Comparing the Switch and Switch 2 Reveals: What’s Changed? – Editorial

After selling over 120 million Switch units, Nintendo didn’t need to start 2025 with a bang, but I wasn’t expecting this much of a whimper. We finally got our first official look at the Switch 2, and if you like curved plastic and magnets seen from a variety of angles, you’re probably pretty happy right now. If you’re like me and left wanting, it’s not hard to understand why.

In 2016, Nintendo announced the announcement of the Switch (then NX) with a tweet on October 19, prompting fans to tune in the following day at 10am ET for the first preview trailer. Coming off of the failure of the Wii U, Nintendo needed to go big and bold, and we learned a fair bit about how they were going to do so on October 20, with a video that ran just over three and a half minutes. In that video, we learned about the Switch’s game changing feature: the ability to dock for TV play or be taken on the go for portable play. An interesting variety of games–six in total–and situations were shown that really hit this point home. Splatoon 2 for eSports; Mario Kart 8 Deluxe for the infamous rooftop party; Skyrim on a flight; and Super Mario Odyssey, the next 3D Mario adventure: there were honest-to-goodness video games to look forward to, and we couldn’t hardly wait.

In 2025, at the (likely) peak of their powers, Nintendo dropped a heavily rumored trailer that lasted exactly 2 minutes and 22 seconds, a playful nod to the boring but safe successor name, Switch 2. Less than 20 seconds of this runtime would be devoted to video games, in this case the long-awaited sequel to Mario Kart 8. Now, I won’t be surprised to see a third or more of all Switch 2 adopters pick up the next Mario Kart entry, but the first question I asked myself when watching this teaser trailer was whether I was actually looking at a brand new game at all. I had hoped we would get even a few seconds of footage for the next 3D Mario game or maybe even the return of a dormant franchise like Star Fox or F-Zero.

The trailer really reminded me of the annual reveal of the next iPhone or Samsung Galaxy iteration. A lot of different angels, flips, etchings, and pop outs, but without any real substance; we know you’re going to buy it anyways. That kind of attitude. A fair amount of the video focused on the new Joy-Con, and it’s easy to see why when you consider that one of the chief complaints about the Switch was Joy-Con drift. Although an integral part of the Switch’s dual-configuration nature, these were among the worst built controllers I’ve ever used, and I’ve had to send various pairs in for repairs about half a dozen times since becoming a Switch owner at launch.

It was disheartening to see Nintendo focus on the element that fans had problems with, rather than the aspects of the Switch that propelled it past the hundred million mark in sales. But not all advertising and messaging is meant for the fans, or the gamers, or the masses. Jason Schreier pointed out on Bluesky that this reveal opens up the window for third parties to start announcing Switch 2 support. Lest we forget that Square Enix announced Dragon Quest XI for NX before Nintendo had even shown off the console.

With Nintendo Switch hardware sales starting to flag, there’s also an investor-focused reason to reveal the Switch 2 and in the minimalist, business-like fashion that they did. Now stockholders can hang their hats on the 2025 Switch 2 launch and the forthcoming April Nintendo Direct that will likely showcase the console’s launch line up, price, and other key details.

The Nintendo of 2016 is in a very different place than the Nintendo of 2025. The Switch 2 reveal didn’t spark joy for me and many others in the way that the original Switch reveal did, but I’m ready to board the hype train in a few months when we’re all reminded of the reason why longtime fans continue to support the brand. And that’s games you simply can’t play anywhere else that are bursting with timeless Nintendo charm.