The Nintendo Switch 2 is launching with a handful of new games, but for many of the people getting one this week, the main thing to play on it is software made for the original Switch.
We’ve known for months that the Switch 2 would maintain backward compatibility with the vast majority of Switch games, but one major question was whether the Switch 2’s improved hardware would benefit older Switch games in some way. Especially in recent years, first- and third-party Switch games have struggled with the original system’s aging Nvidia chipset, which was already a bit dated when the system came out in 2017.
After a day or so of testing various Switch games on the Switch 2, we can report firsthand that Switch games can look dramatically better on the new system. For games that Nintendo has taken the trouble to update—those with Switch 2 upgrade packs and those with free updates—players can expect higher resolutions, better frame rates, less texture and character pop-in, and smoother animations all around. Even games that haven’t been updated for the Switch 2 can run a bit more consistently on the new systems, though games without Switch 2-specific updates don’t improve as much as games with updates.
As consumers around the world have gotten their hands on the Switch 2 in the last day or so, we're still working hard to fully test the system here at the Ars Orbiting HQ. As we do, we thought we'd share some initial impressions after having Nintendo's new console in hand for 48 hours or so. Consider these first thoughts an extended version of our notes from a review in progress and a starting point for discussion of the first completely new Nintendo platform in over eight years.
The Switch 2 Joy-Cons feel great
There's something incredibly satisfying about the magnetic "snap" when you plug the new Joy-Cons into the Switch 2 horizontally, and the handy release lever makes it much easier to disconnect the controllers from the tablet with one hand. Even without a physical rail holding the Joy-Cons to the system (as on the Switch), the magnetic connection feels remarkably sturdy in portable mode.
The Switch 2 Joy-Con (left) and a right-side original Switch Joy-Con.
Though the Switch 2's expanded Joy-Cons generally feel more comfortable for adult hands, I have noticed that the analog stick encroaches a little more on the space for the face buttons on the right Joy-Con. I've found myself accidentally nudging that analog stick with the bottom of my thumb when pressing the lower "B" button on the Joy-Con, a problem I never recall encountering on the original Switch.
Last month, ahead of the launch of the Switch 2 and its GameChat communication features, Nintendo updated its privacy policy to note that the company "may also monitor and record your video and audio interactions with other users." Now that the Switch 2 has officially launched, we have a clearer understanding of how the console handles audio and video recorded during GameChat sessions, as well as when that footage may be sent to Nintendo or shared with partners, including law enforcement.
Before using GameChat on Switch 2 for the first time, you must consent to a set of GameChat Terms displayed on the system itself. These terms warn that chat content is "recorded and stored temporarily" both on your system and the system of those you chat with. But those stored recordings are only shared with Nintendo if a user reports a violation of Nintendo's Community Guidelines, the company writes.
That reporting feature lets a user "review a recording of the last three minutes of the latest three GameChat sessions" to highlight a particular section for review, suggesting that chat sessions are not being captured and stored in full. The terms also lay out that "these recordings are available only if the report is submitted within 24 hours," suggesting that recordings are deleted from local storage after a full day.
As we've mentioned previously, Nintendo did not see fit to provide press with early review hardware for the Switch 2. Today, though, with the June 5 launch of the Switch 2 having already arrived in regions like Japan and Australia, the ever-efficient UPS driver delivered final retail hardware straight from Nintendo of America to the Ars Orbiting HQ.
The hardware and software Nintendo sent us.
Credit:
Kyle Orland
A quick setup guide, as seen on the inside flap of the hardware box.
Credit:
Kyle Orland
A side view of the box, highlighting tabletop mode.
Credit:
Kyle Orland
The first thing you see upon opening the Switch 2 box.
Credit:
Kyle Orland
Everything included in the box.
Credit:
Kyle Orland
The 14-hour lead time between our receipt of the hardware and the midnight launch of the Switch 2 on the US East Coast isn't close to enough time to put together a comprehensive review. For now, though, we thought we'd take you through a pictorial journey of our unboxing and initial setup process, ahead of much more coverage to come.
And while you peruse the images, we recommend listening to the absolute bop that is the Switch 2 setup music, which we've embedded below:
When Nintendo took the wraps off the Switch 2 in early April, it announced that around a dozen first-party Switch games would be getting free updates that would add some Switch 2-specific benefits to older games running on the new console. We could safely assume that these updates wouldn't be as extensive as the $10 and $20 paid upgrade packs for games like Breath of the Wild or Kirby and the Forgotten Land, but Nintendo's page didn't initially provide any game-specific details.
Earlier this week, Nintendo updated its support page with more game-by-game details about what players of these older games can expect on the new hardware. The baseline improvement for most games is "improved image quality" and optimizations for the Switch 2's built-in display, but others include support for GameShare multiplayer, support for the new Joy-Cons' mouse controls, support for HDR TVs, and other tweaks.
The most significant of the announced updates are frame rate improvements for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, the main-series Pokémon games released in late 2022. Most latter-day Switch games suffered from frame rate dips here and there, as newer games outstripped the capabilities of a low-power tablet processor that had already been a couple of years old when the Switch launched in 2017. But the Pokémon performance problems were so pervasive and widely commented-upon that Nintendo released a rare apology promising to improve the game post-release. Subsequent patches helped somewhat but could never deliver a consistently smooth frame rate; perhaps new hardware will finally deliver what software patches couldn't.
Nintendo reported relatively weak sales of 1,164.9 billion yen for its fiscal year ended March 31, 2025, down 30.3% from 1,671.8 billion yen a year earlier.Read More
Last month, Nintendo and its third-party partners revealed that many of the "physical" games on the Switch 2 would be made available only as "Digital Key Cards." Unlike traditional physical Switch games—which contain flash memory with the necessary data to play the game on the card itself—these key cards will simply enable the holder to download a copy of the game to their system and play that copy if and when the transferable key card is inserted in the system.
Already, many players are thinking ahead to what this means for their ability to play Game Key Card releases well into the future. It's not hard to find potential Switch 2 owners publicly worrying about games "disappear[ing] into the void" or becoming "effectively a worthless piece of plastic/e-waste" when Nintendo eventually disables its Switch 2 game download servers. Some go even farther, calling a Game Key Card an "eighty dollar rental" rather than a real game purchase.
While these are valid long-term concerns, I think some players are underestimating the likely timeline for when Game Key Cards will become "useless e-waste." As it stands, we already have an example of Nintendo supporting continued downloads of games purchased nearly two decades ago and counting.
Last week, Nintendo made the unprecedented move of delaying US Switch 2 preorders to "assess" the impact of Donald Trump's massive tariffs on the countries where the console is produced. Before most of those tariffs were recently delayed for 90 days, many were wondering if the company may be mulling a last-minute increase in the Switch 2's $450 asking price to account for those import taxes.
While industry analysts think that kind of immediate price increase is unlikely, they warn that Trump's tariffs could have longer-term impacts on Switch 2 pricing and supplies in the US for years to come.
Already baked in
DFC Intelligence CEO David Cole, for instance, said in a recent analyst note that the company is currently modeling "a 20 percent price increase over the next two years" across all video game hardware thanks to "broader macroeconomic challenges." In the case of the Switch 2, though, Cole clarified that "we believe much of the 20 percent increase was already baked into the $450 price," which Nintendo is "not likely" to raise at this point.
DFC Intelligence, a game analyst firm with decades of experience, said it is lowering its Switch 2 unit sales forecast due to pricing concerns.Read More
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