Nintendo has added a bunch of new features to the Switch, to make it compatible with the Switch 2, including Game Share and virtual game cards.
The Nintendo Switch 2 is just over a month away, and while people scramble to pre-order the console, a new Switch update has arrived teasing what’s to come.
On Thursday, April 30, Nintendo rolled out firmware update 20.0.0 for the Switch. While these updates usually offer minor system improvements, this one comes with several key new features to prepare the console for the Switch 2.
One of the big new additions is the virtual game card system, which allows players to move digital games to another console (if it’s linked to the same Nintendo Account), or lend games to people within the same Nintendo Account family group.
As outlined by Nintendo, you can lend up to three virtual game cards, along with all its DLC, at a time, but receivers can only borrow one game at a time (so you can’t borrow games from multiple people at once). These virtual game cards can be lent to a family member for 14 days, after which they’ll be automatically returned to the original user.
The update also adds Game Share, which allows Switch 2 players to share games with other consoles (original Switch included) and play at the same time over a local wireless connection.
It’s important to note, Game Share can only be initiated from a Switch 2 console to other nearby systems – so you can’t use Game Share between two original Switch consoles. In other words, it’s useless at the moment.
Perhaps the most crucial addition is the system transfer option to the Switch 2, so you can upload all your save data to a server and move it across to the new console.
After you do this, your original Switch will effectively be wiped and returned to its original factory settings, so you should only do this when you actually have the Switch 2.
There are some other minor additions too, including colour changes to the Nintendo eShop and News icons on the home menu, which are now red and green, respectively.
Also, Nintendo has replaced Donkey Kong’s character icon with the new redesign from Donkey Kong Bananza, so hopefully you weren’t too attached to Rare’s version.
Amid all these additions, there is one caveat. As pointed out on ResetEra, this update now stops people from playing online simultaneously when sharing digital games across two Switch consoles.
You can still share digital games and play offline simultaneously though, as long as you activate the new ‘Online License’ option under user settings.
It’s unclear why this specific change has been implemented, or if it was an unintentional loophole to begin with, but it’s a bit of a nuisance if you share a digital copy of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and want to race online at the same time.
For every detail in the update, you can check out the patch notes. If your system hasn’t updated yet, head to the settings menu and under ‘system’, check ‘system update’ and it should be available.
The Switch 2 is set to launch worldwide on June 5, 2025, with Mario Kart World leading the games line-up.
Email gamecentral@metro.co.uk, leave a comment below, follow us on Twitter, and sign-up to our newsletter.
To submit Inbox letters and Reader’s Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use our Submit Stuff page here.
For more stories like this, check our Gaming page.