After initial reports that review outlets might not be getting their hands on Nintendo Switch 2 consoles in time for reviews before its June 5 launch, Nintendo has now confirmed that this will be the case. According to VGC, a spokesperson for Nintendo has said that the company is not giving out review units before the console’s launch because it wants players and reviewers to experience the console in the same way.
In its statement, the spokesperson also said that the console will be getting a firmware update on launch day that will include important features that the company has still been testing right until the day of release. However, there has been no confirmation about what kinds of important features have been locked away in the update that will only become available on the day of the console’s release.
While Nintendo itself might be unbothered by the lack of general press coverage surrounding the Switch 2’s launch in terms of reviews for its launch games, third party publishers and some press outlets have been more concerned because of the heavy scheduling involved in attempting reviews of games on the new console around a weekend with Summer Game Fest approaching.
Back in May, one editor spoke about this with The Game Business, saying that “It’s really frustrating,” because the outlet will also have to focus its efforts on Summer Game Fest. “How are we supposed to do that?”
Third-party publishers have also spoken about this, with one mentioning that they wanted to release “something special” in time for the console’s launch that players might “want something else in addition to Mario Kart [World]”. The head of a PR department has also mentioned that “the lack of independent critical validation is going to make it very hard for us. Maybe we would have been better off waiting a few weeks.”
It has also been no secret that pre-orders for the Switch 2 have been doing incredibly well. Back in April, Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa even spoke about how more than 2 million fans had signed up for a lottery system to get pre-orders of the consoles in time for its launch. In its earnings report, Nintendo has forecasted 15 million sales of the console over its first year.
“We’ve set projected sales for the Nintendo Switch 2 in the ongoing fiscal year at 15 million units,” said Furukawa. “This figure is based on a target comparable to sales of the original Nintendo Switch during the 10-month period from its launch in March 2017 to the end of December the same year.”
In the meantime, the impending launch of the Switch 2 is being regarded by industry analysis firm DFC Intelligence as the most important console launch that the industry has ever seen. The firm’s hyperbolic-sounding prediction comes from the fact that Grand Theft Auto 6, which was expected to come out in Fall 2025, has been pushed back to May 2026. The game was expected to bring in a rise of console hardware sales with it. However, with it pushed back to next year, Nintendo is seemingly poised to rule the hardware market for 2025 with the Switch 2.
