Nintendo Switch 2 has been revealed, here’s everything we know so far

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As the world changes, so do the console generations. The Nintendo Switch is over seven years old, so it should be updated. Nintendo Switch 2 rumors have been swirling, but now we have some signs of life. The company officially revealed the sequel to its most successful home console ever in a short trailer on January 16.

The Switch 2 looks and functions very much like the original system, albeit with a larger display, magnetic Joy-Cons and a sleeker design. The company also confirmed that the upcoming console will be backwards compatible with Switch games.

While the reveal confirmed some rumors and had a few interesting details for those who have been paying close attention, Nintendo is still keeping its cards very close to its chest. We’ll have to wait until the special Nintendo Direct on April 2 to find out all the cool information. Annoyingly, that day is Wednesday and not two days.

Rumors had strongly suggested that Nintendo would pull back the curtain on the Switch 2 on January 16, and it was.

The company has not changed the core form factor. It’s a portable console with detachable Joy-Cons. The Switch 2 can be docked for big-screen gaming. There are some big differences from the original console, though.

The most obvious is that the next generation Joy-Cons will no longer slide into place mechanically. Instead, they will attach to the main unit magnetically. There is a small connector that can be used to charge the controllers and perhaps remove the need to connect them via Bluetooth. It’s not clear yet whether the Joy-Cons from the original system will be compatible with the Switch 2.

Another big (and very welcome) change is the addition of a second USB-C port on the top of the device. That should make it much easier to connect accessories while the Switch 2 is docked. It’s nice to see that Nintendo kept the headphone jack. Let’s just hope Bluetooth headphone support is live from the jump this time around and Nintendo isn’t leaving everyone waiting four years in that aspect.

The kickstand gets an upgrade as well. Like the Switch OLED, it spans the length of the console. But, according to the trailer, this one looks to be fully adjustable, so you can adjust the viewing angle to the one that works for you.

However, there are still many unknowns about the upcoming console. We still don’t really know the details, or what kind of display we’re using. And we don’t know anything about battery life, UI or launch games. We’ll likely learn more on April 2.

2025. That’s all we know for sure at the moment.

It’s unlikely that Nintendo will release a console before the dedicated Direct on April 2, and not only because that’s the beginning of Nintendo’s next fiscal year. However, accessory manufacturer Genki, which has been the main source of leaks in recent months, says the console will be released in April.

Either way, we should learn the release date during the April 2 Direct if we haven’t already by then.

Nintendo is planning a worldwide exhibition to allow gamers to meet the console. The events begin in New York and Paris on April 3-6, with others taking place over the next two months. That lends credence to some suggestions that Nintendo will release the Switch 2 in June.

Ticket registration for the Switch 2 Experience events in the US (New York, Los Angeles and Paris) begins on January 17 at 3PM ET and will remain open until January 26. A Nintendo account is required to register. Nintendo will randomly select the recipients of the free tickets.

The full list of Nintendo Switch 2 Experience events is as follows:

North America:

  • New York, April 4-6, 2025

  • Los Angeles, April 11-13, 2025

  • Dallas, April 25-27, 2025

  • Toronto, April 25-27, 2025

Europe:

  • Paris, April 4-6, 2025

  • London, April 11-13, 2025

  • Milan, April 25-27, 2025

  • Berlin, April 25-27, 2025

  • Madrid, May 9-11, 2025

  • Amsterdam, May 9-11, 2025

Oceania:

In Asia:

  • Tokyo (Makuhari), April 26-27, 2025

  • Seoul, May 31-June 1, 2025

  • Hong Kong, TBA

  • Taipei, TBA

Everything we’ve seen and seen so far about this console has been, well, traditional. It looks like the first switch, but better. That’s amazing, but will there be that unexpected Nintendo magic? It’s possible! There are two confusing additions that people can make to their skin or hair.

Keen eyes will have noticed a new button at the bottom of the right Joy-Con. It is not clear what it does. Can it start a voice chat during gameplay? Can it measure controls? Can it create a room-sized Bowser hologram in your living room? We will have to wait and see.

Now onto the updated Joy-Cons. There appears to be a new sensor on the connector side of each controller. It looks exactly like an optical sensor, which is what a computer mouse uses. This led to speculation that players would be able to flip the Joy-Con around and use it as a mouse. Important: the trailer shows the Joy-Cons moving on a flat surface, with the connector facing down and looking suspiciously like a mouse.

But why would anyone want this? I can think of three names. New Mario Paint.

The company confirmed in November 2024 that the Nintendo Switch 2 will be backwards compatible. It will also include access to Nintendo Online, so users will be able to play all those old retro titles.

