Video: The Switch Desperately Needs This Nintendo DS Feature - Nintendo Life

We miss DS Download Play...

Who used Download Play on their DS or 3DS.

The former has a multiplayer-only version that's free (but it only has Pac-Man Vs. which is the only multiplayer game in that collection), and the latter has a Local Multiplayer Guest Edition which you can download from the eShop.

So, the lovely Felix is making a case on why the Switch should have a similar feature so we can play games with our friends to our heart's content.

We know Switch games are much bigger than DS games (Mario Kart DS is under 20 MB, compared to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is currently around 7.4 GB, and that's without the DLC).

This dream Switch Download Play wouldn't come with every single game's features, of course — that would be impossible.

Let us know whether you think Switch Download Play is a great idea in the comments.

If download play was just a standard feature of the system from day one, like it was on DS and 3DS, then maybe things would have been different.

I didn't have the opportunity to use Download Play much myself when I had my DS, but when I did it was the most magical experience ever (I'll never forget playing the versus mode in New Super Mario Bros with my sister on holiday using it).

Download play was great, but don't forget that the 3DS actually had a proper game library via Activity Log.

There are also no way to filter the games like you could with Activity Log, and not to mention the hours aren't even accurate on the Switch3

I would love to play more games with my family but buying the same game for times in the same household...

It would be quite impossible to add "download play" to the Switch.

It's wifi chip isn't fast enough to download a multiple GB game in a few minutes.

So allowing multiple systems with one game would directly destroy their most important revenue!

I don't get the attraction of this feature, I mean we could already play 4-Player on Mario Kart 8 Deluxe without buying 4 copies of the game on 4 Nintendo Switches.

ULTIMATE with my brother on his Nintendo Switch without buying another copy of the game or my own Switch.

@sanderev be that as it may, nintendo does just about nothing to grow a nintendo family from one enthusiast to a system-per-person household.

Nintendo would lose very little in sales, since who buys the same game multiple times in the same household anyway.

Download Play is just one of many features the Switch should have had since day one.

@okeribok Most games are single console multiplayer already so that's not a problem.

Allowing downloaded games to be played on multiple accounts would break that.

Because then a cartridge is a LESSER version of the game, because you can't play that with multiple systems at the SAME TIME.

Honestly, the current system Nintendo has (you can download to multiple systems, but only one can actively play the game) is the correct one.

Also for a long time Nintendo was selling the Switch at a loss.

Even the 3DS struggled with Download Play, having to compromise the game's quality just to be able to play multiplayer.

@iLikeUrAttitude You can in fact see more accurate information on how long you've played the NSO emulator games than regular Switch games.

Eh, if you ask me, the whole DS Download Play thing was largely before online gameplay and digital storefronts, such as the Nintendo eShop, really became a thing, especially on Nintendo's part.

Now that Nintendo has really embraced online gameplay and digital storefronts, there's really no need for DS Download Play for the Switch.

Better yet, have Nintendo implement data transfer from the 3DS and Wii U to the Switch, especially since they will be shutting down the eShop for those systems soon.

Download Play was an extension of the "Single Pak Game Link" function of the Game Boy Advance.

And I think it became quickly apparent why it was less favorable over owning multiple copies: games had to download themselves into the console RAM (for which GBA had, what, 288KB?) which certainly much less than what the cartridges could hold (GBA carts were a minimum ROM size of 4MB).

As cool as download play was for the DS/3DS, it's unnecessary and would be harder to implement on Switch!

Switch games are many times larger than DS and 3DS games, so it would take forever to set up a multiplayer game.

Multiplayer on Switch is already seamless with just one system.

"The Switch Desperately Needs This Nintendo DS Feature".

I agree that this feature would be great to have on the Switch, but it’s just not feasible due to the size of the games these days.

It would take ages to transfer enough of the game to the other Switch to be playable.

I do think 3DS games will make it to the Switch

Wouldn't it be great if they put 3DS on Nintendo Switch Online AND put a 3DS tab in the eShop for purchases

Except for Clubhouse Games, there's little need for Download Play, and I'm sure many of the games on that could be split screen

A game like Splatoon, it should include a split screen option anyway

@HalBailman I haven't played Splatoon but I imagine it's like other FPSes in which multiple screens is a benefit to prohibit "screen cheating"

Really disappointed by all of the Debbie Downers here pooh-poohing Download Play, which is one of several 3DS features noticeably missing from the Switch, and the one I miss most, second only to stereoscopic 3D

Much of the dissent here is made under the assumption that everybody has access to a TV at all times, and sure, in such situations, wireless multiplayer would arguably be unnecessary, but this is the Switch’s capability as a handheld device that is being discussed here, and TV/tabletop mode alienates Switch Lite users and/or those who overwhelmingly use their Switches as a handheld device

Virtually any game with online multiplayer should also support local wireless by default (though this gripe doesn’t relate to Download Play per se)

The Mario Party games supported full multiplayer with just a single copy of the game on both the DS/3DS (with individual activities/tracks downloaded on-the-fly)

Mario Kart 7 was almost fully featured in this respect, but Nintendo obviously added the artificial handicap of only allowing freeloading players to join as Shy Guy, which was their cynical way of trying to get people to buy their own copy without adversely limiting Download Play like they did with Mario Kart DS

And I wouldn’t have bought any of the Mario Party games on DS/3DS if not for Download Play, and there have been many others for which Download Play was the sticking point that convinced me to hand over my bucks

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