50°
Preorders for the Nintendo Switch 2 won't start on their scheduled date of Wednesday, April 9. A Nintendo spokesperson confirmed the delay to the Daily Voice on Friday, April 4.
Nintendo said the pause won't affect when the portable console will be released.
"Pre-orders for Nintendo Switch 2 in the U.S. will not start April 9, 2025 in order to assess the potential impact of tariffs and evolving market conditions," the spokesperson said. "Nintendo will update timing at a later date. The launch date of June 5, 2025 is unchanged."
The decision comes two days after Trump announced his so-called “liberation day” tariffs. The duties include a 10% tariff on imports from 185 countries and a 25% tariff on all foreign-made cars and light trucks.
The tariffs also have escalating duties for dozens of countries.
Japan, the home of Nintendo, was slapped with a 24% tariff. Other major countries in the electronics supply chain were hit with even higher tariffs, including China (54%), Vietnam (46%), and Taiwan (32%).
Trump's tariffs have sent domestic and global markets into a freefall. On Thursday, April 3, Wall Street posted its worst one-day drop since the crash at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The crash wiped out about $2.5 trillion in US equity value. The "Magnificent Seven" tech companies – Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, Amazon, Meta, Alphabet, and Tesla – lost a combined $848 billion on the worst day of trading in the group's history.
Despite plenty of hype from gamers about the Switch 2, Nintendo's stock has also plummeted. As of 1:30 p.m. on April 4, Nintendo's shares have fallen more than 10.3% from a peak immediately after the Switch 2's official unveiling.
Nintendo fans have expressed their frustration with the console's $449.99 starting price.
"So in other words we're gonna get an announcement soon that Switch 2 will now launch at $600 instead," one person commented on GameStop's Facebook post about the delay.
"Wait... so the $80 games were not accounting for the tariffs!?" another Facebook commenter said. "Lol it's time to go back to good ole board games 🤣."
Nintendo formally announced the Switch 2 on Wednesday, April 2. The console includes a 7.9-inch HD display, magnetic Joy-Con 2 controllers that double as mice, and GameChat, a new feature that lets players video chat and share screens without extra equipment.
A Mario Kart World bundle is also expected to launch on June 5 for $499.99. The package will feature the newest version of the iconic game, where up to 24 racers can compete in elimination-style tournaments or freely explore tracks.
According to Nintendo, the video game giant sold about 150,860,000 of the first-generation Nintendo Switch consoles through the end of 2024.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Brookfield and receive free news updates.
