00:04I wouldn't exactly call the Switch 2's first year revolutionary.
00:08The numbers were impressive, yes.
00:10Nintendo reported over 3.5 million units sold in its first four days,
00:15its fastest-selling hardware launch ever.
00:17By December 31st, 2025, the company reported 17.37 million units sold in its 30-week lifespan.
00:25By comparison, the first-generation Switch sold around 14.86 million units
00:30by December 31st, 2017, in its first 36 weeks.
00:34But the Nintendo Switch 2 needed more than sales
00:37to break the generational curse of yo-yoing Nintendo console success.
00:40It needed sticking power.
00:42Personally, I've not been quite as glued to the second-generation handhold as I was the first,
00:46but I'm also no longer an undergraduate student with more free time than since.
00:50That being said, whenever I do have an evening to myself,
00:53it's most often spent playing on my Switch 2 rather than my gaming PC or rival consoles.
00:58So, while its first year undoubtedly set it off on a solid trajectory despite rising concerns
01:03over its pricing, hardware supply chain issues, tariffs, and the absence of system-selling software,
01:10did the Switch 2 gain enough momentum to secure its future?
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01:26Now, let's get into today's video.
01:30From the moment Nintendo revealed the Switch 2 in April 2025,
01:34it was positioned as an iterative upgrade.
01:37This reignited age-old debates between those who have long bemoaned Nintendo's inferior
01:41performance and dated hardware, and those prizing the focus on affordability and portability.
01:46The hardware changes included a bigger 7.9-inch 1080p screen, 120Hz support, 4K docked output on
01:53compatible displays, better performance, and 256GB of storage. All welcome, but still lagging behind
02:00the competition. That being said, the Switch 2 is no handheld gaming PC. Comparisons between it and
02:06the likes of the Steam Deck OLED or the Asus ROG Ally have always been slightly fraught, in my opinion.
02:10Still, the complaints muddied the waters, and new social features like Game Chat and Game Share failed
02:16to generate the hype Nintendo had hoped for, despite marking a significant move from them to keep pace
02:21with competitors. I don't know anyone regularly using either feature today, though. Similarly,
02:26the novel Joy-Con 2 mouse mode controls weren't met with the emphatic excitement I'm sure Nintendo
02:31had hoped for. It was a well-measured reaction, in fairness. The feature has come in handy in a few
02:36grand strategy titles I've played, like Civilization 7, which ports a PC interface, but I've yet to
02:42find a use case that makes the wrist strain induced by mouse mode worthwhile.
02:48The real issue facing the Switch 2 at launch was that it wasn't exciting enough,
02:52and without momentum a console launch can easily fail. Despite having the robust Japanese gaming
02:57audience in their camp, Nintendo struggled to win favour globally, and that was only doubled by a
03:02concerningly hollow launch title line-up carried mostly by Mario Kart World. Add to the mix a sour
03:08taste in people's mouth over Nintendo's paid-for tutorial software, Welcome Tour, and the general
03:13confusion and discourse around the nature of virtual game cards, and by the time June's release date
03:18rolled round, many onlookers expected the Switch 2 to face a disappointing first few weeks. The fans did
03:24turn out in droves, and Nintendo even managed to one-up Sony by sidestepping supply and demand issues
03:29faced by consoles like the PlayStation 5. The best feathers in Nintendo's cap were the offer of
03:34backwards compatibility with original Switch software, upgraded Switch 2 editions for more
03:39demanding first-gen titles, and better-designed Joy-Con controllers. It's largely for these reasons
03:44that the Switch 2 faced a warm reception in the face of so much doubt. Now, for me at least,
03:49I'm notoriously weak in the knees for The Legend of Zelda, so the upgraded Switch 2 editions were enough
03:54to abate my side-eye at the otherwise vacant launch library. Still, I did struggle in those early
03:58months, along with many others, to justify owning a Switch 2. If I hadn't have received one through
04:03work for review purposes, I probably would have held fire on purchasing one too.
04:10For many, everything changed when Donkey Kong Bonanza was released just a month after the Switch 2.
