Nintendo has shaken up how it treats your digital game purchases. It's now calling those virtual game cards, and it hopes to make it easier for you to share your games across multiple Switch systems. You can even let friends and family members borrow a game you've purchased from the eShop so they can play it on their own Switch. Getting things set up is a slightly complex process, but in most cases, you'll only need to do the tricky stuff once. In any case, we're here to help.The virtual game card system went live on the console on April 30 when Nintendo rolled out a major update. The Nintendo Switch 2 (which arrives on June 5) will support virtual game card lending and borrowing as well. Virtual game cards also include any of a game's associated DLC (i.e. extra downloadable content) that you've acquired.If you haven't tried out this way of letting your kid, partner or roommate jump into a Switch game you're not currently playing, sharing a virtual game card is a pretty simple process. We'll break down how to do that before explaining how to use virtual game cards across two of your own Switch consoles.When it comes to lending and borrowing virtual game cards, there are a number of caveats you'll need to be aware of. Sadly, a casual internet acquaintance who lives on the other side of the country won't be able to borrow a game from your Switch. The virtual game card system is designed for sharing games between friends and family - you'll need to be on the same Wi-Fi network to make the transfer.To wit, you can only lend out a virtual game card to another member of your Nintendo Account family group. Both Switch systems will also need to be connected to the same wireless network at the time a game is lent and borrowed.You can lend out a game for 14 days at a time. While a game of yours is loaned out, you won't be able to play it on your own Switch. However, if you do decide you want to hop back into that title, you can recall it at any time (which is, perhaps, a way to show a misbehaving child the consequences of their actions). Let's run through the other key virtual game card lending provisos in bullet points: