Topic: Questions for 7 year old!

Well actually a 7 years Dad! I'm told this will be a good place to ask so I learn some basics. My boy has had his Switch for 8 months or so and we would both like to get more use out of it. Hope this isn't too much to ask.....so here goes:

1. One of my boy's games is faulty - the cartridge/memory card doesn't load. Is there anything I should try before complaining to the retailer (bought it 6 months ago from Amazon so I presume they will offer a return/refund/replacement or something).

2. He has about 6 or 7 games and I guess it obvious he should get a memory card. I watched a tutorial on youtube and webpage guide and it indicates that after the archive process that it downloads the files. Does it actually download them off the internet or just transfer them across from the onboard memory?

3. What happens if the new memory card corrupts - presumably you can just reinstall the games?

4. Can someone borrow an already installed game? My son doesn't have any mates with a Switch yet but I can see that happening at Xmas and wonder if it's possible for him to install his friends games and vice versa. Is there an encryption thing to stop this? If so, if he wants to permanently swop or sell his games is the procedure simply to uninstall the game so its not tied to his Switch?

5. Can you recommend any good value games for a 7 year old? Perhaps some cheaper downloadable ones?

6. Are there any good 2 player Dad/son that are easy to play? I would like some racing or shoot em up games to play with him!

7. Is there anyone else that's that I should be aware of? Eg is the online subscription service a good idea?
Are there any addon apps available? (I notice my boy is using youtube which is handy).

thanks alot!

Regarding the technical issues, nintendo.com has a good support section you can search through. Nintendo of America also has a very friendly customer support phone line. I've never talked to a company as helpful & friendly. No outsourced baloney.

You can swap cartridge games. A lot of games could require an additional download. You might have wait a few minutes or longer before you can play.

Nah, just contact the retailer and hope for a replacement. Even if you are able to fix the problem, it's likely that it will arise again.

It downloads the game files of the internet. So this goes for updates of all games and for full games of games you bought digital (download only).

Correct; for as long as Nintendo and the games' publishers hosts the game on the Nintendo servers which should be for a loooong time.

Game swapping/trading/borrowing only works for games you bought physical (game cart).

There's quite a few topics dedicated to that question already. Try the search function on the forums. To give you a headstart: Mario Party and Kirby seem like a good fit, but they're not cheap.

Definitely Mario Kart! Although, again that's not a cheap option.

Enjoy playing with the kid!

^ anything by Nintendo really
Mario Kart 8
Splatoon 2
Smash Bros

None of these are cheap but they wil last you ages and ages and ages and ages

Thanks a lot for the replies. I am oldie that's never had a console, so anything beyond Galaga and Galaxian is stretching my brain!

Really surprised people can effectively copy games - thought they would have cracked down on that somehow and assumed that's why the games are so expensive!

You can't. You can borrow the game cartridge and play the game, but you can only play it WITH the cartridge slotted into your Switch, so as soon as your kid gets the game back, they can no longer play.

Nowadays, you have "Physical" and "Digital" games. Physical means you play it by cartridge, digital means you downloaded the game through your Nintendo account. You can't download the digital version if you bought the physical version, so no, you can't copy games.

Good games to play? Well...
Super Mario Kart - Obviously.
Super Smash Bros - Unless you dislike physical violence.
New Super Mario Bros - Great game for two.
Minecraft - Small caveat, the Switch version is a bit unstable.
Portal Knights - Like Minecraft, but with more adventure in it. My kids absolutely love it.
Asphalt 9 - Free to download, has multiplayer. Requires an online subscription though.
Kirby Clash - Free to download, multiplayer. Requires online subscription.
Castle Crashers - Cartoony and violent, but really fun. Best with 3 or 4 people.
Pokemon Let's Go - It's much easier than the normal Pokemon games, so very suitable for a 7 year old.

Those are the games that come to mind right now. A good source for co-op games is the website co-optimus. It lists all games you can play together. Filter out the online co-op, so you're only left with couch co-op and splitscreen, of which you can play most games on one Switch instead of requiring more than one Switch.

Guys, none of you are 7-year-olds, why are you answering his question?

@whataplum I'll try to answer your questions

1. Was the game card defective right out of the box? If you bought it 6 months ago, why wait until now to deal with that? In my experience most retailers wont take it back after so long. But I suggest you check the contacts on the card and if they are dirty you can clean them with a cotton swab and a little cleaning alcohol.

2. When you archive a game you downloaded from the eshop, it deletes the game and only keeps the icon and save data. But you can redownload at any time with a connection. The Switch uses standard microSD cards for additional storage which you can get almost anywhere that sells electronics. You do not need the special Nintendo branded cards. They just have special art on the card - but you can't see the card while it's in the system, so that art is pointless.

3. You can wipe the card on your PC and redownload. Games are tied to the account and save data is stored on the system. If the retail game card corrupts... well you're out of luck. But I've never heard of anyone having that happen on the Switch unless the card itself is physically damaged.

4. You can share physically purchased game cards as much as you want. But you cannot share games bought from the eshop - those are married to your account.

5 and 6. Mario Kart is always a safe choice for family multi-player. So is Mario Party. Cheaper games for kids, Stardew Valley is a fun game, as is Wargroove (despite the name, it's very kid friendly) and both are pretty cheap.

7. If your son wants to play multiplayer games (like Mario Kart or Splatoon 2) online, then you do need the subscription service. But free to download apps and games do not require it. Also the subscription comes with old school Nintendo and Super Nintendo game included, many of which your son may like.

The sub also gives you Tetris 99, which is amazing and one of the best puzzle games every created!

I’m a child at heart

I just want to clarify that Asphalt 9 doesn't need an online subscription. It's one of the free-to-play games that doesn't need it.

For racing games dad and son can play, the aforementioned Asphalt 9 includes a split-screen mode, though you need to unlock it. Also, you can't go wrong with a kart racer like Mario Kart, Team Sonic Racing, and Crash Team Racing (I haven't played it yet, but I do have memories of playing the PSone version with my brother).

You're totally right, sorry. I suggest you start being a mod about it and delete all the unjust replies