Game-Key Cards have been divisive since they were first introduced, but the good news is that the full R-Type Dimensions 3 game will be on the Switch 2 cartridge. The bad news? You’re going to have to pay a little bit extra for that side-scrolling shoot-’em-up, as the price is going up to €70.
It’s worth noting that those who already preordered the physical Special Edition will not see their price change.
Publisher Inin Games had previously explained that switching the entire run to standard cartridges would have resulted in manufacturing costs increasing by “at least” €15 per game copy, which is why it chose the Game-Key Card option. Inin Games pledged to look for a way to release the full game on a Switch cartridge, leading to today’s news about the costs increasing, but not as much as it anticipated.
“There is no better timing,” the publisher said in an update. “Two days ago Nintendo announced two new smaller cartridge sizes for Nintendo Switch 2. This allows us to recalculate production in a way that wasn’t possible before.”
Nintendo has not officially confirmed the existence of smaller-sized cartridges for the Switch 2, but it’s rumored that developers will soon be able to choose between 16GB and 32GB cartridges, instead of the expensive 64GB cartridge.
Game-Key Cards function as physical authentication keys for the Switch 2, as you’ll still need to download the full game to the console. Storage capacity is limited, and microSD Express cards can be expensive, which is one of the reasons why the system has been criticized. While they can be resold and aren’t console-locked, critics have argued that they do pose potential issues for long-term games preservation.
Game developers have spoken in defense of Game-Key Cards, with one Ubisoft dev explaining that technical limitations made it necessary to release Star Wars Outlaws in this format. Earlier this year, Nintendo also launched a survey to explore what its users think of physical and digital game ownership.