Nintendo Switch 2 Direct (April) & Concerns
The biggest Nintendo Direct came and went, plus my thoughts
Table of Contents
Good Things
Concerns
Game-Key Card
Region Locking?
Closing Thoughts
The biggest Nintendo Direct came and went while the gaming world stood still. With good reason since:
It’s an hour long
Their next console (Switch 2) is on it and coming very soon (June 5th)
Of course, I have to cover the direct so I can tell you what I thought about it!
The Good Things
The Switch 2 reveal is what I and many others could’ve hoped for. A more powerful Switch, which is on par (to an extent) with their competitors.
Nintendo is always at least a generation and a half behind Sony and Xbox. Now they're beefing it up with the Switch 2, which some customers and developers have been asking for since 2017. This is where it ends for me, and I would like to pose a question…
At what cost?
I’m asking because there are drawbacks that you should consider before purchasing. Things you should know.
Concerns
The first thing I noticed once the console reached its release date was: “Where is the price for the console?” June 5th, 2025, is confirmed, which is crazy even for Nintendo standards. The fact that the Switch 2 Welcome Tour doesn’t come built into the console, while being at $10, was a sign of things to come.
Right after the direct Nintendo quietly put up its price on its website.
A $150 (or your home country’s currency) increase compared to the current Switch. Considering the alleged power increase, I didn’t mind it at first since some have been asking for a more powerful Nintendo console. What set the internet on fire was the cost of games for it.
Upon seeing the price tag, I now see why Nintendo kept the info hidden until after the direct. This looks to be setting a standard for others going forward for first-party games. This is awful from the customer’s point of view. Making matters worse is the $80 price tag being the Digital version! As someone who goes out of his way to buy physical copies. My heart sank… or at least it’s about to until I found out about people spreading misinformation since the direct. The $90 physical that’s thrown around? For my Euro brothers and sisters, that is their reality. Despite my clearing up the pricing, it depends on which US state you live in. It’ll feel like you’re paying $90, and I’ve unfortunately lived in a state where software is taxed. This jump in MSRP is still BS!
Not to mention, only selected Nintendo games will be at a $80 price point. Others Donkey Kong Bananza, are kept at $70. There is no consistency on what first-party Nintendo games are getting at down the line.
Just when it gets bad, some of the upcoming Switch 2 games would have me boiling.
Game-Key Card
Physical lovers… I’m sorry for breaking your heart, but that’s going to be harder going forward.
This game-key card function, if I understand this correctly, the cartridges for some games don’t have the entire game on them. Therefore, you need to download the game through the game keycard.
You, the customer, are paying top dollar for an “SD card”!
Unfortunately, consoles have been moving in that direction since the 8th generation (PS4, Xbox One, Wii U). Switch games are pretty obvious to tell.
Buying PlayStation and Xbox games isn’t much better, as I bought Final Fantasy 7 Remake, and it came with two discs. One of them is purely for downloading the rest of the game!
So we’re looking at a stronger Nintendo console with higher variable-priced games for higher profile IPs. Which you don’t “own”, by the way. The days of just “plug & play” from consoles have been going away since 2014.
Region Locking Kind of?
If that wasn’t enough, Big N technically brought back region locking for the Switch 2. I say technically, as Nintendo only did it to their home base, Japan.
They thought this one through to curb purchases from foreign customers. As if they knew the Switch 2 prices for the rest of the world were going to give them clapback.
According to sources I found, Nintendo made this move to help those at home base purchasing easier. The Japanese Yen is pretty weak at the time of this writing.
Based on the info, Japanese customers are paying the equivalent of what everybody else is paying for.
Closing Thoughts
While the Nintendo Direct was pretty good when it comes to showcasing the console. It came at the cost of higher prices for games, among other things. Nothing from the Switch 2 lineup showcases very much besides a spec upgrade. Sony’s PS5 and Microsoft's Xbox Series X were the same way when they first came out. These consoles are essentially locked-down PC's. People buy consoles for how unique they were, and that’s gone. Not to mention, handheld hybrid consoles are a dime a dozen these days. Nintendo now needs to compete with Valve's Steam Deck, Lenovo Legion Go, Asus ROG Ally, etc.
Customers have choices, and money’s tight at the moment. Nintendo’s new console can be a hard sell for some despite its legacy exclusives, especially for families, since Nintendo is always known to be a console for that market. I’m sticking with the original Switch since it is getting support a little longer.
Despite my concerns, don’t let me stop you from making your own decisions with your money. Hope this helps in making an informed decision!
Sources
Nintendo Switch 2 Official Website
Mario Kart World Official Website
Nintendo Game Key Card Overview from Nintendo Customer Support
Nintendo EU (Ireland) Mario Kart World Price
Nintendo UK Mario Kart World Prices