Nintendo Switch owners, beware: Broken game cards may cause permanent damage

By Aaron Mamiit June 9, 2019

Nintendo Switch owners are advised to check their game cards before inserting them to play, as broken ones may result in permanent damage to the hybrid console.

A Japanese repair store issued the warning after investigating the issue, when some Nintendo Switch owners in Japan reported that their consoles stopped loading game cards after inserting a second-hand or borrowed one.

The repair store discovered that the problem occurs due to broken game cards with bent and broken strips at the back, as seen in the photo provided by the Esuteru blog.

If a broken game card is inserted into the Nintendo Switch, it will bend the contact pin inside the game card slot. Unfortunately, this appears to be permanent damage, as the repair shop claims that even after it is fixed, the console will no longer be able to read the cartridges.

The repair store recommends all Nintendo Switch owners check their game cards before they insert them, as sparing a second to look may save the console from irreversible damage. This is especially true in the case of second-hand purchases. If a game card has a bent or broken strip, the repair store said that it would be better to remove the damaged strip entirely to prevent bent contact pins. Fortunately, it takes severe carelessness and a lot of abuse before a game card suffers such damage, so players should not worry about providing extra protection to the cartridges.

It remains unclear why the Nintendo Switch will not be able to read game cards after repairs. While owners of consoles that are permanently damaged by this issue may still play games by purchasing their digital versions, it will be a shame to have part of a $300 device not functioning just because of negligence in checking the integrity of game cards.

The warning on broken game cards comes just before the E3 2019 Nintendo Direct, which will air on June 11 at 9 a.m. PT. Among the games that Nintendo Switch owners may expect in the presentation are The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening, Pokémon Sword and Shield, a new Animal Crossing, Luigi’s Mansion 3, Super Mario Maker 2, Fire Emblem: Three Houses, and many more.

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Free for Nintendo Switch Online members until May 7 and available at a 50% discount on the eShop through the launch of Tears of the Kingdom, this game is a rare case of Nintendo collaborating with an indie studio for a project tied to one of its biggest franchises. The result is a Zelda game that expands on the rhythm-based action formula established in Brace Yourself Games’ 2016 hit Crypt of the NecroDancer.
Although this roguelite doesn’t play like any other Zelda game out there, it makes some design choices that call back to the series' most iconic titles. That, as well as its rhythmic nature, will feel refreshing ahead of Tears of the Kingdom’s ambitious and systems-heavy open-world adventure. If you haven’t played it, give Cadence of Hyrule a shot while it’s free.
A unique adventure
As a crossover between Crypt of the Necrodancer and The Legend of Zelda, the game begins with NecroDancer protagonist Cadence being whisked away to Hyrule. She quickly inspires Link or Zelda to explore the world and fight back against Octavo, who put Hyrule’s king to sleep with a magical Lute. Those who prefer the more minimalist stories of earlier games in the series will enjoy how quickly the game gets players to the rhythmic action. People begging Nintendo to make Zelda playable in Tears of the Kingdom will also appreciate that they can play most of the game as her if they want.

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Confirmed 2023 releases
The games listed below either have 100% confirmed release dates or solid release windows that we expect them to hit this year. Anything that's up in the air due to more vague launch predictions or previous delays will be listed under the following header.