After months of rumors and leaks, including one incredibly loose CES, the Nintendo Switch 2 was finally revealed to the world this past week – kind of. The two-and-a-half minutes long trailer shows off the Switch 2, but doesn’t really tell us a ton about Nintendo’s next console. It feels like a “Fine, here it is” response to all the leaks, and even ends with a tease of its true reveal in April.
Even still, the first look trailer tells us what the Nintendo Switch 2 (how they didn’t opt for “Super Nintendo Switch,” I’ll never know) will be at its most basic: a souped up Nintendo Switch. The basic form and function returns – the Nintendo Switch 2 will be capable of switching between handheld and docked modes; detachable Joy-Cons allow for multiplayer gaming on the go and at home; and, of course, Mario Kart is gonna rule.
This is Nintendo at its most different by offering a product that feels incredibly familiar. Usually known for innovation – What if we made a handheld with two screens instead of one? What if we made that handheld’s screen 3D? – with the Switch 2, Nintendo opts for upgrading its most successful product. Side-by-side, the OG Switch and the Switch 2 don’t look all that different, like how the Xbox Series X is just a chunkier box than the Xbox One. Essentially, Nintendo is doing what its competitors often do – iterating on its success as opposed to trying to invent an entirely new success. And I’m here for it!
Plenty of questions remain, however, as we still don’t know what the guts of the Switch are going to be like. It’ll certainly be more powerful than the OG Switch, but by how much is the question. I’m not expecting it to run 2025’s most graphically intense games, but if it can be Nintendo’s version of a Steam Deck – which has power somewhere in the range of a PS4 Pro – I’d be one happy camper. Doubly so if the Switch 2 lands at the predicted launch price of $400.
From what the first-look trailer tells us, we can assume the only real innovation is the optical sensor in the Joy-Cons, which indicate they’ll be able to be used like a mouse. Of course, we’ll have to see if this feature is used by one first-party launch title and subsequently forgotten or if third-party developers embrace the functionality of the Joy-Cons. Other upgrades include a more flexible stand, an additional USB-C port, and an overall larger handheld, so hopefully it’ll be more comfortable for adult-sized hands. Nintendo hasn’t confirmed what the screen will be, but all signs point to an LCD screen and not an OLED.
Software will perhaps be the biggest selling point for the Switch 2, at least in its early days, and I imagine some spectacular launch titles will be revealed during the April 2 Nintendo Direct. Enhanced Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom ports? Metroid Prime 4? A new The Legend of Zelda remake (Ocarina of Time?)? The next Smash Bros.? A new 3D Mario? Your guesses are as good as mine. I’m personally holding out hope we see how Pokémon Legends: Z-A looks on the Switch 2 during Pokémon Day next month – it might be our first extended glimpse at Switch 2 software outside of the brief Mario Kart 9 reveal in the trailer. The Switch 2 will be backwards compatible (though not for every game) and, in a boon for us old folk who still like to buy our games physically, will support physical game cartridges.
Unfortunately for Nintendo fans, that’s basically everything we know about the Switch 2 at this point. The two and a half months until the April Nintendo Direct are going to be agonizing as we wait for news as to what the Switch 2 has in store. In the meantime, registrations are open for Nintendo Switch 2 Experience events in New York, Los Angeles, and Dallas, offering lucky fans the opportunity to test out the Switch 2 before it releases.
