Nintendo has reportedly delayed the release of 64 GB cartridges of their current-generation console, the Nintendo Switch. The delay will affect upcoming games that have a storage size requirement of more than the current 32 GB maximum.
The 64 GB cartridges were supposed to be rolled out to developers in 2018. However, the release was delayed because of technical difficulties. This led to disappointment especially from developers based in the United States.
United States-based developers have been waiting for the 64 GB cartridge so that they could release new games with heavier data content. According to the Wall Street Journal, those developers may have to wait longer to release said games on the hybrid console.
Nintendo cartridges can have a maximum of 32 GB of data. This is smaller than the 50 GB storage of PlayStation 4 and Xbox One Blu-Ray discs.
This is why larger games like "The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild" and "Doom" require extra downloads to be played. The latest Zelda game alone costs the Switch 13.4 GB of storage space.
A bigger game cartridge may eliminate the need to download such large amounts of data for the upcoming games.
In addition, microSD cards will help with the Nintendo Switch's limited internal storage space. The console has 32 GB of internal memory, and the only way to expand this is via microSD cards.
The game company has reportedly partnered with Western Digital to create microSD cards that can store 64 GB and 128 GB of data.
Another notable matter regarding the 32 GB limitation is the cartridge price. For instance, "Dragon Quest Heroes 1" and its sequel cost more than the regular price of its PlayStation 4 version. This is because it ships with the 32 GB cartridge on the Switch, when most of the games currently available are in 8 GB or 16 GB cartridges.
