Nintendo Boss Crushes Latest Hopes For Switch 2
Nintendo can't seem to stop crushing the hopes and dreams of its fans lately. After years of waiting and hoping for a Switch Pro, gamers discovered in July that what they thought was a planned announcement of a new, upgraded console, was simply the reveal of a new "Splatoon" edition of the old console. Now, Nintendo has dashed the hopes of fans yet again with the news that a Switch 2 won't be coming anytime soon.
Switch owners have long been asking why Nintendo won't release the Switch Pro or, better yet, release a Switch 2. When prominent leaker Moore's Law is Dead claimed this week on the Broken Silicon podcast that the Switch 2 was coming and would be announced soon, hopes for a new console soared yet again. The leaker and podcaster seemed quite confident that it was in the works and that Nintendo had merely been keeping it under wraps to promote continued sales of its current console. On August 4, however, those that had taken heart from this rumor found themselves disappointed by a statement from Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa.
No new console on the horizon
As reported by Japanese publication Nikkei and translated by VGC, Furukawa explained that there are no current plans to release a Switch Pro or Switch 2. It seems that, for the time being, Nintendo is focused on meeting its sales goals for the Switch and considers it to only be "in the middle phase of its lifecycle." While sales of the Switch have been quite strong, it is still a long way from its goal and supply chain issues are only making the situation more challenging. These supply chain issues, which have also hampered fans' attempts to procure PS5s, are resulting in shortages of parts needed to manufacture the consoles.
So, between supply challenges and Nintendo's high hopes for the Switch, it looks like we won't be seeing a new console for some time. While company leadership is already talking about the next console and making tentative plans for its release, these discussions are still very much in the early stages (per VGC). Don't expect to see the Switch 2 for at least a couple more years.
Fortunately, there are still plenty of great games to play on the Switch with many more on the way, including a new update for "Nintendo Switch Sports" and "Pokemon Violet and Scarlet". So, fans will have plenty to keep them busy while they wait.