Topic: Why the Nintendo Switch needs SD card save data backup

1. They're not going to maintain two firmware
2. The thing they stopped was a different kind of hack, it obviously didn't involve save game manipulation
3. Microsoft blocksmanual save backups for this same reason. Even some Wii games made it harder to move your saves for this reason. I for one don't want Mario Kart 8 on Switch to end up like Mario Kart Wii

I have actually stopped using my Switch because I fear losinh my data. I know it is a drastic measure, but if you think I am going to play a game I put 200 hours into after losing save data, think again. Yes, it seems strange to dosomething like this, but I will not lose save data.

@DannyBoi Saves at been at risk since March 2017, what's 2 more months before being able to back up to the cloud. Cloud saving will be fine and probably the most simple and convenient way of backing up. SD or external drive backups aren't happening anytime soon.

@Hyrule Saves being at risk are unnacetable in any case. And plus, a lot of fans want SD card backup or alternative method of backup. Plus, if enough people complain, that might get Nintendo to pull their finger out.

You must not be from the era of cartridges having batteries in them for the save feature.
I'm not at all miffed about this. It will come when it comes. DS didn't have it for the longest time. And if I lost some save data, would I be annoyed? sure, mildly. But I don't think anyone OWES it to me to act like LifeLock and store my entertainment files as if I can't survive without it.

@ReaderRagfish That's definitely save data loss, haha. Remember when there were 2-4 pages in instruction manuals specifically for writing down the passcodes? Once memory cards came out, I never lost a save file. Except for that annoying MadKatz 4X Dreamcast card, the one with the digital selection between "cards". Sooo, I don't get it.

@HobbitGamer Ah yes, the cartridge era. I rememember that:). Imainly played during the era when cartridges used flash memeory, not batteries, so never lost data. The only console that gave me problems was the Gamecube. Had no end of trouble with memeory cads corrupting.

@HobbitGamer Thank goodness for save states on the 3ds/Wii U virtual console.

@ReaderRagfish LOVE snowboard kids. I had an issue with a 3rd party game in GCN, now that I remember. It also happened on Eternal Darkness. I swear, that used copy did not like me.

@DannyBoi I had a copy of EarthBound that the battery died on. Easy to replace, but still frustrating for that game.

Lets do a test. Whoever thinks SD card backup should be allowed on tbe Switch say yes. And whoever thinks it shouldn't, say no. I just want to get a feel for what people feel about this.

@DannyBoi The issue is that a lot of more recent hacks for Nintendo systems used game saves to do it, on the PS4 there is a purchasable tool that will put beaten game saves onto your PS4, or even mess with the trophies. I do think Nintendo knows people want this capability, but as it stands, they aren't doing anything right now.

@Smash_kirby You thinkthey really are aware othat people want it? They never talk about kt, it's all cloud save tbis, cloud save that

In my opinion, every console must allow the player to backup their saved data, it should be a right for the user of a console to be able to backup his saves.
I personally want saves backup on Switch because of Skyrim. It would be a useful function anyway, but probably I would not care about it for other games as much as I do for TES games.
I mean I used it for other games in the past, I played DKCR on Wii and then I copied my 200% save on my PC and can use it on Dolphin. It is very useful and convenient, but when it comes to TES games it is absolutely indispensable for me.

I still hope that Nintendo will improve Switch in the future, right now it lacks too many things (no saves backup, no virtual console, no multimedia player...)

@LuckyLand I have read your comments on SD card save backupand I completely agrre<3. Nintendo know the fans want it, but will not give it us because they are scared of what the "big bad hackers" can do.

And also because they try to sell a few more online subscription even to those who are not interested in online gaming.

@LuckyLand We shouod make more peopleaware of this problem, and Nintendo obviously.

I had a thoought a coupleof hours ago. Nintendo are lucky it is not a law to offer more than one way of backing up data. As they would be in serious trouble. And if it is a law, Oh boy, will they be in trouble.

@DannyBoi
Just because you think something up doesn't make it profound. The idea that a company controlling how you use their product is illegal is a little bit over the top. And even if it was somehow illegal the law would be a bit absurd in this case because while technically "more controlled" than previous systems the Switch is one of the least offensive systems in terms of practical backups of saves Nintendo has ever produced.

