Of course you can resell the physical copy but I wonder if it's worth buying Chrono Cross for 50 bucks, when you can get it for 12 bucks on the eshop when there is a sale. I bought the physical copy anyway but I'm not sure if that was smart. For the 38 $ I would have saved I could have bought also 3 SaGa games which are physical about 150 bucks. Like I said, there are many collectibale games that are hard to get, especially if you are into niche games so going digital is something to consider.

[sowsow]

Physical means you actually own the game, digital means you’re just borrowing it from Nintendo, and whenever they decide to shut down the platform, your game is gone

[VideoGameJNPoop]

I stick with Physical for most games, but if is not on cartridge, then digital.

[ZAchillesV]

My pros and cons of the physical cartridges:

Pros:
1. You have a sense of ownership of the game you bought
2. It doesn’t take it up much space in the internal storage system
3. They are really portable
4. You can sell or trade your game if you didn’t like it

Cons:
1. If you lose the physical cartridge, it’s up to you to buy the game again
2. The cartridges are relatively small compared to game discs so you are more prone to losing it
3. It could be damaged
4. Physical versions of the game can be quite expensive compared to digital release versions

(I do support the idea of physical use in this instance for the switch. Like he said in the video, it’s really important to take care of them)

[MrMartellSincere]

Digital for me.
I'm slowly going digital with my Nintendo Switch games as I live alone and don't trust people where I live.

[Coooofeeeeehhh]

Smooth, helpful,and easy to understand
Explain
Thanks bro

[linkzellda]

In My Case, it doesn't matter if I have a Digital or Physical game.

Unlike most gamers, I'm not a collector, I only buy games that I'm going to play, so I don't buy games to expand my collection. I don't care about resell or trading physical games because I never do that at all with Digital is nice and convenient.

Sure some people are against Digital Games since they require you to have storage space on your Console, but Physical Games also require you to have space on your room. But it doesn't really matter if you prefer Digital or Physical Games, both have their Pros and Cons, as long as you play the game, everything matters.

There is no shame if you prefer both or one or the other it's your money you decide what to do with it, personally I don't care much about Digital or Physical. Regardless of where you prefer Physical or Digital Games, you should always buy the games you want to play so that you are saving space and money.

[glutton]

There's one issue out of the equation. Switch consoles are region free.
Source: I own 11 American titles, 5 European and 2 Japanese.