Nintendo game card
| Media type | ROM Cartridge |
|---|---|
| Capacity |
DS/DSi: 8-512 MB 3DS: 128 MB-8 GB |
| Developed by | |
| Dimensions | 35 mm × 33 mm × 3.8 mm (3.50 cm × 3.30 cm × 0.38 cm) |
| Weight | 3.5 g (0.12 oz) |
| Usage |
Nintendo DS line Nintendo 3DS line Nintendo Switch |
A Nintendo game card (trademarked as Game Card) is a read-only memory cartridge format used to physically distribute video games for certain Nintendo systems. The game cards resemble smaller, thinner versions of the Game Pak cartridges for previous portable gaming consoles released by Nintendo, such as the Game Boy or Game Boy Advance. The mask ROM chips are manufactured by Macronix and have an access speed of 150 ns.
Unlike preceding Game Paks, Game Cards use flash memory instead of volatile memory, therefore the save data is stored permanently and can only be deleted manually within the game's save menu.
Cards for the Nintendo DS ranged from 64 megabits to 4 gigabits (8–512 MB) in capacity The cards contains an integrated flash memory and an EEPROM to save user data such as game progress or high scores. However, there are a small number of games that have no save memory such as Electroplankton. The game cards are 35.0 mm × 33.0 mm × 3.8 mm (about half the breadth and depth as Game Boy Advance cartridges) and weigh around 3.5 grams (1/8 oz.).
Based on an IGN blog by the developer of MechAssault: Phantom War, larger (such as 128 MB) cards have a 25% slower data transfer rate than the more common smaller (such as 64 MB) cards; however, the specific base rate was not mentioned.
In 2009, the Nintendo DSi was launched. The console offered various hardware improvements and additional functions over previous Nintendo DS iterations, such as the inclusion of cameras. While many Nintendo DS titles released afterwards included features that enhanced gameplay when played on the Nintendo DSi console, most of these games retained compatibility with the original DS iterations sans enhanced features. However, a select few retail game titles were released that worked exclusively for the Nintendo DSi consoles for reasons such as requiring camera functions, and these titles have game cards with white-colored casings (all DSi-exclusive games are region locked). Examples of such game cards include Picture Perfect Hair Salon. While these white game cards can be physically inserted into original Nintendo DS consoles, their software did not function due to the missing hardware features. These DSi-exclusive game cards are fully compatible with the Nintendo 3DS family.
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