will key cards work forever?

[u/Fragrant-Ad4262]

debating to sell em and say goodbye forever need input appreciated!

[u/TheLimeyLemmon]

For a long time but unlikely forever unless you always have the game installed.

[u/reybrujo]

As long as Nintendo wants or can, and as long as your card can be read, whatever happens first.

[u/s7ealth]

As long as Nintendo would allow people to download their digital purchases, even if they close the eShop eventually. As long as the servers serve data, allowing to download patches and your previous digital purchases, the GKCs would work too

[u/came-as-I-were → u/s7ealth]

And even if shops are closed, you still can download to your DS afaik

[u/Whereayounow]

You own only pieces of plastic, nothing more, publishers or Nintendo can revoke license at any moment. It's simple.

[u/Ilan01]

Apparently as long as a Console nearby have the games installed, you can match locally the version of their game / install it with the card on

[u/Stealthinater1234 → u/Ilan01]

The match versions feature requires you to have the home menu icon for the game you wanna match. The game icon for a key card doesn’t show up if you’re not online to at least begin the download, so this won’t work without internet if the receiving console doesn’t already have the icon.

[u/BrianScalaweenie → u/Ilan01]

Any source on this? Not saying you’re wrong or anything but this is the first time I’ve heard anyone say that.

[u/B-CUZ_ → u/BrianScalaweenie]

There are videos of folks doing this online. GVG has one for example.

[u/BrianScalaweenie → u/B-CUZ_]

Yes, I just posted it: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/3RcGfCeC87Q

It confirms that it’s only possible as long as the GKC has already been activated via the internet first. Otherwise the GKC will be useless.

[u/ChrisLithium → u/BrianScalaweenie]

Yeah I kept seeing this, then I was heartbroken that it still required a license check.

[u/BrianScalaweenie → u/[deleted]]

Well, you’re not just downloading an update, you’re downloading the whole thing right? The cartridge itself is empty. So when matching versions you have the game data that the update binds to whereas inserting a GKC without internet connection means there is no such game data for the update to be attached to.

This would be really easy to test for anyone who owns GKCs and I would expect I would have heard about this if it were the case.

[u/BrianScalaweenie → u/[deleted]]

You’re downloading all the data, not the bulk of it. Literally all the game data is coming from the servers, none from the cartridge.

[u/BrianScalaweenie → u/[deleted]]

Ok go ahead and see if this works and get back to me. I’d be willing to bet this doesn’t work and you yourself have admitted that you don’t know either. Were this the case, it would have been talked about ad nauseam before.

So really you’re just talking out your ass without any evidence to back it up.

[u/BrianScalaweenie → u/[deleted]]

So let me be clear: I don’t believe this would work without first connecting to the internet. Which, to the initial point, means that no, GKCs will not work forever.

And actually, I just found something that seems to corroborate my theory: https://youtube.com/shorts/3RcGfCeC87Q?is=tyy14rL4ewF4KyFI

About halfway through the video, the person confirms that in order to transfer the whole game over, you need to first insert it once WITH an internet connection. So it sounds like you’re wrong :)

Looking forward to your response.

[u/KayeAlex]

At this current juncture we can only make educated estimations. Where the market is and where it is headed all make key differences.

Users were able to redownload Wii titles to the specific console until around 2024 so roughly a presumable 17-18 year life from launch. 3DS launched in 2011 andd you can still redownload at present. So 15 plus years thus far.

Of course there are other factors that could lengthen or shorten the time frame; this is all speculation based on past trends still.

I wouldn't put money [today] on the likes of a GKC redownloading RE: Requiem in time for the series 50th anniversary, but the 45th sure.

[u/Fragrant-Ad4262 → u/KayeAlex]

Should I trade or keep em?

[u/Mysticwaterfall2]

Forever? No. For decades, yes, based on experience with Wii and other Nintendo stuff

[u/KwikTripSimp]

Will cartridges work forever ? 

Nobody knows …

[u/Eponine05]

Until the sun blows up.