File: A guest plays Mariokart World with the new Nintendo Switch 2 video-game console system of Japanese video-game company Nintendo during the worldwide presentation at the Grand Palais in Paris on April 2, 2025. (Photo by Dimitar Dilkoff / AFP)
American customers will be able to preorder the Switch 2 starting Thursday at the system’s originally advertised price of $450, Nintendo announced, easing concerns that the Trump administration’s tariff policies would disrupt sales of the hotly anticipated console. But US gamers can still expect to pay more for some accessories.
Nintendo abruptly postponed US preorders for the console two weeks ago - days before they were set to start on April 9 in most countries - saying it needed to gauge the potential effects of President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff plan on imported goods.
The company was one of the first to publicly adjust plans for a major consumer release due to the tariffs, which the president has since partially suspended on some countries Nintendo uses to manufacture its products.
The Switch 2, an upgraded successor to massively popular Switch, launches June 5.
"We apologize for the retail pre-order delay,” Nintendo said in Friday’s statement, "and hope this reduces some of the uncertainty our customers may be experiencing.”
The prices of the system and its games "Mario Kart World” and "Donkey Kong Bananza” will remain the same for now. But the statement noted accessory prices have increased "due to changes in market conditions.”
"Other adjustments to the price of any Nintendo product are also possible in the future depending on market conditions,” the statement said.
Some accessories are now $5 to $10 more expensive for Americans.The Switch 2 dock set, which connects the console to a TV, now sells for $120, an increase of $10, according to an archived version of the US online store. The camera now costs $55, and the Pro Controller will sell for $85, up from $80.
Canadian preorders will also begin Thursday after a similar pause. Nintendo’s statement did not announce any changes to accessory prices for Canadians.
The price of the system, and its $80 price tag for "Mario Kart World” - $10 higher than the industry standard for such games - set off some debate among fans even before the tariff announcement.
In an interview with The Washington Post, Nintendo of America’s president, Doug Bowser, said the game’s price was part of a renewed "variable pricing” approach to the company’s titles. That hasn’t satisfied some fans, who flooded YouTube and Twitch chats for a Nintendo Direct presentation about the game this week with calls to "drop the price.”
Nintendo has spread its supply chain across various countries. According to Nintendo’s online store, the camera’s country of origin is Vietnam, and the Pro Controller comes from Cambodia. Products from those countries initially faced steep "reciprocal” tariffs under the president’s first announced plan, which were since paused. A flat 10 percent tariff remains in place globally, with much higher additional levies on most products from China.
