Nintendo will wait 6 months before deleting your cloud saves if your subscription lapses

Cloud saves are one of the newest features to come to the Nintendo Switch now that Nintendo Switch Online is active.

Initially, Nintendo U.K. said that save data stored on the Cloud can’t be accessed without a subscription and won’t be kept if you don’t have a subscription, prompting panic from some fans who worried that hundreds of hours of progress could be lost if they had to cancel their subscription for any reason.

Nintendo spoke to IGN to give some clarity on the situation, confirming that if a Switch owner re-subscribed to Nintendo Switch online within the 180 days, or six months, after their subscription ends, they will still be able to access their cloud saves.

"If a Nintendo Switch Online membership expires, users won’t be able to access their Save Data Cloud backups. However, Nintendo will allow users who re-subscribe within 180 days to access their previous Save Data Cloud backups," the Nintendo spokesperson said.

If you haven’t heard about Nintendo Switch Online yet, you can find all the key aspects in our guide here.