Everything we know about Switch 2, Nintendo’s next-gen console

After many months, if not years, of leaks and speculation, it’s finally official: Nintendo has announced its next console, and it’s called Nintendo Switch 2. As the name implies, it’s a very similar design to the Switch — a hybrid handheld console with detachable controllers that can be connected to a TV via a dock. While it may seem an obvious move, this iterative handheld is an unusual strategy for Nintendo, which has often chosen to innovate with its new hardware, finding new control systems and new forms of play. But, with 146 million units sold after nearly eight years on the market, the Switch is Nintendo’s second most successful system ever (after the DS), and the third-best-selling console of all time. So perhaps it’s not surprising that Nintendo decided, for once, that its previous console design wasn’t broken and didn’t need fixing. Also, Nintendo Switch 2 launches into a changed market where players have come to expect that they will be able to carry their game libraries forward from one machine to another, which precluded a radical change. However, after Nintendo’s quite minimal announcement video, many questions remain. Nintendo focused on the new hardware and only showed one new game, a new Mario Kart. It also refrained from announcing a firm release date or price for the Switch 2. And not all of the rumored features of the new system were addressed by Nintendo’s video. Here’s everything we know — and everything we think we know — about Nintendo’s next console. What is the latest Switch 2 news? A series of patents first filed by Nintendo in 2023, but published on Feb. 6, appear to confirm that the Switch 2’s Joy-Con controllers can be used like a mouse and attach magnetically. Both features have been rumored for a while; Nintendo’s first-look trailer for the console did not quite confirm these rumors, but heavily suggested their accuracy through animation that showed the Joy-Cons snapping onto the console body and scooting around on a surface like, well, mice. One of the patents refers directly to “mouse operation” of a game controller, with diagrams that show a controller (looking almost exactly like a Switch 2 Joy-Con) being held on its side and used like a mouse. The other patents describe buttons and systems that can be used to attach and detach game controllers to and from a console using magnets. We’ll have to wait until April for official details — but the evidence for both features has now reached undeniable levels. [Media: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itpcsQQvgAQ] What is Switch 2’s release date? In its announcement video, Nintendo confirmed it would release the Switch 2 in 2025, but refrained from giving a more precise release date than that. At this stage, all we know for sure is that we’ll be playing Switch 2 before the year is up. However, there have been strong indications that the wait won’t be too long. Last year, Nikkei reported that Nintendo was targeting March 2025 in an effort to avoid hardware shortages and ensure a strong lineup of games — but noted that a slip beyond March was possible. The former is clearly not happening, but a launch within the subsequent spring or summer months seems plausible. Nintendo unveiled the Switch in October 2016, debuted it to press and players in January 2017, and released it in March 2017. If the company follows the same timeline this time around — which, given the early April timing of the Switch 2 Nintendo Direct and the Switch 2 Experience events rolling out all spring long, it seems to be — we’re likely looking at a June 2025 release. What is Switch 2’s price? Aside from the games lineup, this is the biggest unanswered question we have about the Switch 2. Nintendo revealed nothing about pricing in its announcement video. But the likelihood is that it will be more expensive than the Switch. The Switch launched at $299 in 2017, and its official sticker price hasn’t dropped a single cent since. This is in line with the changing trends in pricing. Due to chip shortages, inflation, and the slowing pace of advances in tech, this generation of consoles has not come down in price the way previous generations did. In this environment, Nintendo will have to figure out how to package more advanced tech while keeping the price reasonable. The Switch 2 is unlikely to be priced any lower than $349, the current cost of an OLED Switch model. $399 seems like a safe bet — the same price as the base Steam Deck. Any more than this and Nintendo will face uncomfortable comparisons to the new wave of PC handhelds (a Steam Deck OLED is $549; an Asus ROG Ally is $499) and risk pricing itself out of its traditional family market. There is also the question of whether the tariffs imposed by the U.S. on China in early February could impact the price of the Switch 2. On this score, it seems we might be in luck. Nintendo began manufacturing the Switch in Vietnam during the last Trump administration trade war with China, in 2019, and has plans to ramp up production at a new factory there. Nintendo could avoid the tariffs by using its Vietnamese production facilities to supply Switch 2 units to the U.S. What games will Switch 2 have? Nintendo chose not to confirm any games alongside the new console in its announcement video, although it did show a glimpse of what appears to be a new Mario Kart. So we’re still officially in the dark on the Switch 2’s launch titles and its larger lineup. However, through a combination of leaks and informed speculation, we can make some good guesses. Despite extensive leaks about the console itself, Nintendo has somehow managed to avoid any of its own games leaking. But knowing what we do about internal development at Nintendo, we can make a few informed guesses: * Mario Kart 9: This may not be what it’s called, but Nintendo showed a glimpse of what appears to be a new Mario Kart in the video. It looks familiar, but the setting shown is new to the series — and perhaps looks like an open world? Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is the Switch’s best-selling game, with an astonishing 64 million copies sold, so a new Mario Kart will be the perfect way to kick the Switch 2 era off with a bang. * A new 3D Super Mario game: There hasn’t been an entry in this series since 2017’s Super Mario Odyssey, so the time seems ripe for a follow-up in the Switch 2’s launch year. * Metroid Prime 4: Beyond: One of Nintendo’s final major in-house productions for the Switch, slated for a 2025 release, looks like a perfect candidate for a cross-generation release, like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which launched on Wii U as well as Switch. * Pokémon Legends: Z-A: The latest Pokémon title also looks like a likely cross-gen title. In addition, a number of third-party titles have been rumored by leaker Nate the Hate and other sources. These are all recent hits on other platforms, or already-announced multiplatform titles, so while they’re all unconfirmed, it wouldn’t be surprising if they came to Switch 2 early in its life. * Final Fantasy 7 Remake and Rebirth * Assassin’s Creed Mirage and Shadows * Metal Gear Solid Delta * Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 * Halo: The Master Chief Collection * Red Dead Redemption 2 Will Switch 2 be backward-compatible? Yes, the Switch 2 will be backward-compatible! Before it even officially announced the Switch 2, Nintendo confirmed that Switch software “will also be playable on the successor to Nintendo Switch.” It added that Nintendo Switch Online — the online multiplayer service that also includes a large catalog of retro games — will be available on the Switch 2, too. With many users hoping — or outright expecting — to carry forward their game libraries to Nintendo’s next console, as has become the norm with the latest generations of Xbox and PlayStation consoles, the news comes as a big relief. In the video, Nintendo underlined that the Switch 2 will play its own exclusive games and both physical and digital Nintendo Switch games, but it did warn that “certain Nintendo Switch games may not be supported on or fully compatible with Nintendo Switch 2.” It said it would share details on its website at a later date. While Nintendo has yet to specify exactly how backward compatibility will work, it did say that Nintendo Accounts will carry over to the new console, and that players would have access to Nintendo Switch software they currently own. Nintendo did not mention hardware backward compatibility. However, earlier reports, sourced from peripheral manufacturers, suggest that the Switch 2 will be backward-compatible with some Switch accessories, including the Pro Controller and Joy-Cons. What new features does Switch 2 have? As previously reported and now confirmed by Nintendo’s video, the Switch 2 features detachable Joy-Con controllers like the Switch. Reports and patents say that the Joy-Cons attach magnetically; the video didn’t exactly confirm this, but it did suggest it. It has been reported that the Joy-Cons also have more reliable Hall-effect sticks, but this isn’t confirmed by the video. There’s a new square button on the right Joy-Con, but we don’t know the use of this yet. The Joy-Cons also feature a small optical sensor on their inner edge. A Nintendo patent appears to confirm this will allow for mouse-like controls, and the video did seem to suggest this with a sequence showing the Joy-Cons sliding around on their side in additional foot-like attachments. The console features a second USB-C port on its top, like the one on its lower edge for charging and connecting to its dock. This will allow it to be charged while it’s being used in tabletop mode, propped up on its new, U-shaped stand. But it could potentially be used to connect new accessories, like a camera or even a second screen. Switch 2 is bigger than its predecessor; Nintendo didn’t give dimensions, but an 8-inch screen has been reported, and that’s consistent with the video. (The original Switch’s screen is 6.2 inches and the Switch OLED model’s is 7 inches.) How powerful will Switch 2 be? What are its tech specs? Nintendo has yet to announce any tech specs for the Switch 2. Based on reporting and leaks, it looks to be a capable device — somewhere between a “last-gen” PlayStation 4 or Xbox One and the current Xbox Series S. The system’s graphics processing unit is reportedly paired with custom, AI-powered Nvidia upscaling that should bring it surprisingly close to the performance of current-gen consoles like PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. In short, it should be able to run many current-generation AAA games if they are carefully ported over. Leaks seen by The Verge and shared online suggest that the Switch 2 may be more powerful when docked. The dock appears to have fan vents and a higher power rating than the undocked console, while the graphics processor can allegedly run at nearly twice the clock speed when docked. In combination with the upscaler, this might make 4K visuals when hooked up to a TV possible. According to Eurogamer’s and VGC’s reporting on the behind-closed-doors Gamescom demos in August 2024, Nintendo showed hardware targeting the specs of the console running The Matrix Awakens’ Unreal Engine 5 tech demo with ray tracing enabled and “visuals comparable to Sony’s and Microsoft’s current-gen consoles.” Reporting by Reuters and Digital Foundry suggests the console will use a custom Nvidia chip that will be capable of both ray tracing and DLSS. Customs and shipping data analyzed by fans seems to indicate that the Switch 2 will feature considerable upgrades in both RAM (from 4 GB to 12 GB) and storage (from 32 GB to 256 GB). The Switch 2 will feature one tech downgrade, however: Reportedly, the console will feature an LCD screen, unlike the OLED screen seen in the current top-of-the-range Switch model, as a cost-cutting measure. Can you pre-order Switch 2? No, you can’t pre-order the Switch 2 yet! But you may well be able to in April. Pre-orders for the original Switch opened when Nintendo made a full presentation of the console and its games to the press and public in January 2017 — just two months before launch. If it’s following the same playbook, pre-orders may open alongside the Nintendo Direct on April 2. When will Nintendo reveal more about Switch 2? Nintendo has scheduled a Nintendo Direct all about the Switch 2 for April 2. This is when we’ll probably learn everything we want to know about the machine: launch games, price, release date, and more about its features. Nintendo will also hold Nintendo Switch 2 Experience events around the world throughout April, where members of the public will be able to go hands-on with the machine. These events will take place cities around North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. Polygon will continue to update this story as new details develop.