Nintendo said Friday that the Switch 2 will cost $50 more, with the increase taking effect in Japan on May 25 and in the US, Canada and Europe on Sept. 1. The console is less than a year old.
The move lands after a brisk first year for the machine, which has sold close to 20 million units and moved close to 15 million copies of launch games. On Wednesday, Nintendo also announced a lush remake of Star Fox 64, helping fill out a relatively sparse Switch 2 lineup for the rest of the year.
The price change makes Nintendo the last holdout in a console market already shaken by rising costs tied to tariffs and a global memory shortage. Microsoft raised the prices of the Xbox and its various accessories last spring, and the cost of a PS5 has risen multiple times over the last year. Even budget devices like the Nex Playground now cost more.
Nintendo had started by raising the price of the original Switch, a few accessories and the Alarmo alarm clock, trying to offset lost revenue before touching the new system. The company is also suing the US government over its tariffs and is demanding a prompt refund, with interest.
The timing matters because holiday months remain a huge sales period for game consoles, and Nintendo is now asking buyers to absorb another increase before that stretch begins. The company unveiled the Switch 2 on the same day as President Trump’s initial sweeping tariffs, and it is now betting that demand will still hold even as the price climbs again.
