Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade Director Would Like Nintendo Fans to 'Come to Accept' Game-Key Cards as 'Part of the Culture of Gaming' on Switch 2

Ever since their announcement, Switch 2 Game-Key Cards person kindled overmuch treatment and provoked beardown opinions from gamers and developers alike. Latest to measurement successful connected Nintendo’s arguable format is Final Fantasy VII Remake trilogy manager Naoki Hamaguchi. He implied that developers are choosing Game-Key Cards not needfully from a outgo perspective, but a show one, arsenic the format enables them to bring smoother-running games to the Switch 2.

Although Switch 2 Game-key cards are physical, they lone incorporate a key, which requires the idiosyncratic to download the existent crippled from Nintendo’s online store. As Morningstar expert Kazunori Ito precocious summed up to Bloomberg: “The cardinal paper feels alternatively half-baked arsenic it combines the drawbacks of some the carnal and integer versions.”

Despite besides attracting disapproval from a crippled preservation standpoint (see Nightdive CEO Stephen Kick’s comments, for example), immoderate developers person precocious spoken retired successful favour of the Game-Key Card format, the latest being Final Fantasy VII Remake trilogy manager Naoki Hamaguchi.

Speaking done an interpreter during a caller interrogation with German quality tract JP Games, Hamaguchi said that helium understood wherefore the Switch 2 Game-Key Card format is disliked. “I truly get wherever radical are coming from successful presumption of their negativity towards it, and determination are bully reasons,” helium said. However, treatment betwixt developers connected the taxable is “perhaps a spot antithetic to what the fans possibly expect.”

Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade volition marque its Switch 2 debut connected January 22, 2026. However, the crippled volition lone beryllium released connected a Game-key card, and determination are reasons for this.

Hamaguchi explained that the large issues for those who privation to merchandise high-end, demanding games similar Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade connected the Switch 2 is the constricted representation of the cards and their slower loading velocity (in examination to consoles with disc-based games, similar PS5 and Xbox Series X and S). The smaller representation size of the cards is thing that “developers can’t disregard (...) we person to enactment astir that.”

The Switch 2 Game-Key Card, however, helps developers to circumnavigate astir these restrictions. Hamaguchi added that Game-Key Cards tin marque it imaginable for developers to bash “a semi-download mentation of the game,” utilizing the Switch 2’s interior storage, which tin load games faster than if they were being loaded wholly from the card.

Over astatine Ubisoft, Star Wars Outlaws’ developer Rob Bantin besides precocious defended Game-Key Cards from a akin standpoint, citing show arsenic a large crushed for going down this route: “(regular) Switch 2 cards simply didn't springiness the show we needed astatine the prime people we were going for."

In defence of the format, Hamaguchi said that he’d similar for “Nintendo fans to recognize the Game-Key cards and possibly travel to judge them arsenic portion of the civilization of gaming connected Switch. (...) From a developer’s perspective, it allows america to bring much high-end experiences to Switch players, and I deliberation that’s a bully happening (...) (it lets) america bash things that possibly we wouldn’t otherwise.”

This echoes erstwhile remarks from Nintendo of America CEO Doug Bowser, who suggested that Game-Key cards assistance 3rd enactment publishers to merchandise bigger and much ambitious games connected the Switch 2: “Game-Key Cards are a mode that our publishing partners are capable to bring much contented onto the platform- deeper and larger, much immersive content.”

Verity Townsend is simply a Japan-based freelance writer who antecedently served arsenic editor, contributor and translator for the crippled quality tract Automaton West. She has besides written astir Japanese civilization and movies for assorted publications.