As seen previously, the Joy-Cons will be bigger than on the original Switch and will feature larger shoulder buttons on the inside edges. The system itself has a larger, “more sturdy” stand that can be adjusted to sit at multiple angles. A second USB-C outlet on the top of the system will allow for easier charging and connections.
Third-party publishers announced a number of ports for the Switch 2, including Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition, Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade, Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition, Hades II, Street Fighter VI, Split Fiction, EA Sports FC, Madden NFL, Hogwarts Legacy (with new Mouse Controls), Yakuza 0 Director’s Cut, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4, and Hitman: World of Assassination.
The Duskbloods, a Switch 2 exclusive from FromSoftware.
Credit:
FromSoftware/Nintendo
The Duskbloods, a Switch 2 exclusive from FromSoftware.
Credit:
FromSoftware/Nintendo
FromSoftware also offered an extended preview of a new vampire-themed, Bloodborne-inspired action RPG game called The Duskbloods. The Switch 2 exclusive, planned for 2026, showed off a wide range of metaphyiscal imagery and both melee and gun-based combat, including a character that flies around in a metal suit with a jetpack.
GameCube games available exclusively to Switch 2 owners with Nintendo Online subscriptions.
Credit:
Nintendo
GameCube games available exclusively to Switch 2 owners with Nintendo Online subscriptions.
Credit:
Nintendo
Nintendo Switch Online memberships will carry over to Switch
20 Comments
minimaxir
The real takeaway is $80 MSRP games, and I’m surprised it was Nintendo that crossed that particular Rubicon.
adamrezich
I sure hope those “microSD Express” cards end up being relatively inexpensive… I really appreciated being able to buy cheap, high-capacity microSD cards for the 3DS and Switch when I bought each console such that I then basically never had to worry about storage ever again.
napolux
Love it, but usual Nintendo prices. I'll wait a bit (or an improved version)
alabastervlog
Mmm. All I wanted was a Switch with bumped specs and a lot more durability. They could have come up with something out of left field that I cared about, like they often do, but cameras and a dedicated chat button? Things I've been intentionally avoiding or being annoyed by on other consoles since either thing has existed?
I hope there's a way to disable the chat button entirely, so I'm not accidentally triggering a function that I never want to use and my kids certainly won't be using, like the damned "share" button on the PS5. Talk about an anti-feature.
If the camera were built-in, I'd pay a little extra for a version without that and without the chat button. This is the opposite of an upgrade, for this shopper. At least I can just not-buy the camera.
The spec bump looks mediocre, if durability's not a lot better I'll just be replacing my half-broken switch with a used model of same. I'd been assuming this'd be my first-ever near-launch console purchase, I'm usually like 2-3 years behind on these things, but IDK, this is underwhelming. If there's also a more-than-tiny price hike, I'll be delaying.
[EDIT] Oh snap, pricing's on there? I'd read elsewhere they'd delayed announcing that. Shiiiiit, at that price maybe we'll get a family Steam Deck and put pirated versions of all the Switch games we already own (… and all the games we have on prior consoles) on there, instead. I can wait for used or discounted console prices to play the new Zelda or whatever, we still have hardly touched half the games we have on the current Switch. How's the Deck with multiple Switch Pro controller support? Anyone tried to use it as an actual multiplayer-friendly TV-attached console?
Y_Y
> Nintendo will send out invitations for "priority" purchasing of the Switch 2, direct from the company, starting on May 8. Those who have purchased a Switch Online membership as of April 2, have had it for a minimum of 12 months, have opted to share gameplay data, and have logged at least 50 hours get priority. There will be a 72-hour window in which to use priority purchasing invitations.
So they're trying to circumvent retailers, while "rewarding" people for allowing telemetry and having a long running credit card subscription, by offering them a time-limited fomo pre-release.
I think I won tech-MBA bingo, why do I still feel so empty inside?
gekoxyz
449 usd is pretty disappointing. A steam deck is pretty much the same price but is repairable and i don't have to pay for an online subscription. And even the steam deck doesn't appeal to me much since i like FPS games, which are better if played from a proper PC. At this point i'm sticking with my Nintendo 3DS for gaming away from home.
manishsharan
Joy Con Drift. Can they please solve for that ?
Chat Button ? Camera ? are they intentionally driving away parents who buy Switch for their kids ?
ChocolateGod
Doesn't microSD Express rely on DMA over a PCI-e lane?
Curious if that could become a future attack vector to get homebrew running.
xandrius
I'm curious if the switch 1 would back support mouse mode if one were to use the new joypads on the old models. Probably not but maybe in the homebrew ones?
It seems pretty much a software update as one can already connect any BT device to a patched switch.
haunter
Interestingly Japan will have 2 versions, a japanese language only (+region locked to japan accounts) and a global one. Mostly because of the weak yen + the insane amount of scalping that happened previously.
Switch 2 JP Only: 49,980 Yen (~333 USD)
Switch 2 Global: 69,980 Yen (~466 USD)
https://www.nintendo.com/jp/hardware/switch2/lineup/index.ht…
And the JP only version's launch price is still almost double of the Switch 1's (30,000 Yen)
But I'm actually glad that they look after the local market!
nickvec
Will they have fixed joycon drift though?
jccalhoun
I'm not super fan of first party Nintendo so this doesn't tempt me much over getting a steamos handheld or similar.
dcmatt
No new Zelda, no new Mario. I don't know what Nintendo is doing but I am not a hyped up for the Switch 2 as I thought I'd be.
jpalawaga
Despite all of the negative/critical takes, I think the switch 2 looks great. The hardware improvements look nice. The top usb-port is a great addition with the kickstand, so you can actually charge while you play (this was a bust with switch 1).
I think the camera is also good. I actually really look forward to playing mario games with my nieces. And for those who don't want it, it's no extra cost.
120fps and 1080p w/ upscaling to 4k look good but ambitious. I wonder how much AI is used. The fans inside the dock are a clever way to maintain performance.
Also, I have a lot of friends who casually stream games in discord, so the chat/sharing functionality seems aptly timed.
galleywest200
One interesting thing is that they seem to have multiple types of physical cards. I am assuming they will have normal physical games but they also have these "key cards" [1] which I assume will be for MASSIVE games or games from really small teams who are short on cash. Since the digital purchase is tied to a physical game I assume you can resell/buy these used as well.
[1] https://en-americas-support.nintendo.com/app/answers/detail/…
ihuman
Dupe: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=43556124
gradientsrneat
A Kirby Air Ride successor?
Kirby Air Ride was one of the best and most unique Gamecube games. A sequel to do the original justice would be a big deal.
Sadly, Nintendo has made a reputation for itself as a copyright troll, most notoriously their legal takedowns of YouTube lets plays. As a result, I have boycotted Nintendo for over ten years now. While the new releases are tempting, Nintendo's recent legal actions against Palworld sour that proposition. Although I admittedly only can have so much respect for a Windows-only game with anti-cheat.
lenerdenator
> mouse for Metroid Prime 4
I would do horrible, horrible things to get keyboard + mouse controls for Metroid Prime 3: Corruption on Wii.
pupppet
As an owner of a bucket of overpriced Joy-Cons I've long since stopped bothering shipping to Nintendo to get fixed, they should have made it clear they addressed the drift issue, even if they had to do it subtly.
robotnikman
This is the first consumer device I know of to use MicroSD Express. I hope this begins a trend with other devices using it, I would love to see more laptops, phones, or the Steam deck support these cards in the future