Nintendo announces Virtual Game Card feature for the Switch and Switch 2

There are two ways to own games on a Nintendo Switch - you either buy a physical game card or you buy a digital version of the game from the Nintendo eShop. While it is easy to swap physical game cards between Switch systems as they are not tied to an account or console, the only way to share digital games between Switch devices is if the consoles have the same Nintendo Account where one console is the primary console and the others are secondary consoles. Now, Nintendo is making a change with the launch of the Nintendo Virtual Game Card.

According to Nintendo, when a user purchases a digital version of a game, the game is loaded onto the system as a virtual game card (think of it like an ISO file being loaded on a virtual drive). When a virtual game card is loaded, it will have an icon similar to the one that appears above the thumbnail of a physical game card.

When a user wants to play a game on another Switch they own, they can eject it from one device and play it on the other device. Ejecting and loading a virtual game card requires an internet connection. If a virtual game card is ejected on one device, and loaded on a second, it can't be played on the first device. Users will also be able to manage the games available on which console.

Nintendo will also allow users to lend virtual game cards to family group members up to a max of 8 Nintendo account users in a family group), although it is only limited to one game per person. The maximum duration to lend a virtual game card is 2 weeks, after which the game automatically returns to the lender. When a game is returned, the save data remains on the loaner's device so that they can pick up from where they stopped whenever they loan the game again.

The Virtual Game Card feature will be available on both the original Switch (curr. available on Amazon for $299.99) and the upcoming Switch 2. It will arrive as a software update in late April on the original Switch.