You know that moment when your wallet just makes a pathetic little squeal, and you realize it’s been holding on to life by sheer willpower? Well, get ready to hear that sound loud and clear because Nintendo has finally broken down the pricing and release date for the much-hyped Switch 2. And if you were hoping it’d be affordable, you must have missed the last five years of capitalism.
So, here’s the deal: The Nintendo Switch 2 is dropping on June 5th with a starting price of $449.99. If you feel like burning more money, there’s a $499.99 bundle pack to consider. For context, that’s a whole 50% higher than the original Switch’s $300 launch price back in 2017. Don’t you just love inflation?
But you think that’s bad? Just wait until you hear what they’re asking for Mario Kart World. You know, that fun little game where you casually shell out banana peels and end friendships. That’ll be $80, please.
That’s right. Eighty. Whole. F*cking. Dollars. Nintendo has officially gone full Scrooge McDuck, swimming in piles of cash while we’re left scrambling for change like it’s 1929. Sure, Sony nudged prices up to $70 for PS5 games, but Nintendo? They only dared to try that stunt once before with The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. And now, they’ve decided a racing game deserves an even higher premium. At this point, don’t be surprised if every time you use a Spiny Shell, your Nintendo account automatically charges you $2.99.
Meanwhile, we’re left wondering if this is some new trend creeping in thanks to whatever economic doom spiral America’s in. Tariffs, recession, or just a boardroom of executives laughing maniacally—it’s anyone’s guess. But if Nintendo’s setting this new standard, we have zero faith that Sony or Microsoft or one of the countless greedy game publishers won’t follow. Seriously, we’re expecting GTA 6 to drop at $100 minimum.
Here’s the only silver lining, and it’s thinner than a Joy-Con drift excuse: That $499.99 Switch 2 bundle at least includes Mario Kart World, which is $30 less than buying the game separately (seriously, that’s Rainbow Road robbery!). Of course, you just know scalpers and Sneakerhead wannabes are going to scoop those bundles up faster than you can say blink. Expect those to go for $700 or more on eBay before you even have a chance to blink.
And while it’s a tough pill to swallow for folks in the U.S., our friends across the pond aren’t exactly getting a bargain, either. The Switch 2 is priced at £395.99 in the UK and €469.99 in Germany. So, at least we’re all getting screwed equally.
The console itself does sound relatively decent, to be fair. It comes with the standard components- Joy-Con 2 controllers, a Switch 2 dock, HDMI cable, USB-C charging cable, and a Switch 2 AC adapter. You’re also getting a 1080p screen with a 120Hz refresh rate, a 4K dock to upscale games on your TV, and Joy-Con 2 controllers that act like a mouse. Oh, and 256GB of internal storage—up from the old Switch’s paltry 32GB. Plus, a 7.9-inch screen.
We haven’t heard specifics on how powerful the console is, as Nintendo seems to want to keep things vague stating only the “Nintendo Switch 2 has significantly improved CPU and GPU performance over Nintendo Switch, resulting in faster processing speed and enabling new visually advanced gameplay. It also makes it possible to achieve more detailed graphics and faster loading times” on the official website. But like, how much of an improvement is this over the original? Is this comparable to a PS4 like all those rumors or not?
Anyway, here’s the thing about all this pricing nonsense- we can get over the console’s price hike. $450 for beefier specs and 4K upscaling? Fine. But $80 for Mario Kart is just pure greed. No base game is worth that much, least of all a racing game. And if this is Nintendo’s way of setting a new standard for video game prices, then we’re doomed. Because the second EA, Activision, and Bungie catch wind of this, we’re all going to be coughing up our kidneys just to afford DLC.
For now, all we can do is wait and hope Nintendo’s greed doesn’t infect everyone else. But if it does, we’ll all know who to blame. (And yeah, maybe some of those US politicians, too).
