Nintendo's New Virtual Game Card System Will Let You Hide Game Cards From Your List

Nintendo's latest update for the Switch introduces the new Virtual Game Card (VGC) system, now live and ready for users to explore. For those concerned about privacy, this update offers a valuable feature: the ability to hide your Virtual Game Cards from the prying eyes of others. A user on X/Twitter has demonstrated that you can indeed conceal games from your acquired list on Nintendo's VGC portal. This means anyone snooping through your list of Virtual Game Cards won’t see the titles you've chosen to keep under wraps, for any reason you might have.

I personally tested this feature and successfully hid games such as Suikoden I&II HD Remaster and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. While these games still appear on my OLED Switch if installed or loaded, they vanish from the list once uninstalled. This provides an extra layer of privacy, albeit with some limitations.

To access your hidden games, you'll need to navigate to the "Redownload Software" section in your games list and then proceed to the "Can't Find Software?" section after logging into your Nintendo account. The same process applies on the Nintendo site, where hidden games are tucked away behind the "Can't Find Software?" option in a separate folder.

This feature can be particularly useful if you're sharing your console and want to keep certain games like Mortal Kombat or Doom out of reach, serving as a potential parental control tool. Alternatively, if you're heading to a social gathering and prefer to keep some of your more adult-oriented titles hidden, this feature can come in handy.

In addition to the VGC system, the latest update includes redesigned icons, introduces a system transfer feature for the upcoming Switch 2, and closes a popular loophole for game sharing. For more details on the new Nintendo Switch firmware update, you can find additional information [ttpp].