Nintendo provided a first look at the brand new Nintendo Switch 2, the predecessor of the Nintendo Switch, about 4 months ago. Now with more information that Nintendo has put out into the public, I will provide my honest thoughts on this new console, even if it hasn’t come out into stores yet.
As for the brand new features, the controllers, also known as the JoyCons, now have an interesting mouse function that is located on the side. The mouse can be used on any surface, including the player’s leg. This distinctive function could be tested in games such as Drag x Drive, which is a basketball game where characters are in wheelchairs. This feature is fascinating as it can be used on any surface, but what concerns me the most is which surfaces damage the controller over time? There are also magnets built into the controllers, as seen in the first sneak peak of the new console. While the original Nintendo Switch had you slide in the JoyCons on the sides of the screen, the Nintendo Switch 2 instead makes controllers snap into place due to the magnets. This was definitely the highlight of the new console as I have never seen it before, but I do have concerns for this new feature. While other people who worked on the console said that the magnets were stronger than they looked, with children grabbing the console, they can damage the magnets. However, I cannot infer its strength, so I will have to see for myself when I get the Nintendo Switch 2.
The “C button” on one of the controllers caught my attention when I first saw it. The button pops up “GameChat”, which, when pressed, will project windows on the screen to view other players. There is also a camera attachment, sold separately, which allows players to project themselves in those windows and even in the game itself. I find this really fascinating due to the fact that this innovative feature allows you, the player, to view other players. As a matter of fact, I have viewed gameplay for Mario Kart World for the demos, and I could see that players’ faces were on top of their racers. The images would also spin out when their racer was hit by a projectile, which I thought was amusing that Nintendo added this to their new console. I wish that the camera attachment came with the console, but it’s not a big deal to make a fuss about. Ignoring the fact that the camera is sold separately, I think this is a great feature because it can be fun to watch other faces in games, so I will definitely consider buying the camera too.
There are also “virtual game cards”, which may seem complicated at first, but I will break them down for you to understand. If you had the original Switch, you can connect these games to your Switch 2 as a “virtual game card”, which appears in its individual tab called “virtual game cards”. That way, you can keep the physical copy of the game in either one of your consoles and lend the virtual copy to the other. You can also lend these games to your Nintendo Account family group members for 2 weeks until the game comes back to your console. This is genius because you can keep one physical copy and lend the same game to another console as a virtual copy, which will decrease the number of games lost. This would also be practical if one of your family members wanted to play your game, but if you only had one physical copy, you could lend it as a virtual copy to their console. Of course, there were some fixes that the original Switch had, but they aren’t as notable compared to these new features.
As for the highly anticipated games shown on the demos for the console, I am extremely excited to play these myself. However, Nintendo seems to really think Mario Kart World will succeed due to the amount of information they have put out to the public. Mario Kart World is a racing game with various characters from the Super Mario Bros. franchise and possibly different games too. There are many more things added to this game, such as gliding on various surfaces, such as rails, a free-roam mode, and a new knockout tour, which, in order to win, you need to knock out different players and be the last one standing. There were various games revealed in the demo of the Switch 2, but what I highly anticipated was the new story mode for Kirby and the Forgotten Land, which is called Star-Crossed World. This game was one of my favorites on the original Switch, and I can’t wait for its return for more content exclusively for the new console. However, a notable feature of the new console is that some games will have exclusive content, which is pretty fascinating. However, I am wondering how much this new content will actually cost.
The Nintendo Switch 2 will hit the markets on June 5, 2025, at the price of $449.99 and $499.99 for the bundle, which includes the console and Mario Kart World. If I am being honest, the console is a little bit too expensive for my liking. I mean, sure, it has all of these new features and games, but with an additional $150 jump from the original Switch, it seems really expensive. Overall, I really like this console. There are a lot of features that make it stand out from the original Switch, but I am a bit uncertain about the price of the console itself.
What do you think? Are you going to buy the Nintendo Switch 2? Tell us in the comments!
