Perhaps we’ve been thinking the same thing, you and I. That there won’t be a long-standing drought of Nintendo Switch 2 availability after all. The console has been easy to buy online from several retailers this week, including Best Buy, Target, and Walmart. Amazon, which didn’t sell the Switch 2 at launch, is currently selling it by invitation only.
The console’s messy preorder process and spotty launch availability made it feel a little like late 2020 all over again, when the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and Nvidia RTX 30-series GPUs launched in extremely limited quantities due to component shortages. However, Nintendo appears to have adjusted the right dials to boost production quickly enough to meet US demand. The company reportedly delayed the Switch 2’s planned late-2024 launch to build up stock, according to Nikkei (translated by VGC). If that’s true, that decision seems to have paid off for customers.
The increased flow of consoles seemed to coincide with the launch of Donkey Kong Bananza, Nintendo’s latest Switch 2 exclusive. By then, the Switch 2 had already set sales records, becoming the fastest selling game hardware in US history, according to details from marketing firm Circana. Nintendo sold 1.6 million units within its first month in the US alone (it sold a record 3.5 million consoles globally in its first four days). That’s impressive, considering how much skepticism there was about whether its high $449.99 price ($499.99 if you want a bundle with Mario Kart World) would turn away would-be buyers.
If stock were still tough to come by, we’d be anticipating some kind of update on the matter during Nintendo’s upcoming August 1st earning’s call. But, thankfully, people across the country can now just buy one online without stressing about it.
