Topic: Sharing Digital Games

So I just got home from working 12 hours and trying to read about this is giving me a headache.

What I'm understanding is, my nephew who lives 20 miles away will be able to link his switch to my account and download the games that I own digitally and play them all he wants as long as I don't use the main profile on my Switch to play online, but if I create a junk profile on my Switch he won't be interrupted?

If you set his switch as your main console, then he can play your games using his own account (and not affect your save files or interrupt your gameplay).

Then with your own console as a secondary system, you would be able to use your profile to play all your games without much restriction....

Of course this comes with a catch, you will only be able to use your games while connected to the internet.

@Yosheel has anyone done a video on this? why the hell did they make this sound so confusing... im sure it's simpler to understand than they're making it... and his Switch as the main console to play MY games? not sure that you're right either.

This would have been useful if they treated it more like Steam Family Sharing, I think.

I don't think they've intended it for sharing games.

The intention is to be able to access your games on a second Switch. Sharing is just an obvious bi-product, provided you're prepared to give that other person control over your account.

@misanthrope You definitely don't want to set his console as the primary. A secondary console can only play your games while it's connected to the internet (as it has to constantly check you have access to said software).

It's all described here: https://en-americas-support.nintendo.com/app/answers/detail/a...

As @gcunit said, the intention is that you can play your own games on a second Switch console. That obviously has the side effect that anyone using your account can play your games, but it is intentionally limited.

I thought there was a family sharing feature? As in, if me and my kids all had switch online, they would be able to play the games I buy?

@erv You can only play downloadable games using the account that bought the games, or with another account but using the primary console.

@gcunit ah that's pretty lame. I want the digital equivalent of "giving you my cartridge". Surely shouldn't be too hard. Especially since it works for the main account on different systems. Heck, I'd put others on my account on a non-primary console and forgo the entire family just for this.

@erv The 'sharing' is actually nothing to do with Switch Online. It's works the same with or without a subscription.

@chardir yeah, good point. Still needs an upgrade to family sharing, this one. I mean, I like online play and cloud saves but want more out of this than just workarounds or something.

@chardir True, but to really make the most of it it it needs cloud saves, which does require the sub. @erv
@erv Well as long as you can give them physical access to your primary machine you can "give them your cartridge" (while you play on their machine with your account) but that only works for local play in their presence, not actually like indefinitely loaning it to them.

@NEStalgia yeah but why bother - I'm better off bringing my account to such a switch, that being secondary anyway, than to reverse that progress. Would make no sense at all to reverse it.

Hope it someday shows up.

This sharing thing is not a feature, it’s a workaround. It’s not meant to be easy and simple.

The reason you’re setting the other system as your main switch is because that will grant the other person full access to your games without having to use your account to play them.

If you add it as a secondary system, then the other person will need to use your profile to play, and their playtime will be interrupted if you decide to play the same game at the same time.

Of course this requires a whole lot of trust between the people sharing. It’s not something you should do with just anyone, and it’s not something nintendo expect you to do with the new system.

And to be honest I don’t think it’s worth the trouble.

quote of truth right there. I'd share it by just having my account on a kids' system, for instance. No simultaneous playing then, fine. It's just a hassle from a save game perspective.

Again, you wouldn't even need Nintendo online to do this. It's just that, when it comes to family, I hoped Nintendo had embraced the fact that a household tends to share the cartridge. That's all.

Perhaps they'll figure this out at a later date.

I'd say the online subscription kinda complicates it (when doing things normally and adding the other person's console as a secondary console), because it adds cloud saves.

The person playing on the secondary system could end up using or overwritting your save files.

Of course, you could just disable the cloud saves...

ok I think I'm a little closer to understanding this....

My Switch is the primary console
I can set a second Switch as a secondary console for MY account

I dont see on the website where it says how you do this. Anyone know?

Basically all I need to worry about is making sure I require password entry on eshop and he can't f anything up.

@misanthrope you just add a user and link it to you account on another Switch on the planet and you can use your games while using that "profile" but only your one and only primary console can share your purchases with other profiles