Nintendo Switch 2 Gamer Shares Warning After Real-Looking Cartridge Breaks Console

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I’m hearing a really scary story from a fellow Nintendo Switch 2 owner, and I wanted to share it as a warning to everyone. Apparently, a brand new game they bought – from a site I thought was trustworthy – actually broke their console! It’s a total nightmare, and makes you think twice about where you’re buying games from, even if it seems like a legit place.

Counterfeit game cartridges and discs have been around almost as long as the consoles themselves. While some fakes are simply a disappointment, it’s important for gamers to carefully check any game they buy to avoid potentially bigger issues than just a faulty copy.

Fake Pragmata Cartridge Breaks Nintendo Switch 2

A gamer named jokkir shared on the Resetera forum that they accidentally received a malfunctioning Switch 2 after ordering the new Capcom game Pragmata from Amazon. They purchased the game through Amazon’s Resale program (formerly Amazon Warehouse), which sells returned or used items at discounted prices. Jokkir thought they were getting a bargain at $56CAD (normally $80CAD), but the cartridge wouldn’t work when inserted into the console. It became stuck, and they had to force it out, rendering the console unable to read any game cartridges.

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Jokkir quickly realized the game cartridge they bought was a counterfeit. They first thought the console wasn’t reading the game because the pins were stuck, but a closer look revealed the cartridge didn’t have any pins at all – it was just an empty plastic case. Unfortunately, this fake cartridge has now broken their Nintendo Switch 2, preventing it from reading any game cartridges, even legitimate ones. While Amazon might offer a refund for the fake cartridge itself, they probably won’t cover the cost of repairing the damaged console.

Many gamers have shown support and are now planning to thoroughly check any new Switch game cartridges they buy. Some have pointed out that this kind of issue isn’t limited to one seller, and others have shared experiences of receiving uninspected games from resellers like Amazon Warehouse.

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We’ve heard reports before of Nintendo Switch 2 owners accidentally breaking the slot where game cartridges go in. Last year, shortly after the console released, one gamer painted a copy of Donkey Kong Bananza yellow. The paint caused the cartridge to get stuck, and when he tried to remove it, it broke, leaving pieces inside the console. While a damaged cartridge port doesn’t necessarily stop the system from playing downloaded games, it’s a real problem for anyone who owns a lot of physical games and can no longer play them.

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2026-05-01 04:06