So I have bad news for my American Nintendo fans: We’re not getting the Switch price cut that our European cousins are. While Nintendo dropped the price of the base Nintendo Switch model in Europe and the UK recently to prepare for the launch of the more expensive OLED model, it appears that we on this side of the pond won’t be so lucky, though we probably should have known better than to expect any kind of price cut from Nintendo in the first place.
The announcement, as it were, comes via Axios’s Stephen Totilo, who was given a statement from Nintendo that clarified the pricing situation: “The trade price adjustment is for the European region only. There are no plans to change the Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price for any Nintendo Switch model in the U.S.” I’m not sure why we get short shrift considering the OLED model is launching over here too.
For reference, when Nintendo dropped the price of the console in Europe, it said that the the OLED model was only one of the reasons: “After carefully weighing up a variety of factors, including currency exchange rates in Europe and the upcoming launch of Nintendo Switch – OLED Model, we decided that now was the appropriate time to change the European trade price of Nintendo Switch.
Given that it’s very rare for Nintendo to drop its prices on anything — games, consoles, whatever — it would probably be wise for no one to expect a big discount. I’m frankly surprised that they even offered it to European audiences in the first place. The price of the OLED model in the US will be $349.99, while it’s been dropped to €349.99 and £309.99 in Europe and the UK, respectively. For reference, the base Switch model is $299.99 in the US, €269.99 in Europe, and £259.99 in the UK.