Nintendo Switch 2 Report Says the System Will be Easier to Find Than PS5

When PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S launched in fall 2020, they were notoriously difficult to come by thanks to the global chip shortage. That led to the systems being sold on the secondary market for hundreds of dollars more than their asking price. Thankfully, it seems that Nintendo’s next console could be somewhat easier to come by. According to reporting from Bloomberg’s Takashi Mochizuki, Nintendo will have more than 10 million consoles available within the first fiscal year. A specific release date for the new system has not been announced, but it’s expected to arrive sometime in the second half of 2024. 

A Tweet from Mochizuki about the console’s availability can be found embedded below. 

Nintendo Switch launched in March 2017, and has been a massive success since. The console has sold more than 130 million units in less than seven years, thanks in large part to exclusive games like Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and Animal Crossing: New Horizons. It remains to be seen whether Nintendo’s next console will find similar success, or if it will be backwards compatible with the current system’s library. Nintendo has made no official announcement about the system just yet, and it’s been tentatively referred to as “Nintendo Switch 2” by the media. 

When Will Switch 2 Get Announced?

If Nintendo’s next system really is going to be released this year, we could see an announcement as early as February. Historically, Nintendo Direct presentations have been held during that month, outlining the company’s plans for the first half of that year. It’s possible Nintendo could still wait to announce a new system for a few more months, but the lead time would give retailers and fans time to prepare. 

Nintendo has teased that there will be a shorter window between the system’s announcement and release than we saw with Switch. The company first mentioned a successor to the Wii U in 2015 during an announcement about mobile game plans. In an investor Q&A last year, Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa said it was important at the time that the company “let people know that Nintendo would be continuing to focus on the dedicated video game platform business as our core business.” Since there’s a lot less concern these days about Nintendo leaving the hardware business than there was back then, Furukawa sees that example as a “special case.” 

Nintendo Switch 2 Games

We don’t know what games will be released for Nintendo’s next console, but we can probably expect to see the company’s biggest franchises within the first few years. There have even been hints that Bandai Namco is hiring for the next game in the Super Smash Bros. series, though it’s impossible to say how far along that might be. 

Do you plan on buying Nintendo’s next console? When do you think the company’s next system will be released? Share your thoughts with me directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp or on Instagram at @Dachampgaming!