04:16With a Metacritic score of 91 and our own 4.5 star review in the mix, it was the early
04:22win the console
04:23needed to see a successful summer. Now, Pokemon Legends ZA later in the year didn't quite stick the landing so
04:28well, but the two titles, along with a library backfilled with ports like Cyberpunk 2077,
04:34Hogwarts Legacy and Yakuza, helped to soften the blow. For me though, it wasn't until late 2025 that
04:40the Switch 2 really found its rhythm. Further ports and release-day third-party launches like
04:44Hades 2 and Resident Evil Requiem have breathed life into the console. It gives those of us who prize
04:50a quick 20-minute game sesh while commuting, and those who don't mind a lower performance rendering,
04:55the chance to keep pace with the rest of the gaming community. The good times kept coming for Nintendo,
05:00even in its comparatively smaller releases. In my household, Switch 2 usage has increased
05:05significantly thanks to the release of Pocopia and Tomodachi Life Living the Dream this year.
05:10We cosy gamers are consistently well-serviced by Nintendo. The same can't be said for fans of
05:15Meteor AAA titles though. And one question has haunted the Switch 2 since the moment it was announced.
05:20A rambling, unanswered anxiety over what comes next. That uncertainty comes at a cost.
05:26News that weak holiday sales are leading to Switch 2 production cuts shows that the console has yet
05:30to prove its mettle in the way the first generation did, even with such high sales figures in its first
05:35year. Plus, the Switch benefited from explosive success for mid-life-cycle releases like Animal
05:41Crossing New Horizons, notably in part thanks to the pandemic. Without insight into the future of
05:46AAA gaming on the Switch too, I can only see sales plateauing further. The Japanese gaming giant holds
05:52the keys to several as-yet-untouched kingdoms. That includes The Legend of Zelda and Super Mario,
05:58but even news of newer franchises like Splatoon 4 could help abate naysayers. Plus, we've likely got
06:03at least another year to wait for Pokémon winds and waves, and given the franchise's recent track record
06:08for mainline flops, it's hard to bet on the upcoming release being a system seller.
06:15That only leaves the biggest question of all. Is the Switch 2 a successful follow-up to the first
06:21generation console? A year on, the answer is a resounding no. But yes, kinda. From me. For one
06:28thing, I've already maxed out on storage, though that's my own fault as I'd always argue an SD card
06:33should be a day one purchase if you like handheld gaming. But I didn't follow my own advice there.
06:37And yes, the battery life is worse. But at least with my lifestyle, I'm far more prone to play
06:42docked in 4K now than I am in handheld mode, meaning I can enjoy the Nintendo Switch 2 edition
06:47of Tears of the Kingdom in all of its glory. And it truly is glorious. It's a good thing I'm
06:51happier
06:52in docked mode too, because while the Joy-Con 2 controllers have been redesigned from the ground
06:57up according to Nintendo, as seen in reports like iFixit's Switch 2 Teardown, not enough has
07:02fundamentally changed to completely eradicate stick drift. It's nowhere near on the scale of first
07:07generation consoles based on a very limited number of customer reports, but I have personally
07:13experienced some very early signs of drift, so I tend to stick with my Switch 2 Pro controller to be
07:19safe and to prevent Link from launching himself off a cliff without warning. However, even if most
07:25upgrades are just for quality of life, they do make up a difference. Faster loading times, for example,
07:30are always welcome, though it remains to be seen how these will scale as software pulls further ahead of
07:36hardware capabilities. And other improvements to system software like eShop means Nintendo might
07:41actually see some digital downloads now. That's doubly true, since Nintendo has announced that
07:45digital titles will cost less than physical copies, at least in the US. There is, however, plenty of work
07:51still to be done on the Switch 2, and we don't yet know if we'll see more variants like a
07:55Lite or OLED
07:56model. Who knows? Maybe the long-rumored Switch Pro will make an appearance in this second generation cycle.
08:01But what we do know is to expect a price hike on the horizon. In the US, it's confirmed to
08:06be effective
08:07from 1st September 2026, when we'll see the list price increase by $50. So while the future is far
08:14from bleak, only time will tell if Nintendo can eek another eight years out of its latest hardware before,
08:20if you'll pardon the pun, switching things up again.
08:24Let us know in the comments down below what's your favourite game to play on the Switch 2,
08:28and make sure to subscribe for more tech news, reviews and how-tos.
