Nintendo Doesn’t Rule Out Switch 2 Price Hike After Soft Outlook

Nintendo hinting at a possible increase in the price of Switch 2 may not have sat well with people giving lukewarm sales forecasts. Is gaming for the next generation going to have a big price tag now?

A lot of buzz has been generated for Nintendo’s rumored next-gen console, called Switch 2, but whatever the forecast indicates suggests a more tempered launch. The high-demand mind-boggling pre-orders-ringing up to $450 a pop-placing Nintendo into a position of shipping only 15 million consoles by next March, which is a little shy of Bloomberg’s predicted 16.8 million. The cautious forecast extends to operating profit, too, with Nintendo predicting JPY 320 billion ($2.2 billion), less than what the experts anticipated. With all the hype, is it possible Nintendo is intentionally downplaying expectations for what many consider being the fastest-selling console ever?

There has a rumor that the much-awaited Nintendo Switch 2 might enter the shelves of America at something of a higher price. Executives are somewhat worried that Trump-era tariffs will make a comeback, an off-the-wall trade-war factor capable of testing consumers’ patience. Why? Because production has been moved by Nintendo to China, and hence China is now at the heart of Washington’s efforts to impose a new world order on trade. Here comes downpricing!

Nintendo still hasn’t decided to raise prices over in the Land of the Free, so you better hold your breath. Price changes in the future might be happening. Those changes depend: Shuntaro Furukawa attributed it to the fluctuating market conditions. Bloomberg News, meanwhile, added the company is already looking at a tens-of-billions-of-yen profit hit this year due to tariffs, which makes the implication that the next Switch game might cost you more.

Nintendo is not just throwing in a new console; it’s chasing history. The aim? Fast replication of the 15 million units sold by the original Switch in its 10 months of existence-a figure that was never affected by supply constraints, according to the company president, Shuntaro Furukawa. Nintendo is getting in front of production costs and is seriously interested in creating unbelievable demand for its next platform so that it’s set on Mark: Day 1.

Nintendo’s recent forecast is setting up a battleground in the gaming community. Pelham Smithers of Pelham Smithers Associates notes a divided front: optimists see calculated caution, a company downplaying expectations so as not to overpromise. On the other hand, more anxious members fear an engineered shortage for the rumored Switch 2, raising demand through the year. For Smithers, the forecast is less a prediction and more a Rorschach test for the future of Nintendo.

Analyst Furukawa addressed them, telling them that they had been given full momentum to base their hardware off-analysis in spite of the challenges now evident due to its cost.

Nintendo is on the precipice of the next seismic shift, a generational leap from the venerable old Switch of eight years. After years of steady, though not meteoric, profits, the giant in gaming is poised for growth once more. The latest earnings speak of the dust: for the March quarter, a 46 percent peril to the operating profit stood, at JPY 35 billion. This ends a year during which 10.8 million Switches found a new abode, and 155.4 million copies of games changed hands. Now, it is no longerwhetherNintendo shall evolve, buthowshall they change the game.

A frenzy of pre-orders of Switch 2 are responsible for Nintendo’s soaring profits. President Furukawa warns Japanese gamers eager to buy one that there will not be availability on launch day, much like those same ones that sold out in a blink of an eye in numerous US retailers. If you can get one, it’s nearly next-generation.

What Bloomberg Intelligence Says

Clearly, Nintendo’s much too cautious forecast for fiscal 2026, a contrast so stark to analysts’ expectations, has been reported to be a strategic buffering against potential tariff headwinds. Early signs are, however, painting a bright picture for the “Switch 2,” suggesting that pre-orders are surging across Japanese, US, and other key markets. There are growing speculations that Nintendo might go past its ambitious target of 15 million units ahead of time. Software outlooks are promising as well. With some heavy-hitting third-party titles like “Cyberpunk 2077” complementing Nintendo’s first-party juggernauts, the 45 million units’ software target set by Nintendo appears to be an easy hit. This dynamite combo will surely spark upgrades and convert new players from Nintendo’s enormous pool of 366 million users.

Nathan Naidu, BI analyst

Traditionally, the loud social media clamoring and shooting pre-orders almost guarantee the Switch 2 will have blockbuster sales. Yet ominous tariff rumblings with President Trump in the backdrop have cast somewhat of a gloom. Will Nintendo’s seemingly unbeaten launch be affected by this imminent price hike orchestrated by the ongoing trade war? Investors are yet to exhale.

Nintendo’s next-gen console, which is also known as Switch 2, is about to get a price hike or should I say-“higher” price tag. The huge gaming colossus which to a great extent relies on the Chinese factory for the current Switch consoles, has already imposed price hikes on certain Switch 2 accessories in the US. Stay alert, as further increases in prices might be imposed upon us, conditioned on tariff hikes. One of the things that became apparent is that the Switch 2 will be Nintendo’s most expensive console ever.

© 2025 Bloomberg LP

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