The new Nintendo Switch 2 console will release in June at a launch price of $449.99, the gaming company announced Wednesday—a significant hike from the $300 the first Switch cost in 2017 as the price of games has also spiked, frustrating consumers who hadn’t expected the large price increase.

The Nintendo Switch 2 will cost $450 on launch, more than the $300 its predecessor initially cost. … More (Photo credit should read CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images)

Future Publishing via Getty Images

Key Facts

The Switch 2 costs 50% more than the original Switch retailed for at launch, representing a price hike that Kantan Games consultancy founder Serkan Toto told Reuters was “a bit higher than what was widely expected.”

Nintendo also announced new games selling for record prices, including “Mario Kart World,” which will cost $80, a price hike gaming publication Kotaku reported breaks the barrier of $70 that most game publishers had abided by in recent years.

The prices for the Switch 2 and its newly announced games sparked confusion as Nintendo did not announce the cost during an hour-long presentation Wednesday that focused on the console’s new features, though the company announced the price in a press release later that day.

The Switch 2 will be released in June, eight years after the original Switch hit stores.

Chief Critics

The Switch 2 price hike sparked some blowback from customers online, some of whom indicated they weren’t expecting such a big price jump over the first Switch. In a thread announcing the price on the r/gaming subreddit, which has 46 million members, most of the most-upvoted comments criticized the console’s high price. “That’s too expensive and the price will never go down,” one user wrote, receiving more than 1,100 upvotes. Another user, upvoted nearly 2,000 times, called the prices of the games “hard to swallow.” Saltydkdan, a gaming YouTuber with more than 600,000 subscribers, posted on X: “Switch 2 games being $70 and $80 kind of killed my buzz, not gonna lie.” Another X user, in response to a screenshot from Nintendo’s presentation depicting the new Switch 2 interface with one game on the homescreen, joked: “This is how the Nintendo Switch 2 menu will look cus people can only afford one game,” garnering 34,000 likes.

Is The Switch 2 Price Hike Because Of Trump Tariffs?

Some analysts have indicated President Donald Trump’s tariffs on China may be one factor that influenced Nintendo to hike prices. Toto told the Financial Times the steep prices “suggested Nintendo was building a buffer in case tariffs hit supply chains harder than expected.” Joost van Dreunen, a New York University professor who teaches about the business of video games, previously told gaming outlet Polygon that Trump’s Chinese tariffs would make gaming consoles, and “everything around it as well,” more expensive. Though some Switch consoles are produced in China, the Financial Times reported Nintendo has moved some of its production facilities to Vietnam, which will help the company avoid tariffs, unless Trump eventually targets Vietnam as well.

Tangent

Nintendo announced the Switch 2 on April 2, the day Trump dubbed “Liberation Day,” in which he is expected to unveil his “reciprocal tariffs” plan, though it is still unclear who and what Trump will target.

How Is The Switch 2 Different From Its Predecessor?

The Switch 2 arrives with visual upgrades over its predecessor, including 1080p screens and the possibility of playing in 4K resolution if connected to a compatible television. Some of the controls are also upgraded, including the Joy-Con controllers, which can now function as a mouse. The Switch 2 will also support in-game chats and screensharing, and it will come with 256 gigabytes of internal storage, eight times the storage capability of its predecessor. Among the new games announced are “Mario Kart World,” the first open-world installment of the game series, as well as “Donkey Kong Bonanza,” “Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment,” “The Duskbloods,” “Kirby Air Riders” and “Survival Kids.”

Further Reading

Mario Kart World On Switch 2 Will Cost $80 (Kotaku)

Nintendo’s Switch 2 has big shoes to fill – at a much higher price (CNN)