Lately, there has been news circulating that Nintendo has notified its partners about a shift in the release date for the upcoming generation of the Switch. The handheld gaming device, initially launched in 2017 and receiving only an OLED upgrade since then, is now preparing for a new update.
According to Nikkei reports, the anticipated release date for the Switch 2 is now set for March 2025 at the earliest. The report also confirms that the upcoming system will feature a screen larger than the 6.2-inch display of its predecessor, along with a higher resolution.
Media reports, including those from Bloomberg and EuroGamer earlier this month, suggested a change in the release timeline for the Nintendo Switch 2, potentially moving it to Q1 2025. Unlike the usual holiday season release for gaming systems, Nintendo appears to prioritize a robust lineup of first-party games at launch over a rushed 2024 release. The company is giving developers additional time for crucial launch games and allowing the supply chain to prepare a substantial stock for the release.
Speculations about the Switch 2 indicate it might come with the NVIDIA Tegra T239 processor, showcasing the Ampere architecture. This suggests a potential increase of up to 6 times in CUDA cores, presenting a notable enhancement for the gaming system.
The existing model, featuring a 256 CUDA core Tegra X1, has already proven its ability to successfully run popular games like No Man’s Sky, The Witcher 3, and Doom—all effectively ported to the Switch.
“March 2025. Like the Switch, it is expected to be a game console that has the features of both a stationary and portable version. Many in the industry expected it to be released in 2024, but we prioritized taking measures to prevent resale and securing an initial stock of successor machines and an assortment of popular software at the time of release.
The successor model will have a larger screen than the Switch (6.2 inches for the standard model), and will be able to handle games that feature higher-definition image quality.”
— Nikkei (translation)
Source: Nikkei
Image Credit: Endo, Lega nerd