Nintendo Switch 2 has 2.2 million pre-orders in Japan and high demand could lead to shortages

Nintendo announced that more than 2.2 million people in Japan have registered for the pre-sale of the Nintendo Switch 2 through the My Nintendo Store. In a statement released on April 21, 2025 by Shuntaro Furukawa, company president, the company warned that "a significant number of customers" will not be able to secure their console in the first phase.

"This extremely large number of registrations... greatly exceeds our expectations and far exceeds the number of Nintendo Switch 2 consoles that can be delivered by the My Nintendo Store on June 5," said Furukawa.

The selection will be made through a lottery, and results will be announced on April 24. Those not selected will automatically be transferred to the second round, but with no guarantee of purchase. "We deeply apologize for not being able to meet your expectations, despite our prior preparations," Furukawa added.

Meanwhile, Nintendo has already started to expand its production system and informed that, starting on April 24, physical and online stores in Japan will also start accepting pre-orders or registrations for lotteries. "We plan to continue producing and delivering a considerable number of Nintendo Switch 2 units in the future," Furukawa assured.

In the Western market, the first calls for pre-orders in the US will begin on May 8, 2025, with invitations sent periodically. To have priority, it is necessary to:

• Have purchased any subscription of Nintendo Switch Online
• Have maintained the paid subscription for at least 12 months
• Have opted for game data sharing and accumulated a minimum of 50 hours of gameplay
   

The Nintendo Switch 2 will be released on June 5, 2025, for the price of US$ 449.99, also maintaining the Switch 2 + Mario Kart World bundle at US$ 499.99. However, the prices of the Mario Kart World (US$ 79.99) and Donkey Kong Bananza (US$ 69.99) games will remain unchanged. On the other hand, the prices of the Switch 2 accessories have been adjusted due to commercial tariffs.

The pre-sale was originally scheduled for April 9, but was postponed while the company evaluated the impact of tariffs and market conditions.