Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 on Switch 2 May Skip the Cartridge

The physical release could come with a box, a code, and no actual game inside.

There is something slightly funny about calling a game "physical" when the game itself isn't actually inside the box. That is the situation with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 on Nintendo Switch 2. According to the sources, the Switch 2 version is listed as a "code in a box" release.

In simple terms, players who buy the physical edition will get the familiar game case and cover art, but no cartridge will be inside. And it doesn't look like Nintendo's game key card format will save the day either. Instead, the box is expected to contain a download code that players will have to redeem before they can start playing.

For anyone who likes collecting physical games, that's a little disappointing. Sure, the Modern Warfare 4 case can sit proudly on a shelf, but the actual game will still live on the console's storage. So, what's the point of buying the physical version? For collectors, the box still has some appeal.

But for everyone else, the difference between this release and simply buying Modern Warfare 4 digitally becomes hard to notice.

Both options ultimately require you to download the game. The decision also makes sense when considering what Call of Duty has become. These games are no longer standalone packages. Modern Warfare 4 is expected to connect with the wider Call of Duty ecosystem, including the Call of Duty app and potentially Warzone-related features.

Squeezing everything onto a physical cartridge could be difficult, especially as modern Call of Duty games grow larger. A download code gives the publisher plenty of room to deliver the full game and any additional content without worrying about physical-media limitations.Still, there is an undeniable irony here.

A player could walk into a store, buy a brand-new physical copy of Modern Warfare 4, take the box home, open it up, and discover that the most important thing inside is basically a password to download the game. For Switch 2 players who specifically wanted a cartridge, that could be a deal-breaker. There is also the usual download requirement, meaning you'll need an internet connection to redeem the code and get the game onto the system.

Physical games have been slowly changing for years, but releases like this make the shift much harder to ignore. The box is physical. The artwork is physical. The game itself? Not so much. So if Modern Warfare 4 launches this way on Switch 2, is there any reason to choose the boxed version over simply buying it digitally?