Donkey Kong Bananza is out today, and players already have physical copies in hand to verify one important fact: the game does not have the latest Nintendo Switch 2 firmware on the cartridge. That's a bummer, since it means there's still no way to play Switch 1 games on the new console without an internet connection.
As you may recall, there was a minor controversy around the Switch 2 launch when it became clear that the system was not going to launch with fully functional firmware. Instead, you'd need to connect online and download a day one console patch to enable features like GameChat, GameShare, and the Nintendo eShop. Those features mostly require the internet to work anyway, so the online connection isn't a notable barrier, but there's one big elephant in this room.
Switch 1 backwards compatibility is not enabled out of the box on Switch 2, so you need that firmware update in order to be able play old games on the new system. Switch 2 carts - at least the real ones, not the game-key cards - work without the updated firmware, but you can't plug, say, your old copy of Super Mario Odyssey into a Switch 2 and play it unless you connect online for the update.
BIG story of today: #DonkeyKongBananza does NOT come with newer firmware compared to the launch games. Still runs on 19.1.0. No update prompt. Best bet for offline backwards compatibility now is Mario Party, since it makes use of the SW2 camera, which needs a firmware update.
— @doesitplay.org (@doesitplay.org.bsky.social) 2025-07-17T17:41:17.657Z
Generally, new physical games include a console's latest firmware updates, but it seems Donkey Kong Bananza won't solve the issue. The game "does NOT come with newer firmware compared to the launch games," as DoesItPlay, a physical media compatibility watchdog group, notes on Bluesky. "Still runs on 19.1.0. No update prompt. Best bet for offline backwards compatibility now is Mario Party, since it makes use of the SW2 camera, which needs a firmware update."
This is a pretty narrow issue for now, since a pretty small number of people leave their consoles offline these days. But it does matter for that group, and it will matter to a much broader range of collectors in the future, when Nintendo will likely shut down the update services for Switch 2. Here's hoping that future physical games will offer an alternative path to the new firmware.
One of these upcoming Switch 2 games has to have the firmware on-cart… right?
