Does the Switch 2 price mask its reveal?
Blog Andrew Joseph 05 Apr , 2025 0
Admittedly, the excitement revealed by the new console, and Nintendo must have delivered When it came to the new graphic capabilities of the Switch 2. Although still no sign of a new 3D Mario game (it's been almost eight years since Super Mario Odyssey, why must my pain continue?), we got the open-world Mario Kart World, the return of Donkey Kong to the limelight, and a pseudo-successor to Bloodborne in the shape of The Duskbloods. Not necessarily just the console itself – $449.99 is not the huge cost of new technology in 2025 – However, the amount you need to buy games and accessories is spent to get the most out of the Switch 2. So, is the admit price of Nintendo's new toys really too high? Let's take a look.
Many headline news $80 Price tag for Mario Kart World. It's certainly an eye-opener at the $60 or $70 we're used to. Knee Jerk's reaction is that it's too much, and Nintendo is squeezing us for every penny because it knows it's a game that everyone wants when they launch. If you want to play with friends and family, that will be another set of Joy-Cons and that will be another $90. Want people from all over the world to join you? Need a non-respectful Nintendo online membership. It all adds, and when revealing the trailer is very focused on the 24-Player co-op and the ability to roam around the world with friends, leveraging the new GameChat and Photo Mode features, it's hard not to think that's a little cynical.
Of course, the rebuttal is that it is worth the money with hours of enjoyment. If Mario Kart's decade-long life was anything, the world might be the only Mario Kart game released on the Nintendo Switch 2. Can $80 be charged a reasonable fee for games that may offer years of enjoyment? In an era where free games are now the norm, are we biased about the value of money? I think someone who puts it into Fortnite in five years, Mario Kart players might spend $80 on combat passes and skins. Yes, these examples are apples and oranges, but it's easy to spend two hours on animated slopes on the entire family's movie trip at $80, and the decade of Mario Kart seems pretty good.
Admittedly, Donkey Kong Banana is $69.99 cheaper, so maybe that's what Nintendo knows they can ask about Mario Kart they want, one of the most popular gaming series on Earth. But this does set a worrying precedent, and Switch 2 versions of Kirby and Forgotten Land and The Legend of Zelda: The Kingdom Tears All Spend $80this strategy is a bit confused. For companies like Nintendo (which also appears generous in their products), it raises the question of whether other game publishers will follow the footsteps of these inflated game prices. GTA 6, we're all watching you. This also shifts the attention to how the generational leap between consoles will develop when upgrading older games costs.
PlayStation has been doing this for years, and has been offering a $10 upgrade to some of its PS4 games, thus jumping to PS5 It's been over later this month. However, the price of the enhanced version of the Switch game on Switch 2 has not been disclosed. If it charges the same as Sony, then I suspect there will be too much outcry – higher frame rates, higher resolutions in 4K, and even the extra game addition isn't a bad thing. But if it's $20 or $30, I'm not sure I'll invest in many upgrades.
For example, you can currently buy Kingdom Tears on Amazon for $52, $28 less than the Switch 2 Edition. Of course, there won’t be so many upgrades? The difference in the UK or even Starker is currently available for the Switch version for £45, but the Switch is £275. The MSRP of TOTK original switch version is $70, does that mean the upgrade is only $10? If so, why not just buy a copy of the switch from Amazon, then purchase an upgrade package and purchase another $10, saving nearly $20 in the process?
Of course, that's all speculation, but so far, our only metrics are enhanced versions of Wild Breath and Kingdom Tears as part of the Nintendo Online+ expansion package membership, which currently costs $49.99 per year. Assuming the price won't increase over the next two months (I wouldn't be very surprised if it did at some point, Netflix is currently charging me $4 million, and my eldest son's soul is just looking at Love Is Blind), it's the worst part of the world's upgraded Zelda. But what happens if I cancel my membership? Do I have to go back to playing 1080p, slightly framed Legend of Zelda until I replay it? These are questions that need to be answered.
Finally, we are perhaps the most confusing choice for all: Decision to accuse Nintendo Switch 2 of the welcome trip. This virtual exhibition is scattered with the hardware packaging energy of mini-games, something you'll be expected when you load a new console for the first time. With all the PlayStation 5s, Astro's Playroom is a very generous platformer that evokes Nintendo's invention brand and creates a famous PlayStation history while welcoming its new console family. It feels like Sony has learned the right lesson from Nintendo and Wii Sports, and the Switch 2 Welcome Tour feels like Nintendo's border arrogant display during the launch of the expensive PS3.
I don't think the Switch 2 will go backwards like Sony entered the HD gen. It has enough momentum forward and the kindness of the original switch, not to mention its frankly ridiculous game library to a big shake. The Switch 2 console itself looks impressive, without a slightly safe improvement, if not the case before. The games we've seen so far look great, too, and I'm sure there are more games (Mario, come on, companion). I just hope Nintendo isn't too greedy and learn from the immediate objection of the cost of some launching products. No one wants $80 to be the new standard price for video games, so we hope Nintendo won't achieve that.
Did the Switch 2 and its included games, upgrades and peripherals completely mask the reveal? Not very suitable for me. But that certainly did not lead to the general success Nintendo hoped to achieve.
Simon Cardy is a senior editor at IGN who can mostly find feeling desperate in the Open World Olympics, indulging in Korean cinemas, or in Tottenham and the New York Jets. Follow him in Bluesky @cardy.bsky.social.
