"This is another attack on physical media": Watchdog group finds that Super Mario Bros Wonder is suddenly unplayable on Switch 2 without an online update

Physical media enthusiasts have been closely eyeing the Switch 2 as they try to figure out how viable the platform is as an entirely offline machine, and thus how easy it'll be to keep using it in not just the years, but the decades to come. The latest Switch 2 firmware has a worrying caveat, as it's completely disabled access to Super Mario Bros. Wonder without an additional patch.

"Can confirm that Nintendo disabled offline playability on SW 2 for Super Mario Bros. Wonder's card between firmware 20.1.1 and the current 20.2.0," according to physical media watchdog DoesItPlay? on Bluesky. "Updated one of our European Switches and now the EU card of Wonder won't start either. Tested several other 1st party titles. No change there."

I can confirm the same thing happens on an NA Switch 2 with the latest firmware installed. I turned off my internet connection, popped my Mario Wonder cart in, and upon trying to launch the game I was hit with an unskippable update prompt.

Switch 1 backwards compatibility has been the biggest roadblock to offline Switch 2 players, since the feature required a firmware update which up until this week, you would've had to download. Donkey Kong Bananza didn't include that firmware update on-cart, but it turns out that the newly released Switch 2 edition of Super Mario Party Jamboree does, offering a way to get backwards compatibility without going online. Unfortunately, it also breaks the option to play Mario Wonder offline.

"Nintendo crossed a line," DoesItPlay? says in a follow-up post. "Our findings show, they have the power to retroactively block legally bought physical games from working without updates AND THEY DID SO! Multiple times. Following the introduction of Trojan Horse 'game-key card', this is another attack on physical media."

Today, this issue won't matter for the vast majority of Switch 2 players - it's not that hard to find a wi-fi hotspot in 2025, after all. But these kinds of little compatibility issues are starting to become a nightmare on decades-old consoles with online features, and someday when the Switch 2 is itself a retro console, it's going to be a lot harder to access all its features than you might like.

Here are the upcoming Switch 2 games for 2025 and beyond you need to know about.