Nintendo‘s flagship Switch 2, the successor to one of its most popular consoles, went on sale on Thursday with excitement and hype from fans leading to special store opening hours and shortages in some markets.
The Japanese gaming giant is hoping the console can help sustain a monster rally in its shares which have risen nearly fivefold since the original Switch was released in March 2017.
Nintendo is also hoping the Switch 2 can match the success of the original Switch, which has sold more than 152 million units and is the second-highest selling device in the company’s history, behind the Nintendo DS.
And current demand looks strong, according to analysts.
“Today is the biggest console launch of all time, so as expected, there is a frenzy of Nintendo fans checking stock availabilities at their local stores or eagerly awaiting deliveries,” George Jijiashvili, senior principal analyst at advisory firm Omdia, told CNBC by email.
The Switch’s popularity is widely credited to its innovative portable design, which merged consoles with mobile gaming. People could play the game on their TV, then attach the controllers to the console’s display and take it with them.
Shortages and late store openings
Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa said in April that 2.2 million people in Japan had entered the lottery to purchase the Switch 2 on launch day.
Furukawa said it was “beyond” Nintendo’s expectations and is more than the company will be able to deliver to stores on Thursday.
The shortages in Japan are expected to persist.
“Demand in Japan for Switch 2 is sky high actually, perhaps higher than anywhere else,” Serkan Toto, CEO of Tokyo-based games consultancy Kantan Games, told CNBC.
“You cannot walk into a store anywhere in Japan to pick up a Switch 2 without a pre-order, and this will not change over the next weeks and months.”
In China, major online retailer JD.com said it had received 400,000 reservations for the console which began shipping on Thursday. Not everyone who reserves a console will end up purchasing one.
In the U.S., Best Buy opened some stores across the country at midnight on Thursday (or late Wednesday depending on the time zone) for in-store purchases. Walmart said it was opening orders at midnight ET online as well as in store at Supercenters at 6 a.m. ET. Walmart’s website currently shows the console as sold out.
Doug Bowser, president of Nintendo of America, told CNBC on Wednesday that the company has been working with “retail partners to ensure there’s ample supply for not only the launch weekend, but well beyond.”
In the U.K., there appears to be more availability. Amazon‘s U.K. page shows the Switch 2 available for delivery on Friday. Other retailers, like Currys and toy store Smyths, also appear to have it in stock.
“Given the pent-up demand, a launch day sell-outs were inevitable. However, we believe Nintendo is well prepared and expect supply to stabilize in the weeks that follow,” Omdia’s Jijiashvili said.
Last month, Nintendo said it expects to sell 15 million units of the Switch 2 console in the fiscal year ending March 2026. However, analysts have said that is conservative.
Kantan Games’ Toto said he is forecasting sales of 20 million units in the first year. Omdia said it is expecting sales of 14.4 million Switch 2 consoles in 2025 alone, which would be ahead of the original Switch’s debut year.
Tariff uncertainty looms
Like most electronics players, Nintendo is keeping an eye on the tariff situation. Nintendo delayed preorders for the Switch 2 in April after U.S. President Donald Trump announced “reciprocal tariffs” on most countries around the world.
The Switch 2 retails for $449 in the U.S., making it Nintendo’s most expensive console to date.
Nintendo’s Bowser said the company was going to “monitor where tariffs are going” before making any further decisions on whether to raise the price. He said consumers should expect to pay the current price for the Switch 2 but did not rule out any future hikes.
“The price that you see right now is the price that you can be expecting in the future. Of course, tariffs could change that in the future,” Bowser said.
— CNBC’s Teddy Farkas contributed to this report.
Read More: Shortages, special opening hours amid hype