Nintendo: Switch games may require external storage

Devs thinking of bringing their work to Nintendo's new console should know that the company is evidently totally okay with games that require more memory than the 32GB built into the Switch.

This stance was made explicit in a recent announcement of a partnership between Nintendo and memory maker Western Digital to make licensed Switch microSD cards the release noted that "a microSD card will be needed for certain Nintendo Switch games that contain an especially large amount of content."

However, the company expects that all physical copies of Switch games sold at retail will be playable in some form on a Switch that lacks any extra storage; speaking to IGN, a company representative stated that anyone who buys a Switch game cartridge "will be able to play a portion of the game right out of the box (for example, specific levels or modes)."

Nintendo expects all Switch games to be upfront about whether or not they require external storage, both in digital storefront listings and on retail packaging (exemplified below in the box art for Visual Concepts' 2K18, which is launching on Switch and other platforms this month).