Officially and without hacking or third party products that came out after the fact:

NES: No
SNES: No
N64: Kinda, not really. Partial game data on some games. No official way to make a "backup" copy
GBA: No
GC: Yes, via proprietary memory cards
DS: No

Wii: Yes, allowed copying of saves to SD card. Some online titles blocked this feature

3DS: Kinda. Yes for digital but I'd argue no for cartridges. With cartridges you can technically copy the save data but only from the game to a digital purchase with an app. But when you use this tool it deletes the save data on the cartridge and the process can't be reversed. Less of a "backup" and more of a non-reversible transferring of save data to a digital purchase.

Wii U: Yes. Used a proprietary file system for external storage, added copying between two drives in v3.0. The saves were tied to game and patch data in the data management tool so this could be a long process. So while technically possible it was never something you'd run on a regular basis if at all.

Switch: Yes, automated cloud saves via online subscription

As I've said previously in this thread, this is exactly why manual backups of saves aren't the way to go. If someone as enthusiastic about this as you can only list a handful of specific games and times they backed up their saves? It's completely useless for the average user.

Additionally the mentioning of dolphin is odd given that:
1. I think it's pretty obvious why Nintendo wouldn't care about that benefit
2. If you're emulating the game what happens on the console itself is of no consequence

@skywake
"If you're emulating the game what happens on the console itself is of no consequence"

I have completed the game on the console, I did not use Dolphin back then, I only started using Dolphin a few years after Wii U was released and I didn't have my Wii plugged to the TV anymore.

Having my backup is a right I should be granted, it's not like it matters if Nintendo care about where or when I can enjoy it, they of course don't care about anything else than money, but if they don't give me what I ask for in a console then I lost my interest in their product and I give them a lot less money (I myself strarted buying a lot less games for Switch. The last time I bought a game was at least 3 months ago, and I'm not going to buy anything else except Smash bros this year. I used to spend at least 15 euro on Switch every month, often more, before. I've read online about people who have sold the console because of those issues and refuse to buy anything Nintendo anymore unless they solve those problems, people who love Nintendo since the NES)

Yes, I know you've found the one very specific scenario where manual backups of saves are more useful than cloud saves. If you brought the game legitimately years ago and then want to continue playing it later via questionably legal methods on an emulator? Sure. But that's a very, very specific scenario.

What do you care what Nintendo does if you're emulating? If you're emulating you've broken the system wide open anyways. If you're going that far you have full control over everything, not just the saves. Years down the road if/when you're doing that you're probably taking advantage of some tool that lets you circumvent Nintendo's control of save data anyways.

And even if there isn't, why should Nintendo cater for this scenario anyway? You're using tools that enable piracy of their content. They're not at all obliged to make any of that more convenient for you.

I can tell you now that allowing copying of save data to the Micro-SD card wouldn't cost them a thing. They'd well and truly be financially better off by not offering cloud saves at all and just having a lax attitude to the whole thing like they did on Wii U, Wii & 3DS. But they know that by locking down this sort of stuff the end user experience for online in general is better. It's the same reason why Microsoft have also locked this down.

It's the internet, people say that kind of crap all the time. There's a culture of people wanting to gain sympathy from the other side of the screen for how hard done by they are. People taking a stand against a toy company for controlling the terms by which you interact with the toy. Basking in the cheers from others doing the same, using dissenting comments as proof of how much smarter they are. It's not a particularly healthy mindset.

I must admit, I don't care about my game save data as some of you clearly do. If I lost my hundreds of hours save file for BotW? Well it wouldn't be ideal but it wouldn't be the end of the world either. I wouldn't go online complaining about how my rights as a consumer had been violated. I played the game, I got my money's worth of entertainment out of it and I'd still be able to load the game up again.

And even if I did care that much it's not like Nintendo hides this from you as a consumer. If you brought a Switch you knew coming into it that they were offering a paid online service. You knew that there was fair chance that cloud saves would likely be a part of that subscription. If you were savvy enough to have been the type of person to take advantage of save backups on previous systems? You would have known how saves were handled on the Switch, if you cared that much you would have done some research. If you buy the Switch anyway it's on you, not Nintendo