The most controversial thing about Nintendo Switch 2 has been its price tag. While a Nintendo Switch console costs $300 and its first-party games are (typically) $60, the Switch 2 hikes that price way up. The console will cost $450, while games will range in price from $70 to $80 in the United States, depending on the game in question. Fans did not take kindly to the news when the prices were revealed following the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct. Is there a chance that those angry voices could hurt Nintendo’s bottom line?
For insight, I consulted game industry analysts at firms like Omdia and Alinea Analytics. While there are certainly concerns over Switch 2 pricing certain people out of it, analysts still seem confident that the console and its games will perform well. They believe that Nintendo is pricing the console and the games its way because it knows its hardcore fans will still be interested in buying them at that price and want to remain financially conservative as we enter an unprecedented time with the United States’ harsh new tariffs.
Let’s start with the Nintendo Switch 2 console, priced at $450. If players want to get the edition that comes with Mario Kart World, they’ll have to pay $500. That’s the same price as a PS5 or Xbox Series X. As for why it may have gotten more expensive, we can look to United States’ new tariffs and the fact that similarly powered hardware like PS5, Xbox Series X, and Steam Deck are all priced similarly. Rhys Elliott, games analyst at Alinea Analytics, points out that “Nintendo relies almost solely on its console and console software business, so loss-leading pricing simply wasn’t in the cards.”
Elliott believes $400 would’ve been more of a “sweet spot for the console” but admits that this price point falls within analysts’ expectations and is “in line with other consoles and the Steam Deck.” With 4K resolution and 120 frames-per-second game support, one could argue that Nintendo is trying to make a console on par with platforms like PS5 and the Steam Deck. Pricing it similarly makes sense from that perspective.
Still, that price tag makes it $150 more expensive than systems like the original Nintendo Switch and Xbox Series S. The upgrades over the first Switch are clear, but for now, Series S is the premier entry point for a cheap next-gen experience.
Neither Elliott nor the other analyst I spoke to, Omdia Senior Analyst James McWhirter, seemed to think the $450 price would radically hurt Switch 2’s chances at success.
“The first year on the market for new console platforms is heavily tailored to the enthusiast audience … At this price point, and with a major first-party title, Mario Kart World, available on day 1, Nintendo shouldn’t have trouble selling to the enthusiast early adopter audience,” McWhirter tells Digital Trends.
Looking at other analysts’ public opinions, Circana’s Mat Piscatella predicts Nintendo will sell 4.3 million Switch 2 consoles in 2025, while Ampere Analysis’ Piers Harding-Rolls predicts Switch 2 could have upwards of 13 million users by the end of the year. McWhirter seemed more concerned with Switch 2’s long-term prospects.
“The big question is whether Nintendo can successfully reduce the price of the console as the generation continues and it shifts away from selling to its biggest fans and towards a broader audience,” he says. “This will be challenging, and a significant contributor to why we believe Switch 2 will be outpaced by the original Switch by 6 million units by the end of 2028.”
While factors like tariffs and the generally increased cost of manufacturing hardware in the post-pandemic era make the Switch 2’s higher price tag somewhat understandable, the price increases on games are harder to swallow. Mario Kart World will be priced at $80 by default, while Donkey Kong Bananza will cost $70 digitally. Listings on websites like Walmart also suggest that the Nintendo Switch 2 Editions of games like Kirby and the Forgotten Land could cost $80.
Physical versions of these games may cost even more, at least in the UK. Game pricing has certainly been the most frustrating part of Switch 2’s rollout, as Nintendo fans are left wondering why they’re being charged more for games that have historically been $70. Elliott and McWhirter cited two factors: mitigating risk for Nintendo and pushing players toward all-digital libraries.
“The generational transition to Switch 2 offers the perfect opportunity for Nintendo to re-establish expectations with its audience, starting with the enthusiast early adopters who are less price sensitive than the broader audience that tends to pick up a console later in the cycle,” Elliott says. “The higher price also mitigates the risk Nintendo faces in migrating over 100 first-party titles — many of which are critically acclaimed and multi-million sellers — to Switch 2. If Nintendo finds its new games competing with its back catalogue, the higher list price of Switch 2 titles helps it to make up for any lost sales.”
Nintendo is literally getting more bang for its buck as it sells these games to a Switch’s year one, hardcore userbase and competes with its vast back catalog of titles. This also means they’ll lose less money per game if new tariffs introduced by President Donald Trump increase the cost of manufacturing.
Pushing players to buy Switch 2 games digitally would also help Nintendo’s bottom line, which Elliott emphasizes in his comments on the rising game prices.
“Nintendo’s reliance on physical impacts its bottom line, hence the nudging. Nintendo does not gain revenues from physical renting and resales. After all, a copy of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe could be sold on the reseller market 100 times or rented 100 times, but Nintendo would only capture revenues from that first sale. A digital-only market means more revenue and price control for Nintendo. Long story short, Nintendo’s use of framing (sticker shock for physical) is actually pushing people to digital, which benefits Nintendo.”
Looking at all of this analyst analysis of the Switch 2’s pricing, it seems like Nintendo is playing it fiscally safe in the console’s launch year by making it more expensive. If you’re a hardcore fan who wants to be an early adopter of this system and its games, Nintendo believes you’ll be willing to spend upwards of $600 or more to get a Switch 2 and some games for it. McWhirter believes that “the Switch 2 installed base will not hit its stride until three years into the console cycle” and that if Nintendo is disappointed in the sales of games before then, it can discount those games or run Nintendo Switch Online promotions for them.
There’s no denying that these higher prices will hit Nintendo fans quite hard, and may prevent certain people from being able to afford the console. The Switch and its games undercut the prices of PlayStation and Xbox hardware and games, which has made the Switch 1 so widely appealing. It’s not a crutch Nintendo can lean on anymore in these times of economic uncertainty.
“The tariffs might have factored into this decision. Even if Nintendo’s current supply chain only partially touches current tariff targets, who knows which countries Trump will target next? All bets are off, so publishers and platform holders must hedge theirs,” Elliott says.
Ultimately, that uncertainty negatively impacts us as players as we are forced to accept these higher prices and a digital-only future. Nintendo has not publicly commented on why it is charging more for Switch 2’s hardware and games yet. Still, its approach to pricing suggests Nintendo still thinks its hardcore fans will suck it up and pay these higher prices so they can check out the latest Mario Kart and Donkey Kong games early, whether they’d want to or not. And based on what industry analysts are predicting, they will.
Nintendo Switch 2 and Mario Kart World will be released on June 5. Donkey Kong Bananza arrives later on July 17.
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