Summary
Call it a marketing stunt, but the latest Switch 2 leak has really taken the wind out of Nintendo’s Switch 2 sails. The announcement of a follow-up to one of the most successful consoles ever now feels like a formality, rather than a reason to be excited.
The Switch 2 Story Thus Far
On July 03, 2025, President of Nintendo Shuntaro Furukawa stated that the company would announce theNintendo Switch 2by March 31st, 2025. For all we knew, that 10-month window could’ve been cover for an imminent announcement, or it could have signaled an agonizing wait until the very last minute. Eight months into this wait, the agony is real. But it’s not because of impatience.
There have been characteristically small drips of information by the Big N, such as how theSwitch 2 would be backward compatible, and theNintendo Switch Online library of game emulatorswould transfer over. This was all good news, mainly shared so that customers didn’t feel tepid buying new 2024 games or subscribing to the company’s online service. It definitely instilled confidence in patient fans, even if it wasn’t the console announcement they wanted.
While Switch 2 leaks have been ongoing for years, details have become increasingly specific over the last few months. We’ve seen everything from the new Joy-Con controllers tothe motherboard, and now gaming peripheral manufacturer Genkidropped a detailed render of the consolethat gives us a detailed look at almost everything else. Frankly, we probably know more about the Switch 2 right now than we’ll know from Nintendo when that official announcement finally comes.
So, it’s not impatience that’s the problem. I am frustrated.
The Switch Reveal Was Exciting Because We Knew Nothing
Part of my frustration comes from fond memories of the “NX” reveal (which is what the Switch was called during production). Nintendo had everything to prove after the dismal financial failure of the Wii U. Emotions were high, it was do-or-die.
And then, on October 19th, 2016, Nintendo posted aninfamously creepy picture of someone in a Mario costume peeking from behind a shower curtain. Raw confusion erupted, with the words “NX reveal?” on everyone’s lips. Nintendo knew what they were doing. They were in control of the message. And the next day, we received the trailer that changed the landscape of video games.
Across 3 minutes and 30 seconds, Nintendo brilliantly showcased every way its new handheld-console hybrid could work. It was mind-bending to see all the Switch’s modular elements come apart and together again in different configurations. We were shown its power as a solo partner, a social centerpiece, and even an esports powerhouse (maybe that was a slight overstep, but it was cool anyway).
3DMarioplatformers were back.Splatoonwas back.Skyrimon a Nintendo console? That wild open worldZeldagame we had yet to play butneededto? Nintendo wassoback. And it felt like this because this tsunami of information appeared where before there was nothing.
What I just described is one of the monumental moments in game history. The Switch 2 was never going to be that. But all these years later, we would have remembered those feelings if we saw the Switch 2 through similarly fresh eyes. That’s not going to happen now.
Thus comes the other part of my frustration: Nintendo isn’t dumb.
It has seen the dripping tap of leaks slowly turn into a flood. It obviously knows which of these were real, which weren’t, and could see the trends heading in the former’s direction. It knew development units were in the wild. It knew that shows like CES were on the immediate horizon where Nintendo accessory manufacturers like Genki would be in attendance and would want to draw attention among a tough crowd.
How better to do that than show the console? It worked,I alone have written two articles about this.
The likelihood was higher than not that the public was going to see the Switch 2 before it could be properly unveiled. These glimpses—real or fake—through warehouse and factory photos have become the impression the public was going to have of the console for weeks and months. That has a real long-term impact, and the viral effect of people seeing the Switch 2 in the wild won’t have the same power to win them back; it’s now commonplace technology.
I guess Nintendo’s lucky that Genki put together such a polished mock-up presentation (even though thehands-on model on the CES show floor was far more crude). But I watched that mock-up with disappointment that my first proper glimpse of the console was through an ad for a charging dock and a case with interchangeable grips, not as part of a sizzle reel withMarioand pals
Because Nintendo decidedly didn’t preempt any of this, that impactful first glimpse moment isn’t going to happen. There’s a non-zero possibility that the Switch 2 will feel like old news to people by the time Nintendo unveils it.
I’m sure the Switch 2 will do well, but there’s now more legwork for Nintendo to do to make it an essential purchase. I don’t think we’re on for another Wii U-style announcement, but without the insane hype moment, many casual Switch owners may not even hear about it. I hope I’m wrong, but it feels like Nintendo has done everything in its power not to set the successor up for the success it deserves.
It’s All About the Games Now
Nintendo is going to need a hefty dose ofSuper Mario Odysseymoments during the Switch 2’s reveal to make up this lost ground. A shock-to-the-system level of new game announcements that make this thing a must-buy for a variety of audiences. The mystique around the console is long gone, but at least the games haven’t leaked (yet.)
These need to be either exclusives orports that were “impossible” on the aged Switch. Cross-generation releases dampened the excitement around the PlayStation 5 for years, so while there’s some room for it with the Switch 2, the heavy hitters need to be exclusives that feel like they could only exist on the new hardware.
The leaks won’t matter when we’re playingSuper Mario The Odyssey: HomerorF-Zero: Actual Light SpeedorMario Kart 9 Which Will Exist Instead of F-ZeroorZelda in SpaceorSplatoon 99(or, for my own vanity,Xenoblade Chronicles 4). Heck, even do the unprecedented andput Game Pass on this suckerday 1 for a launch lineup nobody can scoff at.
I’m being a bit silly here, but the point is that exciting games we don’t expect or announcements that appeal to frothing fan bases are what the Switch 2 needs to break brains in the way Nintendo wants it to. Anecdotally, most people in my life are currently happy to stick with the Switch they already have.
Nintendo needs to change that and, even with the leaks, games can do that.
Stay tuned sometime in the next three months for a feature in which I (probably) gush over the Switch 2 announcement!
