Summary
- The recently surfaced images supposedly revealing the Switch 2 and its dock may have been real.
- While the backgrounds featured in the photos were seemingly AI-generated, the leaked devices get a lot of details right, like incorporating legitimate-looking product certificates and depicting an unusual screw type that Nintendo has been known to favor.
- Given the growing influx of Switch 2 leaks, the still-unannounced device has likely already entered mass production.
The recent Nintendo Switch 2 leaks may have been real, according to one meticulous analysis pouring over their every detail. Shared by an eagle-eyed fan, the newly surfaced examination bolsters confidence in a mysterious figure who has been leaking supposed images of Nintendo‘s next console in recent weeks.
The source in question is Reddit user NextHandheld, who has been relaying alleged Switch 2 details since mid-December 2024. One of the most head-turning tidbits they have shared to date arrived in the form of several real-life images said to depict both the upcoming console and its dock. But some fans were skeptical about these photos, pointing to some of their peculiarities as reasons to suspect that they have been AI-generated.
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Following up on this development, Reddit user RealDoodleDoop has recently shared a comprehensive analysis of these images, concluding that NextHandheld’s Switch 2 leaks were likely real. While the eagle-eyed fan did find evidence of image manipulation, like the reflections on the console’s body not matching the color of its surroundings, they believe NextHandheld primarily altered the background in the images, plausibly by having some kind of generative AI draw a generic, out-of-focus workshop. This was presumably done in a bid to hide the real environment where the console was photographed, thus protecting the source’s identity.
NextHandheld’s Leaked Switch 2 Images Get a Lot of Details Right
It’s plausible even the hand seen holding the device in the images was AI-generated, not least because one of the photos depicts it as wearing a watch over a sleeve—a peculiar fashion statement if there ever was one. Environmental weirdness aside, RealDoodleDoop found that the images get a lot of small details right, like showing a handheld and a dock that incorporate tri-wing screws, a fairly exotic bolt that’s rarely seen in mass-produced devices but has been used across numerous generations of Nintendo consoles, including the Switch and Wii U.
The recently leaked Switch 2 console measurements also appear to roughly match up with the device seen in NextHandheld’s images, at least as far as RealDoodleDoop was able to approximate in Photoshop. Moreover, although the alleged real-life image of the dock is fairly blurry, it seems to feature all the regulatory certificate labels one would expect to see on a piece of modern-day consumer electronics.
Nintendo has until March 31 to officially unveil its next console within the time frame it previously committed to. Given the growing abundance of Switch 2 leaks, which now appear to have reached the stage of real-life images of the console being shared, it’s likely that the device is already in mass production. As such, a Q2 2024 launch isn’t completely off the cards, though that’s also likely the earliest that the Switch 2 will plausibly hit the store shelves.
Nintendo
Nintendo is a Japanese video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. While producing highly popular hardware consoles like the Switch, the company is known for its many first party video game franchises like Super Mario, The Legend of Zelda, Fire Emblem, Pokemon, and many more.