What are you most excited for from Nintendo Switch 2? | Team Talk

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The second of the recent Nintendo Directs brought a smattering of technical details, a few game reveals, and plenty of distinctly Nintendo bits and pieces to get us interested in the new Nintendo Switch 2.

As well as that we got a release date and price: 5 June and £399.99 – unless world trade changes things before then, of course.

So, what did you make of it? Are you more or less excited now? Does the price make you think twice? Natter about it in the Discord.

​by Team PTC

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@pass_controller

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Better handheld experience and Donkey Kong | James Parry​

While the Switch OLED I currently have is serving me well, and I'm not planning to snap up the Switch 2 on launch day, I am looking forward to the boost in both performance and features for Nintendo's next handheld.

The introduction of Game Chat as a shiny new feature almost made me laugh out loud – as if you could pitch such a thing as innovative in 2025 – but the current chat system through the mobile app is staggeringly clunky, so it's still a welcome change.

I can't imagine many will go the whole way and pick up the pricey webcam to go with it, but for some families separated by geography, this will be a nice way to bring people together.

We have a bigger, brighter, 1080p screen to enjoy with the same thickness, though despite a bigger battery early reports suggest battery life will be the same or slightly worse, which is a bit of a disappointment.

On the games front, Mario Kart World will no doubt be a lot of fun, though more than likely also more of the same. Where we have something new to try is with Donkey Kong Bananza, the first platforming outing for the charismatic gorilla since 2014’s Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze.

For some, the extra USB-C to allow charging in tabletop mode will be a boon, until now that configuration has always forced you to sit too close to make the most of it for me. Perhaps the larger screen will solve that problem.

In all Switch 2 has a few promising things to say and yet is still a familiar, safe iteration rather than a revolution. But, then again, what do you expect from a sequel?

GameCube titles and improved Switch games | Liam Andrews

One of the biggest highlights for me from the Direct was GameCube games being added to the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pass. The GameCube was probably my favourite console so I’m very happy to see it finally being added to NSO, and the initial library of games looks good.
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The inclusion of The Wind Waker as a launch title pretty much confirms we’re never getting a port of the Wii U HD remaster, but it’s such a fantastic game I will more than happily play the original version again.

My other highlight was upgraded versions of old Switch games. As someone who still hasn’t gotten around to playing ​The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, I’m quite glad I ended up waiting as I now get to experience it with updated visuals and improved performance.

Releasing the upgraded games as more expensive Switch 2 versions was a bit disappointing, but the being able to access them through the NSO Expansion Pass softens the blow somewhat.

Donkey Kong Bananza was another title that looked great, I liked the mix of 2D and 3D platforming and the destructible environment seems like it’s going to be a lot of fun to play with.

I am also extremely happy to see the new Pro Controller will finally have a headphone jack!

Mario Kart World | Chris Brand

The big reveal of the true function of The Mystery Button™ was rather anti-climactic after I'd hyped myself up imagining the endless possibilities.

As someone who hasn't owned a Nintendo console in months (hundreds and hundreds of months), I wasn't aware that game chat was a big enough request to warrant its own dedicated button. Maybe Nintendo folks are just more friendly than everyone else?

Putting aside my gripes about the Button of Disappointment, Mario Kart World looks like the game everyone wanted without realising it.

It's quite a departure from the standard kart racing fare, with discrete tracks connected by an open world and a whopping 24 players able to compete at once. It sounds genuinely chaotic, which is where Mario Kart really shines.
I think things may have fallen apart for a lot of people when the cost of everything was revealed.

A higher price for the console itself is not too surprising (and, from what we've seen, it's justified too) but the pricing of first-party games is higher than expected and Nintendo does an Astrobot – a glorified tech demo showing off the Switch 2 itself – having a price tag at all just smacks of corporate greed.

Has the world's richest plumber run into financial problems? Sonic the Hedgehog doesn't even have his own console anymore but that dude can still afford to fund three films.

The flip side of this is Nintendo's new GameShare feature, which allows you to share select titles with friends who don't own said titles. It may be the case that the price point for games is higher to mitigate their losses for implementing this feature, in which case it's understandable, but will still leave a bitter taste in the mouths of fans.​