Nintendo Delays Switch 2 Pre-Orders in the U.S. Amid Tariff Chaos—and the Internet Is Not Okay
Nintendo postponed U.S. pre-orders for the Switch 2 just days after its flashy New York premiere, citing “tariffs and evolving market conditions.” Here’s a timeline of the pricing controversy and the internet’s panicked meltdown.
On Friday, April 4, Nintendo announced it was delaying U.S. pre-orders on its new Nintendo Switch 2 console, due to be released on June 5. The original plan was to accept U.S. pre-orders beginning on April 9. But then, Nintendo issued the following statement to press outlets:
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. Nintendo will update timing at a later date. The launch date of June 5, 2025 is unchanged.
This announcement came less than 48 hours after the Switch 2's splashy, celebratory Manhattan premiere, which indicates that no one, least of all Nintendo, expected this to go down the way it did.
We're living in unprecedented times. The United States, thanks to the efforts of its tariff-loving President, is waging a global trade war with competitors and allies alike. The direct fallout from these tariffs—as well as the retaliatory tariffs levied in response—has wiped out $5 trillion on Wall Street over the past three weeks.
Such losses can't help but have a ripple effect on everyone. What's happening to Nintendo is not unique to it; it is simply an example of what is happening across the globe, as consumers and companies adjust to a new reality of higher prices and plunging stocks. A trade war is a circular firing squad; no one is coming out of this unscathed.
The pre-order delay makes it likely that the Switch 2's retail price will increase and that Nintendo will pass on its increased production costs to the consumer. If this happens, it isn't going to go over well, obviously.
Here's a timeline of Nintendo Switch 2's pricing controversy and the Internet's somber, civilized reaction.
What's the Current Price of the Nintendo Switch 2?
As of April 6, 2025, the Switch 2 will retail for $450. There's also a bundle option to buy the Nintendo Switch 2 and Mario Kart World for $500. This is a bargain; by itself, a digital copy of Mario Kart World will cost $80, but buying the bundle will get you a 37% discount on that game.
Summer 2019 - Vietnam Preemptive Measures
Nintendo is a Japanese company that outsources its hardware production to other countries. For many years, the bulk of that hardware production took place in China. However, in January 2018, the United States and China began a trade war (similar to the one we're seeing now, albeit on a smaller scale).
Thankfully for Nintendo, the Trump administration carved out an exception for the gaming industry in August 2019. But Nintendo, realizing its production pipeline was no longer secure, began moving its production out of China and into Vietnam that summer, in hopes that it could avoid any increased production costs if the tariff war escalated again.
Remember this for later.
December 2019 - Cambodia Preemptive Measures
Nintendo wasn't the only company trying to prevent disaster. In December 2019, Japanese electronic device maker MinebeaMitsumi Inc., a main supplier to Nintendo, also announced that it would diversify its production and move part of its China operation to Cambodia to minimize the impact of any future trade war.
Remember this for later too.
July 2023 - Gears Start Turning
Things were quiet for years, with occasional rumors that Nintendo would release an updated version of the Switch 1. This turned out to be the souped-up Nintendo Switch OLED, which launched in October 2021
In July 2023, sources reported that software development kits for a next-gen console had been sent to third-party developers.
January 2025 - The Big Reveal
In May 2024, Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa announced that the next-gen console would be announced in the second half of the fiscal year. In January 2025, we finally got our first look at the Nintendo Switch 2.
January 2025 - Pre-Emptive Shipments
Recently, there was a rumor (later corroborated by the Financial Times) that in January 2025, Nintendo shipped 385,000 Nintendo Switch 2 consoles from Vietnam to the US—to get ahead of the potential tariffs—with additional shipments scheduled for February and March. At this point, Donald Trump had been sworn into office for his second term as U.S President. This no doubt impacted Nintendo's decision, as Trump had indicated, multiple times, that he planned to levy tariffs once he returned to the White House.
March 2025 - Price Predictions
In March 2025, Bloomberg published a feature with the input of multiple financial analysts, who offered their predictions on the Switch 2's commercial success and retail price.
The outlook was largely positive. Nintendo's stock has tripled in the past five years, and one analyst forecasted the company to sell 20 million Nintendo Switch 2 units in its first year. Most of the analysts believed that the Switch 2 would retail for somewhere between $400 and $450, even with the tariff war.
April 2, 2025 - The Big Premiere
So that brings us to the past week.
On April 2, Nintendo held its Manhattan premiere of the Nintendo Switch 2, where they allowed media outlets (including Complex) to try the console hands-on for the first time. The premiere started with an hour-long Nintendo Direct, which, to many people's chagrin, did not reveal any retail prices. Those were revealed after the presentation on Nintendo's website: $450 for the bare bones console; $500 for a bundle that included Mario Kart World; $80 for Mario Kart World as a separate purchase; $70 for Donkey Kong: Bananza.
The lack of direct communication rubbed many people the wrong way, as did the prices, which were higher than many people anticipated.
Why the delay? Perhaps Nintendo was simply trying to soften the inevitable backlash. Perhaps Nintendo had been watching the market until the last possible moment and didn't make a final call until that very morning. But most analysts agreed that the high prices were the result of Trump's tariffs, and Nintendo was protecting itself in case they increased even further.
Adding to this perception? Nintendo Switch 2 will retail for $343 in Japan—more than $100 less than it will sell for in the United States. But don't get any smart ideas; the Japanese Switch 2 will also be region-locked and monolingual.
Near the beginning of the Nintendo Direct was a trailer for Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, a tech demo with minigames that introduced players to the Switch 2's capabilities. Players will have to pay for this game, and many players viewed that decision as excessive and greedy, for what amounted to a glorified tutorial.
Why not throw this in for free? The PlayStation 5 came with Astroworld. Nintendo's own Wii came with Wii Sports (though Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aimé reportedly had to fight to make that happen).
Social media took all this well, of course. Here are some highlights from the aftermath of the price announcements:
Later on April 2, 2025 - Liberation Day?
On April 2, President Trump announced a 10% across-the-board tariff on all goods coming into the United States. This 10% tariff went into effect on Saturday, April 5. But even more severe tariffs will go into effect on April 9.
Included among these: China, which will have a 54% tariff; Vietnam, which will have a 46% tariff; and Cambodia, which will have a 49% tariff.
Remember how, back in 2019, Nintendo moved its production factories out of China and into Vietnam and Cambodia, to avoid this very problem? Well, shit.
April 3, 2025 - Treehouse Hijacking
Nintendo's first Treehouse livestream after the Nintendo Switch 2 premiere was inundated by users, who flooded the chat stream with "DROP THE PRICE." Expect more stunts like this one.
Around this time, a counternarrative emerged: When accounting for inflation, is the Nintendo Switch 2 really that expensive compared to past consoles? While the OG Nintendo Entertainment System sold for $180 in 1985, that would be $573 in today's money.
Then again, in 1985, families could also afford a home and support two children on a single income. The dollar held a lot more purchasing power back then. Combine that with wage stagnation, and these statistics paint a different picture.
April 4 - China Retaliates, Pre-Orders Paused
So that brings us to the present day, when Nintendo suspended its U.S. pre-orders until further notice.
It's also worth noting that on the same day, China announced a retaliatory 34% tariff on imports from the United States, which will go into effect on April 10. So this trade war isn't over.
Will Trump announce retaliatory tariffs in response to the retaliatory tariffs? Imagine dealing with this during a product launch that will determine your company's solvency.
Ongoing - More Memes, More Dark Humor
Here are some more Internet responses to this ongoing drama. We will continue to update this article as the situation develops.
