Nintendo Switch game cartridges made to taste horrible so kids won’t eat them

The gaming company have found a novel way of deterring hungry players
Bitter: the Nintendo Switch games have been made to taste disgusting
Ben Travis
Ben Travis2 March 2017

The Nintendo Switch is nearly here – and it’s bringing back cartridge-based home gaming.

But if you were worried that a pet or family member might accidentally swallow one of your tiny new game cartridges, Nintendo are already one step ahead.

The games – which cost up to £60 and are roughly half the side of 3DS cartridges – have been coated in a ‘non-toxic’ solution to deter ‘accidental ingestion’.

Or, put more simply, they taste disgusting so that people won’t want to put them in their mouths.

Speaking to Kotaku, Nintendo confirmed: “To avoid the possibility of accidental ingestion, keep the game card away from young children.

“A bittering agent (Denatonium Benzoate) has also been applied to the game card. This bittering agent is non-toxic.”

Nintendo Switch - in pictures

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It is currently unknown who first decided to lick a Nintendo Switch cartridge.

The new console presents a first for the gaming world – primarily a home-based gaming machine, the Switch features controllers that can attach to a tablet screen for on-the-go play.

The Switch arrives on March 3, with launch games including The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and 1-2 Switch.

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