Digital Nintendo Switch games potentially cannot be shared, locked to one console at a time

Dan-the-Rebirth · Feb 23, 2017

So if you want to play a games in another switch you habe to delead it from yours first and then download it in your friends switch xD

Maximilious · Feb 23, 2017

Everyone raging like they will have more than one system at launch. They've already said download play is available for developers who want to enable it, and multiple accounts per console makes me think this will be possible sometime SOON

Alex658 · Feb 23, 2017

The way i'm interpreting this is that it may function as something like this:

Switch #1: Account "incrush"
Switch #2: Account "incrush"

While both devices are linked to the same account, if you install mk8D on Switch #1, when you try to download it on Switch #2 it will say something like "currently in use, please wait until the other devices uninstall the game to be able to install it in this console".

Which, wouldn't be THAT MUCH worse than what they've been doing up until now...

Kioku · Feb 23, 2017

"Consumer: “If I want to take my system with me… if I were to buy a digital game, could I buy it once, or would I have to buy it multiple times so they can use those games?” "

What does that mean? If you take your system with you, your games are with you... What are we talking about here?

thorasgar · Feb 23, 2017

Chary said:
There's rules to how a post in the USN works. If you can't follow it, then you don't get your post front paged. Simple as that. Don't try to complain over nothing.

I posted a link to an Arstechnica piece on the subject in user submitted news. Glad @Chary either found this on his own or used my post as a starting point. Don't care about likes or getting on the front page, and don't want to original source it and do all that journalism stuff on an iPad while in bed.

Somone like Chary is much better at it anyway.

Maybe my post should be locked or deleted and comments merged so we don't have two running threads.

LichbannMejolaro · Feb 23, 2017

Maximilious said:
Everyone raging like they will have more than one system at launch. They've already said download play is available for developers who want to enable it, and multiple accounts per console makes me think this will be possible sometime SOON

Taking the PS4 as an example, me and my Brother have different accounts and can buy only one copy of a given game (did it with Dying Light, Bloodborne, Battlefield 1) and both play at the same time. I don't see this as piracy tbh.

And this "Everyone raging like they will have more than one system at launch" is far from the truth. People who play with their SO, brother and work at a non slavery company can buy two at launch without that much of a problem, even more considering that is not that expensive (even though $250 would be ideal).

Maximilious · Feb 23, 2017

LichbannMejolaro said:
And this "Everyone raging like they will have more than one system at launch" is far from the truth. People who play with their SO, brother and work at a non slavery company can buy two at launch without that much of a problem, even more considering that is not that expensive (even though $250 would be ideal).

Then that's where download play comes into the picture. And for Steam as an example, if you're account is linked with a friend, you can't play a game they own if they are also playing a game on their Steam account at the same time. I get people are upset, and I would also like that availability to put my account on a buddies system and vice versa to play each other's games, but there's a lot of multiple angles they need to look at. I think it will be available down the road, but even the rep said he doesn't have all the information available to him at this time.

Edit: That is pretty cool on the PS4, sounds like XBONE is the same?

Bladexdsl · Feb 23, 2017

no VC at launch...oh dear
SOURCE

netovsk · Feb 23, 2017

Bad idea, I use to download my xbox one games on my friend's console so we can play together when I'm there.

Huge step down for Nintendo who brought the Download Play feature.

But digital games feel more like a long-term rental than true ownership anyways.

LichbannMejolaro · Feb 23, 2017

Maximilious said:
Then that's where download play comes into the picture. And for Steam as an example, if you're account is linked with a friend, you can't play a game they own if they are also playing a game on their Steam account at the same time. I get people are upset, and I would also like that availability to put my account on a buddies system and vice versa to play each other's games, but there's a lot of multiple angles they need to look at. I think it will be available down the road, but even the rep said he doesn't have all the information available to him at this time.

Edit: That is pretty cool on the PS4, sounds like XBONE is the same?

I'm not 100% sure, but I think that the XB1 works the same way.

What to me was completely and utter piracy was in the times of PS3 that one game bought digitally could be installed in an infinite number of PS3 as long as the person who installed doesn't enter the account ever again (from what I understand, if you don't enter the account, the PS3 doesn't make verifications on it and even if the passwrod for it was changed you can continue playing on another account).

