Nintendo has released a new trailer to provide an overview on how Switch 2 cartridges and Game-Key Cards work (just in case the last six or seven months’ worth of discourse hasn’t already clued you in).
In it, one of the examples showcased to demonstrate the Game-Key Card is none other than Pokémon Pokopia, which has just been confirmed to launch on 5th March, 2026. The title is being published by The Pokémon Company in Japan and Nintendo in the West, which makes this the company’s first Game-Key Card release.
Of course, the renders shown in the trailer clearly have a ‘SAMPLE’ watermark included, so there’s a chance – however small – that the game may have just been plucked from thin air to demonstrate Nintendo’s practices, but we think not. It’s far more likely that the SAMPLE refers to placeholder key art for the box and cart, though. We’ve reached out to Nintendo to make 100% sure, but it seems clear that Pokopia is a full-blown Game-Key Card release.
The game will come in at an estimated 10GB, according to its page on Nintendo’s website.
So, what does this mean? Is this the start of something more? We can’t be sure yet. Nintendo has previously gone on record to state that it wouldn’t use the medium for “Nintendo-developed titles”, but that’s the thing… This isn’t a Nintendo-developed title – it’s Omega Force (Koei Tecmo). But then if that’s the case, then why didn’t the KT-developed Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment also receive a Game-Key Card release?
Lots of questions for now, and we’ll be sure to push for answers going forward. But if you’re someone who’s dead set against Game-Key Cards, then you might want to strike Pokémon Pokopia off your wish list.
