Topic: Switch Physical Boxed Games List & Release Dates (US & CA)

Its been a long...long time coming, but Fuga: Melodies of Steel 1, 2, and 3 are getting physical releases in Japan. One of those hidden gems of an rpg series.

@Magician
Finally, I was holding out for a physical of the first game, but a third announced and the whole trilogy is coming? Brilliant.

@Magician I'VE BEEN HOLDING OUT HOPE FOR THESE!

I asked the Dev about a physical when the second game came out. Like, this undesired game got a sequel, certainly it has the popularity for a physical release now!

The day has finally arrived!!

@Magician
AWESOME NEWS! Thank you for sharing.
I caved after years of waiting and bought Fuga 1 on sale off the Japanese eShop a while ago, but never Fuga 2, and I didn't even know a third game was announced. I will be preordering that trilogy box with a smile!
It seems like an amazing value for JPY15,180 - you get all three packaged games, a Taramis metal figure, trilogy art book, trilogy soundtrack, and (3) Fuga novels! I haven't read any Japanese novels in a while, so this will be the perfect excuse.

Cyber Citizen Shockman Collection (Zero, 1, 2, and 3) is Switch release #266.

Meh

Could've been worse. Could've been an Aero The Acro-Bat collection.

@Magician
My brother and I will be interested in that anyway, just for Zero, or Shubibinman as we're more fondly familiar with from the Super Famicom Satellaview release that found its way to SNES reprints from Columbus Circle.

The other Shockman games for PC-Engine, I've heard are apparently not all that great though.

Either way it's strange that LRG didn't even reveal this release until today, I occasionally check their upcoming games during the week.

@Magician - Bro, what a way to wrap up the Switch's lifespan. Holy cow.

@Paraka

Oh I don't know about the Switch's lifespan wrapping up, my friend. I assume we've got a couple or few years left of boutique publishers milking Switch 1 digital games for physical releases. It'll continue trucking along until Nintendo themselves cease Switch 1 cartridge production.

@Magician - I am more or less talking "active" lifespan. Obviously there will be a few years of winding down, but once S2 is out, the talk of the town will be primarily about the new system.

There was a Nintendo Life article recently about Rusty Rabbit, a pretty interesting looking Metroidvania with a pretty odd story, and level design and salvaging mechanics that remind me of Steamworld Dig.

Play-Asia has pre-orders for Japanese physical copies shipping in April, has English language support.
https://www.play-asia.com/rusty-rabbit-multi-language/13/70i56j
Also posting the link here for the sake of affiliate-links and last click affiliation that helps support Nintendo Life. They have a coupon code "HOOKSHOT2025".

@Paraka
The wind-down period where Nintendo slow down Switch 1 game card manufacturing concerns me.
They'll keep production going for the boutiques I'm sure, but most of the resources are going to go towards Switch 2 game card production, until it comes to a point they won't do Switch 1 any more or only have limited allocations for publisher requests. We saw similar with 3DS and PS Vita.

There's a whole bunch of Switch 1 games that are still digital only which I'd very much like to see physically, including Lunistice which right now is still awaiting a major content update as the developer works their way out of a slump to finish it.
I'd like to see a complete Toree 3D package with Toree 3D, Toree 2, Toree's Panic Pack, and the upcoming Toree Saturn. You can get Toree 3D as part of a "Super Retro Platformer Collection", but not the rest of the series.
Jupiter's Picross series is one I'd also love to see get a physical release, they've made an incredible number of puzzles for the Switch with the S series, Namco and SEGA editions, the E series which is ports of the 3DS titles in their new engine, and multiple anime cross-overs.
Even stuff like HAL Laboratory's BOXBOY! + BOXGIRL! and Part Time UFO are titles that are still digital only.

Oh also the FUGA trilogy, individual or box set, are all available to pre-order on Play-Asia now.
I already pre-ordered via Amazon JP though.

