Nintendo Switch is an amazing little device. It can run a large collection of first- and third party games, both at home or on the move. It’s true that the Nintendo Switch is a bit old in 2023. But my PS5 cannot run the Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom. So specs are only important to a certain extent.

It’s not just about the processing power. Although I would love to be able to play Zelda at 4K 60fps in the future, that is not what I am concerned with today. is important, but storage space is the only spec. Your Switch does not have nearly enough.

Nintendo doesn’t give you enough space to store your games

Nintendo makes some questionable choices, as much as I love the company. In 2012, Nintendo released 2 versions of the Wii U, one with 8GB and another with 32GB (for the true gamers). As anyone who bought their games digitally soon discovered, even in 2012 32GB of storage wasn’t much. Nintendo decided in 2017 to give its Switch console a lot more storage than 32GB. Hahaha.

They gave us another 32 GB. Most Switch players are aware that this is too little for a console or even a smartphone. Even if you only buy physical games, the internal storage will quickly fill up. You have two choices: either purchase external storage or delete everything.

These two strategies are more important than ever for Switch owners, and especially when you want to download the new Zelda.

Tears of the Kingdom is a huge game

Nintendo has confirmed that a digital version of Tears Of The Kingdom takes up 16GB on the Switch. This is a little less than the 18.2GB previously reported, but it’s still half the space advertised. Your usable storage is less than so Tears Of The Kingdom takes up more than half.

You don’t currently have enough room to install this game on your Switch if you are like me. As a matter of fact, my internal storage and external space are both full, so I only have a short time to free up some room.

However, you don’t have to do a complete housecleaning to make space for a copy of Tears of the Kingdom. It may seem difficult to delete Breath Of The Wild, but this is logical. It’s a game that we all love, and it is hard to imagine the Switch without. But it weighs in at 15.7GB, including DLC. By deleting it, you can get The Tears of Kingdom 16GB. Problem solved. It makes sense, since you’ll soon be working on the new version of Hyrule.

You don’t need to delete any save data to remove these files. The Switch allows you to separate the two so that the GBs in game data will not affect the MBs in saved files. You can delete your copy Breath Of The Wild and redownload at a later time to pick up where you left off.

You’ll have to select other games to delete if you want to be able to switch between the Switch-era and Zelda. You can delete any game on your Switch by going to Settings and then Data Management. Use the Quick Archive to archive your games immediately, or use the Manage Software to delete them. You can archive or delete game data in either case. You lose the same storage space whether you delete or archive a game, but archiving a title allows you to redownload the game from a tile in the home screen rather than having to access the eShop.

There are other ways to quickly make space on your Switch

If you haven’t already done so, it is easy to purchase expandable storage for the Switch. The best option is a microSDXC memory card, which can increase your storage capacity by up to two terabytes. It’s true that larger cards are more expensive, but they will save you time when you play Tears of the Kingdom.

A second option is to buy the game in physical form. Physical Switch games may take up a little of your storage space, but it is a small fraction of the size of their digital counterparts. The cart is where you store your DLC, save data and update data.

You might be able to fit a physical copy of Tears of the Kingdom on your Switch if you aren’t maxed. It’s just that you won’t have the option to play it at midnight, like digital players. (Of Course, You might be playing it now.