Pokémon Pokopia appears to be the first Nintendo-published Switch 2 game to be on a Game-Key Card

Pokémon Pokopia appears to be the first physical Switch 2 game published by Nintendo to be released on a Game-Key Card.

Nintendo and The Pokémon Company confirmed today that Pokémon Pokopia, which is being developed by Koei Tecmo, will be released on March 5.

However, in a separate video also published today titled Using Game-Key Cards on Nintendo Switch 2, a sample box and card for Pokémon Pokopia was shown, which shows the game as an example of a Game-Key Card.

VGC has reached out to The Pokémon Company for confirmation that Pokémon Pokopia will indeed be released as a Game-Key Card.

Since Switch 2’s launch, Game-Key Cards have attracted criticism from some for the fact that they contain no more than a digital activation key for game titles, rather than any game data.

The main difference between a Game-Key Card title and a digital download is that the former can be resold and will work on other Switch 2 systems, without the need for Virtual Game Card lending.

So far, the vast majority of third-party Switch 2 games have been Game-Key Cards in a move that game preservationists have called “disheartening.”

Stephen Kick, CEO of Nightdive Studios (which specialises in modern remasters of older, often out-of-print games) told GamesIndustry.biz that “seeing Nintendo do this is a little disheartening”, adding: “You would hope that a company that big, that has such a storied history, would take preservation a little more seriously.”

Pokémon Pokopia will see players take on the role of a Ditto that looks like a human, according to the trailer. The game will focus on the Ditto meeting other Pokémon, such as Charmander, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur, in order to shape the world around them.

Ditto will be able to learn the moves or various Pokémon in order to shape the terrain, and thus discover more Pokémon around the world.

A new trailer for the game will be released on November 13.