Nintendo has finally revealed the successor console to the Nintendo Switch in a short promotional video. It’s called Nintendo Switch 2 and, true to the extensive leaks, it appears to be a larger and more powerful version of its predecessor.
Nintendo did not announce a release date or price for the new console in its Switch 2 reveal on Thursday, but the company did confirm a 2025 release window. Nintendo showed only one game running on the Switch 2: a new Mario Kart game.
As previously reported, the console is closely modeled on its hugely successful predecessor. It’s a hybrid console, playable both in portable mode and on TV via the use of a dock, with detachable Joy-Con controllers. The hardware’s reveal confirms that Nintendo Switch 2 will be backward compatible with both physical and digital games from the original Switch. It also appears to confirm that Switch 2 Joy-Cons will be connected magnetically to the console, and that it will feature a U-shaped kickstand. Switch 2 will also feature a second USB-C port and a new button on the right Joy-Con.
We already knew that the Switch 2 will be backward-compatible with all Switch software. In late 2024, Nintendo announced that its next console will play Switch games, offer the Nintendo Switch Online service, and use the Nintendo Account system. However, Nintendo cautioned in a news release that “Certain Nintendo Switch games may not be supported on or fully compatible with Nintendo Switch 2.”
Nintendo said it plans to reveal more about the Switch 2 in a dedicated Nintendo Direct on April 2.
The company also plans hands-on Nintendo Switch 2 Experience events in more than a dozen cities in the lead-up to the next-gen system’s launch. Here’s when Nintendo fans will get their first hands-on experience with Switch 2:
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
- Melbourne, May 10-11, 2025
Asia
- Tokyo (Makuhari), April 26-27, 2025
- Seoul, May 31-June 1, 2025
- Hong Kong, To be announced
- Taipei, To be announced
Nintendo fans may draw the conclusion that Nintendo won’t release the Switch 2 until June at the earliest, given the timing of its Nintendo Switch 2 Experience events.