There’s an interesting new claim about the Switch 2 launch.
Bloomberg was told by “people familiar with the matter” that
Nintendo repeatedly pushed back plans for the Switch 2’s launch after its designers asked for more time to perfect the games that would accompany the new hardware.
This Rumor Explains A Lot
We can’t verify if this rumor is true or not on its own. But it seems to corroborate a narrative that was formed around the Switch 2 over the last year.
Around this time last year, speculation was rampant that Nintendo was going to announce the Switch 2. We would say there was a good four to six months in 2024 when Nintendo fans waited for the announcement that never came.
This rumor explains why Nintendo sat on their console for possibly a year or even longer. The original Switch was Nintendo’s main console for a good seven years. It’s easy to imagine that the Switch 2 could have launched in 2024 or maybe even 2023.
They Probably Wanted To Delay It Even More
In fact, it’s possible that Nintendo did not plan to reveal the console on January 2025 at all. They may have intended to make gamers wait all the way until April on the big Switch 2 Direct.
Their hand may have been forced by Genki. The gaming accessory make brought a Switch 2 Joy-Con demo to CES 2025.
Nintendo didn’t directly confirm that this was the reason. But they did sue Genki for making that demo.
Nintendo May Have Put Themselves First Over Third Parties
The report goes on to say that Nintendo saw the frustration from fans and third party game companies. In spite of this, they delayed the console’s launch anyway.
It does look like Nintendo has firmly prioritized themselves over third parties when it comes to the Switch 2 launch. There’s a rumor that they also deliberately held back dev kits until 2026.
Third party developers may not be happy about this if it is true. But of course, Nintendo owns the platform. They can make the decisions that are best for their business, even if it isn’t for others.
Nintendo does seem to favor some game developers over others. Playtonic surprised everyone when they revealed they’re bringing Yooka-Replaylee to the Switch 2.
Mostly big AAA third parties and the most famous indie developers got Switch 2 dev kits. Playtonic passed Nintendo’s test. Most of everyone else is going to have to wait. The same way we all waited for the console.
