It looks like Switch 2 pre-orders may not go live immediately following this week’s Nintendo Direct presentation, after all. Just days after a Canadian retailer suggested Switch 2 pre-orders would go live on April 2, a US retailer claims pre-orders will actually be available from April 9.
The “large US retailer” also suggests the console will launch in June, and that pre-orders are expected to sell out on day one. That’s according to a report on Insider Gaming, which claims to have seen internal documents and emails from the unnamed US retailer. The US retailer was not named in the report.
According to the report, the documents are said to include a messaging strategy that will be shared with customers following the April 2 Nintendo Direct. This includes a message telling customers that pre-orders are coming soon, as well as a countdown clock ending on April 9.
Pre-order customers will reportedly receive a collectable coin when purchasing the console ahead of launch.
More worrying is the suggestion that pre-orders will sell out on day-one, although we won’t know for sure until Nintendo officially shares the details as part of the imminent Nintendo Direct conference.
Taking place on April 2, the Nintendo Direct will also give fans a look at some of the games available at launch and shortly after.
Nintendo recently held a separate Direct conference, which was dedicated to games launching for the original Switch.
This included a look at Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, as well as Pokemon Legends: Z-A, Witchbrook and Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream.
Outside of game announcements, Nintendo revealed a new Virtual Game Card system, which lets users transfer and loan out digital games purchased through the eShop.
Nintendo explains more: “Similar in concept to moving physical game cards between consoles, virtual game cards make it possible to ‘eject’ a purchased digital title from one Nintendo Switch and ‘load’ it onto another – whether it belongs to a member of the same Nintendo Account family group, or it’s a second console tied to your account.”
According to Nintendo, the new system will be available as part of a system update in late April. It’s also expected to be available for the Switch 2.