Following the announcement of the pricing of the Nintendo Switch 2, many have wondered about the reasoning that prompted Nintendo to set it at $499.99.
Part of the audience cast doubt on the value proposition, while others defended it by saying that Nintendo must have kept in mind the upcoming US tariffs when they came up with the price.
Yet, Nintendo then suspended pre-orders in the US to evaluate the effect of the tariffs after they were announced, even mentioning the possibility of a revision.
Today, Nintendo of America CEO Doug Bowswer doubled down on the asking price in an interview with The Verge.
Not only did Bowser confirm that previous tariffs had no bearing on the decision, but he doubled down on the value proposition of the console, which should be considered in comparison with the existing Switch. Nintendo plans to keep it on the market for the time being.
“Put [the April 2nd announcement] aside. Any previous tariffs were not factored into the price itself.“ […] “The news is fresh, and like many companies right now, we are actively assessing what the impact may be.”
Bowser listed the features of the new console as the determining element behind the pricing.
“We want to make sure that this is a device that is approachable, that consumers will see as part of their overall entertainment experiences and will understand that it has longevity to it. And all of those factors really go into the consideration of the price.”
[…]
“You want to consider pricing relative to the Switch since we still have that in distribution. But, really, the consideration was driven more by what is a part of this particular gaming experience versus what it is relative to the Switch 1.”
Asked about the fact that select games will be priced at $80 in digital format and even higher as physical releases, Bowser confirmed it’s being decided on a case-by-case basis.
“Each game, we believe, is a unique experience.”
He also touched on the $10 price tag of the Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, which is basically a playable tutorial. opining that it’s fair due to the depth of experience and opportunity.
“As this game was being developed, what’s been packed into it is a depth of minigame experiences. They’re very deep, they’re very repeatable. And so, as we looked at that depth of play experience and opportunity, we felt that $9.99 was a fair price to ask for that.”
Of course. Bowser’s reasoning on the comparison with the Switch 1 fails to mention that the old console’s price isn’t set in stone, and Nintendo could have simply changed it downward a whole 8 years after its release, but quite obviously, the company decided otherwise.
Whether this choice will pay off when the Nintendo Switch 2 releases on June 5, 2025, or will negatively impact sales, remains to be seen, especially since we don’t know whether the Kyoto-based manufacturer will opt to bump the price up further due to the tariffs, or will instead keep it at $450.
At the very least, the release date doesn’t appear to be affected for now. We’ll keep you posted when a new pre-order date for the US is announced.
