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I have a Nintendo Switch that I am going to take on a long haul flight Thursday 8th Feb (I fly at 8:45PM GMT).

I would like to pre-load Dragon Quest Builders which is released on the 9th February. This means that at 12AM when the game is released I'll be in the air.

My question is, will I need to be connected to the Internet for this game to become playable on my switch?

I'd love to be able to play it on my flight but obviously if I need Internet I won't be able to activate the game!

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    Most likely, the game/system needs to verify with the servers that it's ok to unlock. It would be a disaster if they allowed you to unlock while offline.
    – Jeff Mercado
    Feb 3, 2018 at 20:05
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    @Nolonar: I see that as a different situation entirely. That wasn't a purchase, it was a feature hidden in the firmware itself. There's no license checks needed for it. For a purchased game, especially in this day and age, they must go through the servers for any sense of security.
    – Jeff Mercado
    Feb 3, 2018 at 20:15
  • @Nolonar: Let's put it this way, what Nintendo-made mobile games allow you to play even if offline, even if they have offline (single player) elements? None. Sure, cases can be made that we should be able to, but the fact of the matter is, they don't and just just the way it is. It'll be far easier for them to implement and secure requiring connecting to servers to validate the game than it is to just trust that what's on the console should actually be there. They would not go for that, it would be way too convenient for consumers (and the homebrew community).
    – Jeff Mercado
    Feb 3, 2018 at 21:30

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You need an internet connection to verify your purchase to unlock the game. After that it is playable without any internet connection.

I’ve bought several pre-purchase titles on the Switch and the 3DS, both require a one time authorization from the Nintendo online store servers to unlock and play. Any time you try to run a pre-purchase game it will talk to the server to see if the authorization is available. Once given, it never checks again. Games are available at 12:00AM Eastern time/9:00PM Pacific.

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