Pokémon Sword and Shield won’t have cloud save functionality
Nintendo announced that the upcoming Pokémon Sword and Shield games will not support cloud save features. This means that players will not be able to store their game progress in the cloud and retrieve it if they switch to another Nintendo Switch console or if their console gets damaged.
Why is this a big deal?
Cloud save functionality has become a standard feature in many modern games. It allows players to save their progress online, providing a backup in case something happens to their console or game data. With Pokémon Sword and Shield, this feature will be absent, which could potentially cause frustration and inconvenience for players.
Reasons behind the decision
Nintendo has not explicitly stated why cloud save functionality won’t be available for Pokémon Sword and Shield. However, one possible reason could be to prevent cheating and the duplication of rare Pokémon. By saving game progress in the cloud, players could potentially manipulate their save files to acquire rare or powerful Pokémon more easily. The absence of cloud saves could help maintain the integrity of the game and preserve the challenge for all players.
Alternatives and workarounds
Though players won’t have access to cloud save features, there are alternative methods to protect their game progress. One option is to use the Pokémon Home service, which allows players to store their Pokémon in the cloud. While this doesn’t save the entire game progress, it does provide a secure way to safeguard the most important aspect of the game—their Pokémon collection. Additionally, players can manually transfer their game progress using the console’s transfer function, preserving their data.
Overall, the absence of cloud save functionality in Pokémon Sword and Shield may be disappointing for players who have come to rely on this feature. However, the decision seems to be aimed at maintaining the integrity of the game and providing fair gameplay for all trainers.