Gamers got a tantalizing first look at Nintendo’s next video game console, as the Japanese company released a brief trailer on Thursday morning.
The video offered very few new details about the successor to the Switch, its wildly popular portable-and-home hybrid machine that launched eight years ago, but it largely confirmed many of the rumours that had leaked through gaming sources over the last few months.
The Switch 2 is set to release in 2025, though Nintendo has yet to reveal a specific date or pricing information. Short clips of what appeared to be a new Mario Kart game played during part of the video. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, which launched early into the original Switch’s life cycle, has sold over 64 million copies to date.
The video promised more information in a Nintendo Direct video coming on April 2. The public will get their first look at Nintendo Switch 2 experience events held around the world running from April to June — though they’ll have to register on Nintendo’s website for tickets.
The sole Canadian stop on the tour announced so far will be in Toronto, from April 25 to 27.
WATCH | Nintendo Switch 2 reveal trailer:
The Switch 2 looks mostly identical to its predecessor, albeit slightly larger, with a mostly black finish. The detachable joy-con controllers appear to snap onto the main tablet component, and a new small button appears on the right-side controller.
Gaming rumours have suggested the connectors are magnetic, compared to the original Switch’s slide-on mechanisms. One clip showed an animation of the joy-cons gliding on its edge, seemingly hinting at other rumours that a new feature would allow gamers to handle and use them like a computer mouse.
Owners of the original Switch — including kids and adults alike who got one over the holiday season — should breathe easy knowing their library of games won’t be rendered entirely obsolete, as Nintendo clarified that most games will be playable on the Switch 2, either as digital downloads or via the physical retail cards.
Following up on the Switch’s success?
The Switch has sold more than 146 million units worldwide since its launch in 2017, becoming the second-best-selling video game console in history, second only to Sony’s PlayStation 2, at over 160 million units sold.
One analyst told Bloomberg that Nintendo has prepared a supply chain to enable it to sell 20 million Switch 2 units in its first year. The original Switch sold about 15 million units in its first year.
Games industry watchers have been anticipating the new device for well over a year, as eight years can be a long time for a console life cycle — and an eternity compared to other consumer tech like phones and personal computers, which release new and more powerful products annually.
Critics have specifically pointed to the Switch’s aging hardware in comparing it to its direct competitors in Microsoft’s Xbox Series X and Series S, and Sony’s PlayStation 5.
High-powered portable PC machines like Valve’s Steam Deck, while aimed more at enthusiast gamers than a mainstream audience, have also entered the non-smartphone portable gaming space that Nintendo had dominated without notable competition for several years.
