In this photo illustration, the logo of Nintendo Switch 2 is displayed on a smartphone screen on April 3, 2025 in Suqian, Jiangsu Province of China.
Vcg | Visual China Group | Getty Images
Nintendo said Friday that preorders for the company’s hotly anticipated Switch 2 game console would be delayed following President Donald Trump’s announcement this week of sweeping new tariffs.
“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,” a Nintendo representative told CNBC. “Nintendo will update timing at a later date. The launch date of June 5, 2025 is unchanged.”
The delay marks one of the most significant immediate responses from a major company regarding the concerns about Trump’s tariffs and their impact on business and consumer spending. Most electronics companies manufacture in Asia, home to some of the steepest hikes. Nintendo’s Switch 1 consoles were made in China and Vietnam, Reuters reported in 2019.
Vietnam was hit with a 46% tariff, and China is now at a 54%. Nintendo hasn’t said where its new consoles will be made.
Nintendo also didn’t say if it would raise the price of the console, which was announced earlier this week to be $450 in the U.S. IPC, a trade group focused on electronics manufacturing, estimated Friday that game console prices could rise by 50% due to the tariffs announced this week.
Nintendo revealed the new console the same day that Trump unveiled new tariffs.
The Switch 2 is a bigger and faster version of the Switch 1, which sold more than 150 million units since its launch in 2017. Nintendo increased the price from the Switch 1’s retail price of $300. It’s powered by a custom Nvidia chip. Gamers will be able to use the Switch 2 as both a handheld console and hook it up to a television. It’s expected to hit store shelves in June, alongside a new Mario Kart game.
