A Switch 2 Direct is scheduled for April 2nd.

At long last, Nintendo officially announced one of the worst kept secrets in recent memory. The Nintendo Switch 2 was officially revealed today after months of rumors and some extreme leaks that ranged everywhere from case designs to actual photos of the Switch 2's motherboard and other internals.

The worst part about today's announcement is that Nintendo shared next to no information about the Switch 2. The trailer announcing the device hinted at some of its new functionality.

We know from the trailer that the Nintendo Switch 2 is larger than the original Switch. It also appears as though the Switch 2 Joy-Cons can be used as a makeshift mouse, or mice. There is also a new square "button" on the right Joy-Con this go around. Its functionality remains unknown. It's also possible that it's not a button but rather a tiny trackpad, similar to that on the upcoming Lenovo Legion Go S.


The Nintendo Switch 2 also includes two USB-C ports. One sits on the top while the other is on the bottom of the device.

The Switch 2 will also be backwards compatible with most original Nintendo Switch titles. This includes both digital and physical Nintendo Switch games. Nintendo did not yet specify which Switch titles may not be compatible with the Switch 2 just yet.

We also got a look in the trailer at a new Mario Kart title, presumably Mario Kart 9. This would be the first new Mario Kart title released in over a decade. Its predecessor, Mario Kart 8, first released in 2014 for the Wii U. Nintendo then re-released Mario Kart 8, as Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, for the Switch in 2017.

The end of the trailer says that there will be a special Nintendo Direct on April 2, 2025 that will be Switch 2 focused. I assume they wanted to avoid hosting the Direct on April Fools day just to avoid any potential doubts about their announcements.

There will also be several popup events for the Switch 2 held in April. These events, dubbed the Nintendo Switch 2 Experience, will give you an opportunity to try out the Switch 2 before the rest of the world. Events will be held starting on April 4th. Ticket registrations for the event will open on January 17 at 12PM PT.

The last reveal evident from the trailer is that Nintendo hopes to release the Nintendo Switch 2 in 2025. With the Switch 2 Direct taking place in early April, it's likely we'll get a more firm release date at that point.