After years of speculation and leaks, Nintendo has officially unveiled the Nintendo Switch 2 — the successor to its best-selling console, the Nintendo Switch. The announcement took place on January 16, 2025, along with the release of a teaser video showcasing the design and features of the new console. Although many questions remain unanswered, the presentation has already caused a significant buzz in the gaming world.

Nintendo Switch 2 Release Date

One of the biggest questions fans have is when the console will be released. Nintendo has confirmed that Nintendo Switch 2 will be released in 2025, but the exact date has not yet been announced. Insiders speculate that the launch may occur in May or June, coinciding with global Nintendo Switch 2 Experience events starting in April. Fans will have the opportunity to try the console in cities across North America, Europe, Asia, and Oceania. Ticket registration began on January 17, 2025.

Nintendo Direct: New Information in April

More information about Nintendo Switch 2 will be revealed during a Nintendo Direct event scheduled for April 2, 2025. During the presentation, it is expected that technical specifications, pricing, and the initial game lineup will be announced. The public debut of the console will take place shortly after, starting on April 4 with the first events in New York, Paris, and Tokyo.

Cities and schedule for Nintendo Switch 2 Experience. All dates are local time.

North America:

• New York: April 4–6, 2025
  
  
• Los Angeles: April 11–13, 2025
  
  
• Dallas: April 25–27, 2025
  
  
• Toronto: April 25–27, 2025

Europe:

• Paris: April 4–6, 2025
  
  
• London: April 11–13, 2025
  
  
• Milan: April 25–27, 2025
  
  
• Berlin: April 25–27, 2025
  
  
• Madrid: May 9–11, 2025
  
  
• Amsterdam: May 9–11, 2025

Oceania:

• Melbourne: May 10–11, 2025

Asia:

• Tokyo (Makuhari): April 26–27, 2025
  
  
• Seoul: May 31–June 1, 2025
  
  
• Hong Kong: date to be announced
  
  
• Taipei: date to be announced

Nintendo Switch 2 Price 

Nintendo has yet to disclose the price for Switch 2, but analysts and fans predict or at least expect the console to cost around $400, making it competitive with other portable devices, including the Steam Deck.

The current and latest version, Nintendo Switch OLED, costs $349. With consideration of inflation and prices of other consoles, a price tag of $400-$500 for the Nintendo Switch 2 seems reasonable to most users. As for games, it is expected that their price for Switch 2 will align with current industry standards — $70. Due to the absence of official pricing and public statements, currently you can't pre order Nintendo Switch 2.

Backward Compatibility and Exclusive Nintendo Switch 2 Games

Switch 2 supports digital and physical games (cartridges) for the Nintendo Switch, allowing players to transfer their libraries to the new console. However, Nintendo has warned that some titles may be incompatible. Exclusive games for Switch 2 remain a mystery.

The trailer for the new console apparently featured a new Mario Kart series game, but Nintendo has yet to officially announce other launch games. Possible releases include Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, Pokémon Legends: Z-A, and a new game in the Super Mario series.

Support from third parties is expected to be significant, and there are rumors of titles such as Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Assassin's Creed Mirage, The Matrix Awakens, Elden Ring, and Red Dead Redemption 2, showcasing the console's enhanced graphics and technical capabilities. There are also rumors of Unreal Engine 5 support, providing advanced visual effects.

According to sources, Nintendo Switch 2 will run on a custom Nvidia chip that could provide ray tracing and upscaling to 4K in docked mode. Increased RAM and internal storage should support modern games, and rumors of Hall-effect technology in joysticks promise to eliminate drift issues.

Nintendo Switch vs Nintendo Switch 2: Changes and Differences

Even before the official trailer for Nintendo Switch 2 was released, there were many speculations and rumors online about changes in both the exterior and interior of the console. Regarding the console's design, the following changes should be noted:

1. A slightly larger size of the console itself, display diagonal (8 inches, compared to 6.2 and 7 in the standard and OLED versions of the original console, respectively), and joy-cons.

2. A stronger and larger U-shaped stand.

3. Joy-cons attached via magnets both to the console itself and the joy-con grip. Also featuring a new port.

4. Presence of an optical sensor on joy-cons, turning them into a mouse equivalent.

5. More powerful dock potentially capable of outputting 4K images with Nvidia's DLSS upscaling technology. The dock features rounded corners.

6. Additional top USB-C port present on the console.

Nintendo Switch 2 Specs

The most intriguing question regarding Nintendo Switch 2 remains its power and technical capabilities for running more demanding games that developers couldn't port to its predecessor or did so by sacrificing performance and graphics.

Nintendo Switch 2 will remain a hybrid console, functioning both in handheld mode and with enhanced performance and resolution in docked mode. Considering we'll get many older but quite demanding games on Switch 2, the new console is expected to deliver decent power.

Likely, when connected to a TV, games will run in 4K (with DLSS technology), while in portable mode, frame rates might decrease and resolution will be limited to 1080p on the LCD screen (original Nintendo Switch was limited to 720p). This makes sense: for comparison, Steam Deck features a screen with a resolution of only 1200x800 pixels, which suffices for most games.

Official details regarding the technical aspects of Nintendo Switch 2 are currently unavailable, but if trusting various sources that have repeatedly leaked information about the new console, Switch 2 will be equipped with a Nvidia T239 processor, supporting ray tracing and image scaling technology. Additionally, the console will have 12 GB of RAM and 256 GB of internal memory.

Potential Nintendo Switch 2 Issues and Fan Feedback

Nintendo fans should expect a decent power boost with Switch 2 compared to its predecessor, although it could hardly be praised absolutely, as there are still many unknowns that might become pitfalls.

Firstly, it's interesting to see what the Switch 2's battery life will be like in various games. Considering the presence of ray tracing and a display resolution of 1080p, it's reasonable to assume that the console will have a very good battery to ensure adequate battery life comparable to Steam Deck (4 to 8 hours).

Given leaked Switch 2 technical specifications and the games that will be available, the question arises as to how necessary it will be if you already own a Steam Deck. Of course, these consoles have different target audiences, but NS2 might fall short of its "competitor," apart from the issue of Nintendo-exclusive games. Therefore, the console's price will be an important argument for or against upgrading to the newer version in the early stages.

After watching the trailer, some people are curious about the joy-cons and the new port: will it break within the first few months or during some careless incident, leading to a complicated repair process?

So for now, we have to wait for more official details and leaks, which will appear very soon. Thus, we will see a full picture of the upcoming Nintendo Switch 2, allowing everyone to decide: to purchase the console or not.