Maximilious · Feb 23, 2017

LichbannMejolaro said:
What to me was completely and utter piracy was in the times of PS3 that one game bought digitally could be installed in an infinite number of PS3 as long as the person who installed doesn't enter the account ever again (from what I understand, if you don't enter the account, the PS3 doesn't make verifications on it and even if the passwrod for it was changed you can continue playing on another account).

That's true because I have a PS3 with my account and a buddies, and he downloaded all of his games for me haha. I haven't played them in years, but it was a nice "feature" of account management if you could call it that.

anhminh · Feb 23, 2017

I know a guy who can "share" me 10 Vita games from his account for 5 bucks. Who need to pirate when you have friend like that.

xile6 · Feb 23, 2017

Im sorry but this doesnt effect me.
I buy 99% hard copies. The 1% of digital download i do is pretty cheap and its for me and my main system.
I have pretty much every system and have never used that part of the system.

I see where it can be bad for others.
But its kinda like did we really think Nintendo would do this?
Its taken them a while to come this far.

But what i havent seen them say which i would like to know.
How will the multi accounts work on one system?
IF you share a system with someone. Do you have the buy the game for each account? Or only the 1 and its playable on the other?
I really wish Nintendo would just come out with it and say how things work.
Maybe there scared people will cancel there perorders if they hear something they dont like lol....

geodeath · Feb 23, 2017

And now maybe some of you will understand just why people hate DLC only releases like the other day that everybody who said so got flamed. Nintendo is simply too dumb to see what is current and goes by old standards all the time.

When companies say "but we haven’t made any final decisions" it usually means they did and they do not want to be honest to avoid the backlash, 2 weeks before launch. Was i going to buy the Switch, i would DEFINITELY not buy ANYTHING digital, as i did not do all these years.

TeconMoon · Feb 23, 2017

I thought this was already made apparent in the recent Switch UI Leak.

“Your Nintendo Account contains your Nintendo eShop purchase history and current balance. By re-linking your Nintendo Account after initializing the console, it will be possible to redownload any software or DLC purchased using that account. (Software that has been discontinued may not be available to redownload in some cases.)”

Initializing the console basically means formatting, which is what the Wii U and 3DS already do. Purchases are linked to NNIDs, which can only be linked to one Wii U and one 3DS at a time. Formatting the system tells Nintendo to unlink the NNID from the Wii U or 3DS.

I was hoping the Switch would just allow you to login with your Nintendo Account on another Switch, and then it would just ask if you wanted to unlink the account from your old Switch, but we'll see.

Tom Bombadildo · Feb 23, 2017

I swear half the people in this thread saying "WAIT PEOPLE BUY MULTIPLE CONSOLES???" apparently forget Nintendo's good ol' "3DS, 3DS XL, New 3DS, New 3DS XL, 2DS" line of thinking, the same line of thinking Sony and Microsoft have adopted for their current consoles.

Does anyone here really expect this Switch to be the only Switch Nintendo launches? I can already see the "Switch XL" or the "Switch Pocket" or the console-only Switch or some other stupid revision that people will gobble up.

Not to mention the whole fragile portable thing, kids are going to be dropping their Switch's left and right, what are they gonna do when they can't transfer the games they bought with daddy's credit card then?

The whole idea that games are locked to a console instead of an account is ludicrous and outdated thinking, I legit can't think of any good reason it should be that way. But of course that's Nintendo for you, still hasn't learned anything about online services besides "we can make people pay for it!"

mizorechan · Feb 23, 2017

It's very unpractical to buy digital games on Switch (even more unpractical than Wii U). Short storage and now this.

Nintendo is not even in my country anymore. There are a lot of shortcomings and buying a Switch here is going to be much more expansive than a PS4 or a XONE, especially considering Nintendo rarely give a price cut to their games (only Nintendo Selects in the end of the lifetime of the console). I had a small interest on Switch but now I don't want it. Maybe in a distant future.

codezer0 · Feb 23, 2017

Nintendo is proving why consoles should never be allowed to go fully digital.

Bad enough no console maker will ever do steam level sales. But these stupid restrictions are basically just highlighting what's wrong with console gaming of this era.

The Frenchman · Feb 23, 2017

Great decision... working in retail, people sharing their purchases is really bad.

I mean it's a portable system, there is no reason you wouldn't be able to play at your friend's house if he has a switch. Pop your switch in his dock and voila your games are all available.

linuxares · Feb 23, 2017

Wasn't it talk about the games being tied to your Nintendo Account and not the console itself? Maybe it's just a stupid system here at launch and fixed later on?

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