Today’s the day. This afternoon, Nintendo will air a Switch 2 dedicated Direct broadcast from which we expect a release date and price for the new console, as well as a look at some of its upcoming games. And as ever, we’ll be watching, reporting and reacting to the broadcast live, as it happens, right here.
Set your Alarmo clocks for 2pm BST / 3pm CEST / 9am EDT / 6am PDT. The show is expected to be an hour long.
Nintendo, remember, has already unveiled the form factor of Switch 2, which surprise surprise, looks a lot like the existing Switch, only bigger. Lurking within, though, are significant changes, such as Joy-Con that magnetically snap to the side of the machine, USB-C ports, a mysterious C button, rumoured mouse-like Joy-Con functionality, and, of course, more powerful innards. But as Digital Foundry noted, while forensically picking over the Switch 2 details, we’re still not sure exactly how powerful it is. Questions remain. Will they be answered today?
The previous reveal also gave us a glimpse of a new Mario Kart game, which notably teased the possibility of 24-player races. Will we see more of that game today? And what of Nintendo’s other first-party games for Switch 2 – are there any, and if there are, which ones will they be? Big, legacy franchises, or smaller things? I also wonder what kind of third-party support Nintendo has attracted for Switch 2.
But the biggest questions are of course price and release date. How soon will the console come out? There’s a widely held belief Switch 2 is imminent, though the console’s public hands-on tour runs until June. Is that when it will finally arrive? And how much will it cost? There’s talk of a $400 price point, which puts it $100 above what Switch 1 launched at, and talk of $70 games. But will these figures be born out?
There’s lots to discover, and we’ll be building up to the reveal throughout the day here. Excited?
Nintendo Direct: Nintendo Switch 2 – 02.04.2025
Today’s Switch 2 Nintendo Direct broadcast will be here.Watch on YouTube
- 09:47 am April 02 2025 The missing Link?
09:55 am UTC Some great questions cropping up in the comments. Will legacy games get a boost if played on Switch 2? Back compatibility is a feature here, remember. Also, what are the chances of a new 3D Mario being teased today, or more? As Tom pointed out in his comment, Switch 1’s first year brought us Odyssey – what will Switch 2’s first year bring? And where on Nintendo’s list of priorities is a new Animal Crossing, as Will rightly wonders?
A new generation does tend to be a great time to introduce new IP, as well, as we saw Nintendo do with Arms on Switch 1 and Splatoon on Wii U. Is there a new franchise waiting in the wings for Switch 2?
– Robert Purchese
09:47 am UTC The missing Link?
There’s always excitement around a new console, but there’s something extra special about a Nintendo console reveal because you can’t help but expect something a little different. I’m sure we’ll hear something about the system offering something we didn’t expect (or at least already know about), but I’m most interested in finding out what games Nintendo has planned.
The original Switch had a brilliant first year, notably launching with the possible game of that decade, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. We also got Super Mario Odyssey, Splatoon 2, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and Arms. My concern is that Switch 2 won’t be able to better that, mainly because there won’t be a new Zelda any time soon (barring a monumental surprise). Will the new Mario Kart be able to carry online discussion like Zelda did? We’ll see.
– Tom Orry
09:44 am UTC themightyant says: What are everyone’s last minute hardware predictions. Price? Resolution desktop and handheld? OLED? HDR? VRR? Mine are £399 / 1440p upscaled to 4K on TV, 1080p handheld / no OLED / HDR /no VRR. No doubt all wrong and will age like milk. lol.
Well look: I’ll just pin these here and then we can all publicly see how well you did. You are most welcome!
– Robert Purchese
09:42 am UTC Meanwhile, Nintendo has lifted the lid slightly on the mysterious “C” button on the Switch 2. A new video posted on the Nintendo Today app shows it being pressed and sounding a little jingle and then… Well, that’s as much as we were allowed to see. Could it be a shortcut button to capture gameplay, or to get to social features on the console, and what might they be if there?
But what do you do! | Image credit: Nintendo
– Robert Purchese
09:38 am UTC Good morning! Are you feeling aflutter with excitement? The time is nearly here. I suppose more to the point: will you be immediately pre-ordering one if, as Rogueywon points out, the opportunity immediately opens following the Direct?
– Robert Purchese