In the first Nintendo Switch 2 announcement, Nintendo reiterated that digital Switch games will work on the new system. However, it noted that “some Nintendo Switch games may not be supported or fully compatible with Nintendo Switch 2.” More details about which games those are will be revealed later.

Rumors about the specs are all over the place, so it’s hard to refute them. We know one thing for sure: It will be more powerful than the old Switch hardware, which was already old in 2017. One analyst allegedly received the specified sheet Korean United Daily News said Switchch 2 will boast an 8-core Cortex-A78AE processor, 8GB of RAM, and 64GB of internal EMMC storage. This is tracking me, as these indicators are almost as weak in 2024 as the original Change was in 2017. However, other reports indicate that the console will feature 12GB of RAM.

Another source suggests that eight CPUs will be packed inside the NVIDIA-produced Tegra239 SoC (system on a chip). Considering the current Switch runs on an NVIDIA chip, that makes a lot of sense. The CPU will be more powerful, but it’s the Switch 2’s new GPU that will be the biggest difference. It’s all-but-confirmed that the Switch 2 will support DLSS, “deep learning supersampling” of NVIDIA’s technology, which will allow the console to render games with low resolution internally while outputting a high-resolution image. (Fun fact: We actually wrote about how perfect DLSS was for the Nintendo Switch 2 when the technology was announced alongside the RTX 20 series back in 2018.)

There are still questions about the Switch 2 and DLSS: Will the system support new DLSS features like frame generation? Will existing games be automatically optimized with NVIDIA’s algorithm? Regardless of how it’s done exactly, the DLSS upgrade will be a huge leap forward from the unconventional techniques available to Nintendo Switch developers.

Regarding the show, there are many conflicting rumors. Early reports from solid sources suggested that the Switch 2 will have an 8-inch LCD display. The Switch 2’s display certainly looks bigger than that of the original Switch in a side-by-side comparison in the revealed trailer.

Some analysts have suggested that this will be an OLED screen, while others say that it will be a Mini-LED display. A Mini-LED display is basically an LCD display with a backlight made of mini-LEDs (amazing!) rather than edge lighting. This allows for local dimming, making blacks very dark. I’m hedging my bets here. I think it will be standard LCD, to keep costs down, with an OLED or Mini-LED model coming later down the line. However, Mini-LED screens are slightly cheaper than OLED displays, so that’s a possibility at launch.

As for resolution, recent reports suggest that the console will output portable 1080p and 4K when docked. That’s much better than the OG Switch. At the moment, it is unclear whether the Switch 2 will bring performance or visual improvements to the original Switch games.

We don’t have too much information about the price but we have a lot of history to work with. The original Nintendo Switch was launched for $300, which is almost the “magic number” when it comes to Nintendo console releases in recent years. The Wii U also came in at $300.

However, there are many rumors circulating that Nintendo may raise the price of the Switch 2. Many outlets have reported that it will be $400, or possibly more. However, the same analysts who said that the console will be $ 400 were also sure that it will come out in late 2024 and, that did not happen.

Going back in history, there are precedents for price increases. The GameCube was $200 and the Wii was $250. The Wii U and Switch went up to $300 and, well, the numbers tend to go up. The $400 price tag would make it almost as expensive as the PS5 and Xbox Series X. That would also put it at the same price as the 256GB LCD Steam Deck.

Also, we should get price confirmation during the April 2nd Nintendo Direct.

Not so much. The reveal trailer gave a glimpse into the new Mario Kart game. Nintendo is released Mario Kart 8 on the Wii U ten years ago and has been milking that cash cow ever since, having sold over 64 million copies of the game on that console and the Switch. It’s definitely time for a new entry!

It’s been a while since we’ve had a proper 3D Mario adventure, so a new one could be the title of the launch. That would be a system vendor. Besides, your guess is as good as mine. In the past as a precursor, we can expect something from Ubisoft and an off-the-wall title like 1-2-Change.

If there’s a gimmick or hook involved in the console, we’ll find a game that takes advantage of that. A double release of Metroid Prime 4just like Wild Spirit again Twilight Princess before that, it is also possible.

It’s all but nailed down that we’ll learn more about the Switch 2’s launch schedule during the April 2 Nintendo Direct. You’ll definitely want to set that up for your Alarmo.

That’s all we know about the Nintendo Switch 2 today. We will update this article with the rumors we trust and the information we gather directly from the sources. Any changes made to the article after its initial publication will be listed below.

Update, January 15, 2025, 12:10 PM ET: This story has been updated to include rumors about a possible console announcement this week.

Update, January 16, 2025, 10:33AM ET: This story has been updated to include official information about the Nintendo Switch 2 from the revealed trailer and press release.





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