Nintendo Switch 2 has arrived to revive the console market. Fears over tariffs weigh on it

(Photo by Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP)

The launch saw an immediate and global response from consumers. In many cities around the world, stores opened at midnight, with long queues of enthusiasts waiting to purchase the new console. Online pre-orders sold out within minutes in key markets such as the UK, France and the US, while in Japan Nintendo had to ask customers to temper their expectations due to the scarcity of units available in stores. CEO Shuntaro Furukawa publicly apologized after the company received over 2.2 million pre-orders, despite access being limited to users with at least 50 hours of playtime on the previous console.

Yet the price of the Switch 2 is much higher than the previous generation: $449.99 (€479.99 for us), 50 percent more.

Demand has not been discouraged, driven by user loyalty and the perception of value of the Nintendo ecosystem.

Jefferies analyst Atul Goyal expects Nintendo to sell 15 million units, in line with the company’s forecast for the fiscal year. Other analysts have forecast 20 million units or more. Nintendo’s stock price has responded to strong demand, rising 32% this year, ignoring the potential impact of the Trump administration’s tariffs.

A good debut, in short. But the context remains difficult. Very different from that of 2017. The video game sector, in fact, is going through a phase of global contraction. In 2024, over 14 thousand developers lost their jobs, with 41% of employees having suffered layoffs or corporate restructuring. According to Newzoo, the global video game market generated 184.3 billion dollars in 2024, with a marginal growth of 0.2% compared to the previous year. All thanks to the mobile segment, which represented 50% of the market, with revenues of 92.5 billion dollars, up 2.8% year over year. On the contrary, the console market recorded a contraction of 4%, falling to 50.3 billion dollars, while the PC sector fell by 0.2%, to 41.5 billion dollars (in Italy the video game market is bucking the trend, in 2024 it grew by 3 percent, to 2.4 billion euros in turnover).