Gaming Tech Radar

Nintendo Switch 2 is bringing back one of the Nintendo DS’s best features

April 2, 2025
admin

Click here to visit Original posting

  • Nintendo Switch 2 will launch on June 5
  • Nintendo unveiled GameShare which allows users to play together on multiple consoles with one single cartridge
  • This functionality was known as Download Play on the Nintendo DS and was discontinued with the Wii U

Nintendo just unveiled all the Nintendo Switch 2 information we'd been waiting for including a release date, price, and the showcase of Mario Kart World. While that information might grab the headlines, there's another announcement that I'm more excited about.

Nintendo just announced GameShare, the spiritual successor to DS Download Play, and I can't believe we're returning to the heyday of gaming, where friends could hang out on park benches and play multiplayer with only one game cartridge.

Download Play was a staple of the Nintendo DS and 3DS and was later discontinued when Nintendo moved from the Wii U to the Nintendo Switch. Considering just how portable the Nintendo Switch is, it always felt like the console was missing a feature like Download Play, but now Nintendo has rectified that glaring omission.

GameShare will allow multiple Nintendo Switch 2 owners to play games like Mario Kart World in local multiplayer without needing to own more than one copy. This is an excellent feature for kids as they can play with all their friends without everyone forking out the price of a game.

If GameShare is anything like DS Download Play, everyone will be able to access the same experience with one cartridge, so you can pick tracks, karts, and characters without any limitations.

The return of local multiplayer game sharing might not seem like the flashiest reveal from the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct, but it will come in handy when you least expect it.

Back to the glory days

Switch 2 game share

(Image credit: Nintendo)

Now, this might be my nostalgia talking but the Mario Kart DS is one of my favorite games of all time thanks to DS Download Play. Back when I had hair and no beard, I was a young kid who used to play lots of tennis at summer camp. During those summers, Mario Kart DS was the best time of the day as me and my friends would sit outside under the sun and race with only one cartridge.

As a kid, you didn't always get the latest games, and for multiplayer experiences that was often an issue. The Nintendo DS completely rectified that, allowing you to play competitively with others without begging your parents for more pocket money.

As a 30-year-old adult now, I think GameShare will be equally useful. You see, many of those kids from tennis camp are now adults, and just like back then we still play multiplayer games.

So whether that's rocking up to the TechRadar office or meeting a mate in the pub, GameShare will allow us to play the best games Nintendo Switch 2 has to offer without needing to buy a second copy.

You might also like...