As promised, Nintendo has taken the wraps off its upcoming hybrid gaming platform with an official reveal of what is now christened as the highly anticipated Nintendo Switch 2.
Many of the leaked details were confirmed today in a reveal video, including the new design and an intriguing “C” button. There’s a lot still under wraps in terms of full specifications, but these early revelations offer plenty to speculate on what the Switch 2 might entail.
Design Confirmations and the “C” Button
This newly revealed Switch 2 fits in neatly alongside leaks from the past day. The console retains its hybrid nature, combining handheld and docked functionality, but introduces several enhancements:
- Larger Screen: The display appears significantly larger than the original Switch, promising a more immersive gaming experience.
- Magnetic Joy-Cons: Unlike the rail-mounted Joy-Cons of its predecessor, the Switch 2 features magnetically attaching controllers, enhancing durability and usability.
- “C” Button Addition: The “C” button, seen in the reveal, is speculated to be a multi-function input, possibly linked to new social features
Hardware Specifications
If this design leak ends up being true, it could also validate hardware leaks. If those specs prove true, this is a very significant boost:
Full specs:
- CPU: Arm Cortex-A78C8
- 8 cores
- Unknown L1/L2/L3 cache sizes
- GPU: Nvidia T239 Ampere
- 1 Graphics Processing Cluster (GPC)
- 12 Streaming Multiprocessors (SM)
- 1534 CUDA cores
- 6 Texture Processing Clusters (TPC)
- 48 Gen 3 Tensor cores
- 2 RTX ray-tracing cores
- RAM 12 GB LPDDR5
Handheld Mode:
- CPU: 998.4 MHz
- GPU: 561 MHz (~1.72 TFLOPS)
- Memory Frequency: 4266 MHz
- Memory Bandwidth: 68.256 GB/s
Docked Mode:
- CPU: 1100.8 MHz
- GPU: 1007.25 MHz (~3.09 TFLOPS)
- Memory Frequency: 6400 MHz
- Memory Bandwidth: 102.4 GB/s
Backward Compatibility and Game Library
Arguably the most thrilling confirmation is that Switch will be backward-compatible with current Nintendo games, meaning an easy transition for fans of existing titles. We have heard up to 25 launch titles could be available, including a new Mario Kart and even perhaps the likes of Red Dead Redemption 2.
Pricing
While rumored pricing for the Switch 2 is $399.99, it would still make this new portable alternate a more budget friendly choice than other next-gen gaming systems.
What’s Next?
Nintendo has announced a Direct presentation on April 2, 2025, dedicated to the Switch 2. Fans can expect a deep dive into the console’s specs, features, and game lineup.