- Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth co-director Naoki Hamaguchi thinks the Switch 2's Game Key Cards are "a really fantastic idea for us developers"
- The director believes that loading issues from cartridges stem from the Switch 2 hardware
- He says Nintendo will put more effort into popularizing the new format instead of trying to improve the loading speed for the cartridges
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth co-director Naoki Hamaguchi has called the Switch 2's controversial Game Key Cards "a really amazing new idea" that can be useful for developers and thinks Nintendo will try to make them more popular.
Speaking to Wccftech (via Stealth), Hamaguchi explained that cartridges themselves create loading issues that are attributed to the Switch 2's hardware, and suggests that they're a better alternative for developers.
"Personally, I feel that the loading speed issue for the game cartridge is more about the hardware spec of the Nintendo Switch 2," Hamaguchi said. "I'm not with Nintendo, so I can't really speak to that side. That said, I do feel that the Game Key Card format that Nintendo created for the Nintendo Switch 2 is a really amazing new idea that they had offered for us."
Game Key Cards are a new form of physical Switch 2 games that contain a download key but don't feature the full game data like other physical editions.
The cards are only available for a certain selection of games, but the divisiveness comes from fans worrying that the company might be moving towards a full digital output, while others suggest that, since Game-Key Cards don't contain the full game data, players don't have full ownership of their game after purchasing.
Despite the controversy surrounding them, Hamaguchi believes that Nintendo will make a push to popularize Game Key Cards instead of working to improve loading issues on cartridges.
"I don't personally see Nintendo working towards trying to improve the loading speed for the cartridges," he said. "Rather, I feel that Nintendo will put more effort into popularizing the Game Key Card format, which again is a really fantastic idea for us developers.
"Also, we hope players familiarize themselves with what that costs them. That obviously is something we can help out with as well, from the developer side. I think that the collaborative effort between Nintendo and publishers trying to promote the Game Key Card will be the best way forward for all players in the future."
Hamaguchi has been doing the rounds recently, and in a separate interview with ScreenRant, the director discussed the criticism the Final Fantasy 7 Remake series has faced and disagreed with the idea that "certain sections" of Rebirth were too long.
"Regarding time management in certain sections, especially in FF7 Rebirth, I honestly don’t believe that they were longer than necessary," Hamaguchi said. "I feel like nowadays, players just have too much to do and too much to play; so they often feel the urge that something has to be concluded quickly."
Though he doesn't agree with the sentiment, he did add that he was mindful of criticism, saying, "As we work on the conclusion to the trilogy, we are striking a balance on how story arcs are told and spread out so as to ensure that the game feels a bit more concise."
The third and final installment in the Final Fantasy 7 Remake series doesn't have a release date yet, but we do know that development officially began in 2024.
➡️ Read our full guide to the best handheld games consoles
1. Best overall:
Nintendo Switch 2
2. Best for PC gamers:
Steam Deck OLED
3. Best budget
Nintendo Switch Lite
4. Best for remote play:
PlayStation Portal
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