After months of fan speculation and an outpouring of alleged leaks, we got to gaze upon the actual Switch 2. Nintendo announced the new gaming console with a short YouTube video showcasing the new hardware, which includes magnetic Joy-Con controllers, a bigger screen, and backwards compatibility with original Switch games. Whether it gives fans their first glimpse of Mario Kart 9 or another launch exclusive at the same time remains to be seen.
The reveal day lines up with leaks earlier this week indicating that Nintendo was preparing to show off the Switch 2 for real after somehow going all of 2024 without so much as a peep about its upcoming hardware, not even revealing the new device’s name. The trailer shows off a bigger but even sleeker upgrade to the 2017 hardware that’s sold over 150 million units. The new Joy-Con are black instead of red and blue, and the right one has a new mysterious c-button. They attach to the screen—which is larger with a smaller bezel—with magnets. But Nintendo still hasn’t gone into detail on the official specs or what the hardware will be capable of. It looks cool though:
The company also reiterated that the Switch 2 will play Switch games, but with a major caveat. “Certain Nintendo Switch games may not be supported on or fully compatible with Nintendo Switch 2,” a disclaimer at the end of the trailer reads. It’s unclear which games will be included in that carve out, but more information is promised on Nintendo’s website at a later date.
Nintendo’s official Switch 2 reveal comes after weeks of alleged leaks purporting to show everything about the new console from its motherboard to its new magnetic Joy-Con connectors. The sum total of the rumors amounted to the new device being an upgraded Switch with a bigger screen and a more powerful processor but otherwise largely the same hybrid gaming tablet everyone’s come to love since the original launched back in 2017. And they basically all turned out to be right.
Whether the Switch 2 can pull off a similar year-one coup will depend mostly on what first-party exclusives the system launches with. The one-two punch of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey was a powerful recipe for success with the original hardware. Can the Switch 2 muster a similarly impressive lineup? Mario Kart 9, which certainly looks like what’s been revealed in the Switch 2 preview trailer, is certainly a great start.
One thing that might help is a steady drumbeat of third-party ports from Xbox, Ubisoft, and others. We’ll no doubt find out in the days and months ahead as the company announces the rest of the Switch 2’s official launch lineup.
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