BODY: A database site called "Is Game Key Card?" opened on November 2, AUTOMATON reports. It aggregates which format each boxed Nintendo Switch 2 game uses, and as of the article it covers about 850 titles confirmed by volunteers.
Boxed Switch 2 software comes in three formats, according to the article. A game card stores the game itself on the card inserted into the console. A key card stores only a key, and the game data is downloaded to the console's memory or to a microSD Express card on first launch. In the third format, called code in box, the package contains only a code to download the game from the Nintendo eShop, and there is no card to insert.
The article explains how to tell them apart from the package. Key card packages carry a key mark and the words "key card" on the front, and the key card itself has a key mark in its upper right corner, which distinguishes it from a game card. Code-in-box packages say "see the notice on the back" at the lower left, and the back lists the environment needed to download the game.
AUTOMATON notes that Nintendo began using the key card format with Nintendo Switch 2 and that it is said to help developers reduce manufacturing costs. The advantages of a game card, such as playing right away without a download and saving console storage, are lost, although cards can still be lent and borrowed, and user reactions are mixed.
The site is meant for people who want to know the format before buying. Its operator has run an X account of the same name since 2025, collecting and sharing the format of each Switch 2 boxed game, and also offers the information as an Android app. The site stresses that its data contains no guesses, only confirmed information. Users search by game name, and for games sold in several regions the format is listed per region, since it can differ by region.
As of November 3, the site listed 846 entries, including regional versions of the same game: 357 game cards, 453 key cards, 30 code in box and 6 unknown. AUTOMATON cautions that this covers only what the site has collected and may not be every boxed Switch 2 game, but says the number of key card titles already exceeds the number of game card titles, suggesting the format is spreading. The site also accepts tips about missing or incorrect data.
Originally reported by AUTOMATON (Japanese).