Summary

  • The widely reported Switch 2 delay is likely to result in a "pretty dry" year in terms of Nintendo games.
  • Switch owners can expect Nintendo to focus on remakes while saving its upcoming blockbusters for the next console.
  • Not releasing a new system in 2024 is also likely to result in a challenging fiscal year for Nintendo itself.

The Switch 2 delay means Nintendo is in for "a lot tougher" year than investors might have hoped for, an industry analyst said. This outlook was offered as part of a wider overview of the potential effects of the widely reported move, both for Nintendo and consumers alike.

While the Japanese gaming giant still refuses to even acknowledge that its next console is on the horizon, rumors about the upcoming system, tentatively dubbed the Switch 2, have been swirling around for years. And while reports about Nintendo's next hybrid device were sometimes contradictory, something resembling an insider consensus started emerging circa August 2023, when several sources claimed that the Switch 2 would launch in 2024.

Purple Nintendo Switch 2 with logo mockup white background
Leaker Hints at Major Nintendo Switch 2 Feature

Some new evidence suggests Nintendo has already decided to add one highly requested feature to its next console, tentatively called the Switch 2.

By 

A newly surfaced report has now suggested that the Switch 2 will slip into 2025, with Nintendo supposedly aiming to release it in the first quarter of the following year. While the reasons behind the purported internal delay remain unclear, it is likely that the move will result in fewer Switch exclusives and a more challenging fiscal year for Nintendo. That's according to Serkan Toto, the CEO of Tokyo-based analytics firm Kantan Games, who recently spoke with Bloomberg about the implications of Nintendo refraining from releasing a Switch successor for the eighth year in a row.

White Nintendo Switch OLED model halfway in dock displaying number 2
A Nintendo Switch OLED Model promo image featuring a white variant of the console halfway in the dock. The number 2 has been edited onto its display.

Switch Owners Should Brace for a 'Pretty Dry' Year

Reflecting on the news of the Switch 2 delay, which Bloomberg itself has now also corroborated independently, Toto opined that Nintendo's content pipeline is likely to be "pretty dry" this year. Elaborating on that point, the analyst predicted that Nintendo will plausibly hold on to its upcoming "blockbusters" until the next console is out. The Switch could consequently experience a somewhat lackluster year, during which Toto suggests Nintendo might intensify its focus on remakes, all the while original releases take a backseat.

2024 Is Likely To Be the Year of Switch Remakes

The current state of the company's 2024 software lineup dovetails with the analyst's forecast; of the six upcoming Switch games that Nintendo recently highlighted to investors, half are remakes or remasters. Meanwhile, its original titles include niche puzzler Another Code: Recollection—released this Friday, February 16—and Metroid Prime 4, which is getting more likely to skip the Switch by the day, seeing how it was announced back in 2017 and is still waiting for a gameplay reveal, never mind a release date.

2024 will be a lot tougher for Nintendo without a new device.

Relying on the Switch for the eighth consecutive year is bound to result in a challenging period for the Japanese group, with Toto predicting that "2024 will be a lot tougher for Nintendo without a new device." A Switch 2 announcement, whenever it happens, will also ostensibly lower the already declining sales of the existing console. But the move might not substantially impact software sales if the upcoming system is immediately confirmed to offer backward compatibility.

Rating block community and brand ratings Image
Princess Peach: Showtime! Tag Page Cover Art
Princess Peach: Showtime!
Display card tags widget Display card system widget
Display card community and brand rating widget
6 /10
Display card open critics widget Display card main info widget
Released
March 22, 2024
Display card main info widget end Display card media widget start Display card media widget end

WHERE TO PLAY

DIGITAL
Checkbox: control the expandable behavior of the extra info

Take the stage as Peach
Help Peach save the Sparkle Theater from the wicked Grape and the Sour Bunch, who have set the stage for the ultimate tragedy. Joined by Stella, the theater’s guardian, Peach is ready to save the day!

Step into the spotlight!
Power up with transformations and use showstopping abilities to call curtains on this tragedy. What transformations are hiding just behind the curtain?
 

Developer(s)
Nintendo
Publisher(s)
Nintendo
Franchise
Super Mario
Platform(s)
Switch
Genre(s)
Action-Adventure