@RupeeClock - Well, that leaves another question; Would some of these indie and more obscure games on Switch be open to making a Switch 2 physical cart?

@Paraka
That leads to an interesting question, could a Switch 2 physical cart hold both Switch 1 and Switch 2 titles?

Switch 1 multi-cart titles are uncommon but notable, with the biggest one being the Annapurna Interactive Collection which has 12 titles! It's the most that can be displayed at once on the Switch home menu.

Switch 1+2 hybrid physicals would sure be interesting, but there's a strong possibility that Switch 2 game cards will use a new interface or read speeds that won't work on Switch 1, so such an item would mean having Switch 1 games that can't be played on a Switch 1.
We'll know more in April at least, when Nintendo finally lifts the lid on Switch 2 physicals, and what kinds of software we can look forward to.

Reminder: Playstation 4 still gets games, 4 years after Playstation 5's release. Successful consoles will have a long wind-down period, which I don't doubt that the Switch will also have. This will be doubly true, if the Switch 2 struggles in its first years.

@RupeeClock - We have had Nintendo note there will be reverse compatible games that play on regular Switch consoles. Now, I do not think there will be many that will do this (likely some launch dual releases). However, if one direction is doable, likely the opposite is also workable, on a technical standpoint.

Switch 2 cartridges could likely just be upgraded versions of Switch 1 cartridges, as in having more storage (maybe 64 or even 96 GB) and higher speeds, and maybe a different color. Would also be helpful for if they do cross-gen games, but the way they won’t work on Switch 1 is if the cartridge doesn’t have the files to run on it.

@MrCarlos46
If the Switch 2 is to have impressive loading times, there's three places it can load data from, two of which will be potentially slow.

Internal storage should be very fast, probably the fastest and the best place to store digital versions or update data.
Switch 2 game cards should also be very fast, faster speeds than Switch 1 game cards would support.
Expandable storage is the tricky one, most people will use regular microSD cards to start, especially the slower ones that Switch 1 uses, and get Switch 1 loading times. You'll need to upgrade to the new microSD express format which is more expensive and offers less storage space. For that reason I'm really hoping that the internal storage is at least something reasonable, with certain modern games on PlayStation and Xbox being silly sizes.

I'm wondering if we'll have a situation where Switch 1 games can be played from their original game card just fine, but to get fastest loading speeds you have to download an optional digital version that can only be played with the game card inserted.
Like the Xenoblade Chronicles X download pack for Wii U.

@RupeeClock And then third party games that need more storage, this was where giving Switch 2 cartridges more storage over the original ones came from, and I think they could do 64 GB or 96GB depending on how much most third party games use, just so then they don’t need to use multiple carts or have some of it be on the cart and the rest be downloaded.

@MrCarlos46
A multi-cart release for one game in the vein of a multi-disc release, I don't know if such a thing could even work since you can safely hot-swap a disc and have it not crash the running software.
I'm not aware of any Switch 1 physical games that exceed 32GB either. The biggest ones in my collection that I know are 32GB cards are Doom Eternal, Final Fantasy X & X2 HD Remaster (Asian import), and Annapurna Interactive Collection. Tears of the Kingdom is also a 32GB card.
Doing a quick search, NBA 2K24 Nintendo Switch Kobe Bryant Edition is apparently a 60GB game with a physical release, that makes you download a 55GB update which outright requires a microSD card.
That suggests they used a 4GB or 8GB card and passed all the cost to the consumer, but I also doubt that there was an option to manufacture 64GB game cards.

About 300MB has to be allocated to the Switch firmware too, all game cards need to include it as it may be required to run the game in the event the Switch has no online connectivity.
Team Sonic Racing is notable for being a 7231MB release, they did that to squeeze the game into a 8GB game card and they had to cut out the animated video intro sequence to achieve that.

@RupeeClock I do know GTA 5 needs like 64 GB on PC and somewhere in the 70 - 96 GB for consoles. If GTA 5 comes to Switch 2, not sure what they will do.