A Nintendo Switch 2 will set you back $450. Mario Kart World will be $90 for the physical version. There’s a tutorial for the new hardware and its features complete with demos and minigames called Switch 2 Welcome Tour. It will also cost money. Nintendo is preparing to launch its most anticipated console ever and seems ready to squeeze fans for (almost) everything it can.
What gives? Is it inflation? President Trump’s trade war? Nintendo just getting arrogant and greedy? $400 seemed like the sweet spot for the new console. That’s how much the original Switch from 2017 would cost today if adjusted for inflation. Instead the device is $450. Maybe that’s why the company left the most important piece of news out of the Switch 2 livestream millions were watching and relegated it to a press release instead. Even Game Awards host Geoff Keighley was confused.
“Welcome to the new normal of pricing, US folks,” Circana game research director Mat Piscatella wrote on Bluesky. “But instead of a slow increase over time like we’ve seen in grocery over the past few years, we’re going to start seeing things happen all at once.”
Mario Kart World sounds like the franchise’s most ambitious entry yet, with support for up to 24 players and an open world to explore in-between races. As a result it will also be Nintendo’s most expensive digital release at $80. Maybe that’s to push more people toward the $500 Switch 2 bundle that includes a digital version of the game, a price tag within spitting distance of the company’s most expensive inflation-adjusted console release ever: the original NES.
Donkey Kong Bananza is $70 digital, suggesting the baseline price for all Switch 2 premium games has gone up at least $10 this generation. Plus there’s the apparent $10 price hike for all physical versions of Switch 2 games, even though some might only be game-key cards, meaning they just let you download the full version of the game rather than containing it themselves. It’s effectively a digital experience at a potentially 15 percent higher cost to the consumer.
And then there are the accessories. Joy-Con controllers are $10 more this console cycle. So are the Switch 2 Pro controllers. The camera, a big part of today’s pitch for the new hardware, is sold separately for $50. Switch owners’ current memory cards aren’t compatible with the new hardware and will need to be upgraded too. While some Switch 2 upgrades for existing games are free, others for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom will be locked behind paid Switch Online subscriptions, which you also need to have to pre-order the Switch 2 to begin with. Sold separately, they might be anywhere from $10 to $20.
The cost of gaming has never been more bifurcated. At the high end are PC rigs with GPUs that alone cost over $1,000 and cutting-edge consoles like the PS5 Pro that cost $700. At the low end are free-to-play hits like Roblox and Fortnite that can run on smartphones. And now that everything is an Xbox you can play some of the biggest games around, like upcoming shooter Doom: The Dark Ages, in a web browser for just $12 a month.
One of the virtues of the original Switch wasn’t just the portability and being able to take open-world blockbusters like Breath of the Wild on the go. It was also being able to do so without breaking the bank. Nintendo abandoning the graphics arms race led to better games but also a more economical gaming experience overall that more people could be a part of. Animal Crossing: New Horizons on the $200 Switch Lite lowered the barrier to much needed self-care during the pandemic for everyone.
“Not worrying about the price of games is how we end up closing the doors of the hobby and later the profession to an entire class, and one that further harms diversity efforts,” wrote But Why Tho? EIC Kate Sánchez on Bluesky. “I have worked with game dev students at wealthy and poorer schools and the path for all of them starts with when they knew games was a career path which often translates to when they began having access. Affordability is important and if you can’t see that I don’t know what to say.”
In addition to concerns about limiting diversity and economic gatekeeping, others have pointed out that Nintendo’s premium pricing strategy is being deployed at the exact same time that many in the video game industry are worried about stalled growth and losing ground to forever-game time sinks like Minecraft and Grand Theft Auto Online as well as endless scrolling time pits like TikTok and YouTube. Nintendo might be able to make the math work in its favor, but that doesn’t mean everyone else on the platform will benefit.
In addition to the Switch 2 Nintendo Direct, April 2 is also when Trump plans to announce a slew of new tariffs on foreign goods. This “Liberation Day” showcase is drawing a unified response from China, South Korea, and Japan, but it’s not the only change afoot. Bloomberg correspondent Takashi Mochizuki suggested Nintendo’s philosophy around its gaming business is shifting as well, in part due to increased ambitions and more shareholder scrutiny.
“The company now has the largest pool of investors ever, with its shares soaring to new heights on anticipation about the new console,” he wrote. “Its recent crop of hires also comes from top-tier institutions and might expect a somewhat more cautious approach than the buccaneering spirit of the early era of video game development.” These new prices might not just reflect a pricier gaming landscape overall, but also a different Nintendo.
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