It's Been a Week Since the Nintendo Switch 2 Launched: Now What?
Until recently, I was one of those purchase-shy shoppers, waiting for a cute, limited-edition model or an OLED screen. Then I watched several dozen social media clips of Cow winning races in Mario Kart World and got hit by a bovine load of FOMO. And despite CNET's Scott Stein insisting it was OK to wait to pick up a Switch 2, when the chance arose to pick one up directly during the console launch, I handed over my credit card with only some hesitation.
But on the ride home, the smiling Mario on the box and I stared at one another like Dustin Hoffman and Katharine Ross at the end of The Graduate, the giddy high of ownership settling into stark reality. Had I really dropped $500 (yes, I got the bundle) for this console just to play Mario Kart? And if so -- now what?
It was earlier at the Switch 2 launch in San Francisco where I spoke briefly with Bill Trinen, Nintendo of America's VP of Player and Product Experience, about how the game company planned to keep players excited after the midnight launch confetti settled.
"We've got over 20 games launching on day 1," said Trinen. "That includes Mario Kart World, but that also includes a lot of games from some really important publishing and development partners."
"Really, it's gonna be all about number one: the games we're launching with."
Bill Trinen, Nintendo of America's VP of Player and Product Experience
And that's true: Switch 2 owners can immediately play big titles like Cyberpunk 2077 and Street Fighter 6, and indie titles like Deltarune, all formatted for the Switch 2, along with upgraded versions of Switch classics like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. But those are far from brand new games. In fact, beyond Mario Kart World and the $10 Welcome Party tutorial game, Nintendo can't claim any new titles until Donkey Kong Bananza is released in July. (Donkey Kong was admittedly the game Trinen was most excited to play as well.) What else is there?
That question doesn't seem to worry the company. Trinen continued, "Because Nintendo Switch 2 plays all your existing Nintendo Switch games, and because so many of those games are getting either upgrade packs […] or some are getting free updates, for a lot of people, just going back and revisiting some of those games is going to be a great experience."
And that ultimately turned out to be true, for me at least. Even without cool Zelda Joy-Cons or a fancier OLED screen, I'm finding a lot of joy revisiting my library with the power of the Switch 2. After winning a few Cups in Grand Prix mode in MKW, I decided to visit my friends in Dreamlight Valley and was dazzled by the quick loading times and how much smoother it played compared to my original Switch.
Hello Kity Island Adventure runs great on the Nintendo Switch 2.
Sunblink/Sanrio
The same was true when I hopped over to Hello Kitty Island Adventure. One of my seatmates flying back from Summer Game Fest was happily blasting away in Cyberpunk 2077, a game my home computer struggles to play without overheating, on his own Switch 2.
So even if what's next is technically a lot of the same games (at least until July), I'm still happy with my decision, and that's before I even get to explore GameChat and mouse mode.
But I do hope we won't have to wait too much longer for truly new experiences, especially for us cozy gamers. With the San Francisco Nintendo store covered in Pikmin merch, as well as Pikmin Bloom pop-ups, well, popping up around the world, I assumed it was a sure bet Nintendo was going to have some cuddly surprises at launch for those of us not punching each other in Yakuza 0. But so far, Nintendo has shown neither hide nor Slowpoke tail of the new cozy variety.
In fact, the reason I was initially holding out on buying the system at launch was that I still remember the sting of finally buying a 3DS XL in 2013, only for Nintendo to release the Animal Crossing: New Leaf edition with a cute pattern and preinstalled game a few months later.
So fine, Nintendo. Take your time for now. Just promise me there will be more Tom Nook in my future.
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