Nintendo announced today that the new Nintendo Switch system will launch worldwide on March 3, 2017 at a suggested retail price of $299.99 in the United States.
The system will include the main console, Joy-Con (L) and Joy-Con (R) controllers, a Joy-Con grip (to which two Joy-Con are attached and used as one controller), a set of Joy-Con wrist straps, a Nintendo Switch dock (which holds the main console and connects it to a TV), an HDMI cable and an AC adapter. Two stylish versions of the system will be released: a version with a set of gray Joy-Con, and a version with one neon blue and one neon red Joy-Con. Both versions will be the same price.
“Nintendo Switch is a brand-new kind of home gaming system that offers a wide variety of play modes,” said Nintendo President Tatsumi Kimishima. “We will introduce the world to new experiences made possible by the unique characteristics of the Nintendo Switch hardware and the Joy-Con.”
Nintendo Switch is a breakthrough home video game system. It not only connects to a TV at home, but it also instantly transforms into an on-the-go handheld using its 6.2-inch screen. For the first time, players can enjoy a full home-console experience anytime, anywhere. The screen includes capacitive multi-touch capabilities for compatible games. Battery life can last for more than six hours, but will vary depending on the software and usage conditions. For example, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild can be played for roughly three hours on a single charge. While away from home, Nintendo Switch can be charged by plugging the AC adapter into the console’s USB Type-C connector.
The versatile Joy-Con offer multiple surprising new ways for players to have fun. Two Joy-Con can be used independently in each hand, or together as one game controller when attached to the Joy-Con grip. They can also attach to the main console for use in handheld mode, or be shared with friends to enjoy two-player action in supported games. Each Joy-Con has a full set of buttons and can act as a standalone controller, and each includes an accelerometer and gyro-sensor, making independent left and right motion control possible.
Nintendo Switch also contains a number of built-in features that make it more interactive. The left Joy-Con has a Capture Button that players can press to take instant screenshots of gameplay to share with friends on social media. The right Joy-Con includes an NFC touchpoint for interaction with amiibo figures, as well as an IR Motion Camera that can detect the distance, shape and motion of nearby objects in specially designed games. For example, it can tell how far away a player’s hand is, and even if the hand is forming a rock, paper or scissors shape. Both Joy-Con include advanced HD Rumble, which can provide compatible games with subtle vibrations that are much more realistic than before. The effect is so detailed that a player could, for example, feel the sensation of individual ice cubes colliding inside a glass when shaking a Joy-Con. With HD Rumble players can experience a level of realism not possible through sights and sounds alone.
Nintendo Switch makes it easy for players to stay connected. Up to eight systems can be connected for local wireless play. The player can place the system upright anywhere by using the built-in stand, then easily share Joy-Con for multiplayer fun away from the TV. The system will support online Wi-Fi multiplayer gaming. Nintendo also unveiled a new online subscription service that will begin with a free trial at launch. The service includes a smart-device application available in Summer 2017 that will let users invite friends to play online, set play appointments and chat with one another as they play compatible games. The fully featured paid service will be available in the fall.
Nintendo Switch will be supported by world-class third-party publishers including Activision Publishing Inc., Electronic Arts, Take-Two Interactive, Ubisoft, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and major Japanese publishers. Some publishers, such as Bethesda Softworks, are joining Nintendo for the first time. Players can look forward to major franchises on Nintendo Switch such as EA SPORTS FIFA, The Elder Scrolls, NBA 2K, Minecraft and more. Nintendo Switch software will not be region locked.
The unique capabilities of the console and Joy-Con have combined with innovations from past systems to create Nintendo’s most flexible, feature-packed video game system ever. This is demonstrated by the wide variety of unique games that were announced for launch day, this summer and into the 2017 holiday season, from both Nintendo and its third-party partners. From the engrossing open-air experience of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild to the party fun of 1-2-Switch, Nintendo Switch offers something for everyone.
Select First-Party Games
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild: Prepare for the biggest Legend of Zelda adventure yet, with an open-air style that breaks new boundaries while honoring the origins of the acclaimed series. Explore a world of unprecedented size and discover more than 100 puzzle-filled Shrines of Trials, plus a wide variety of weapons, outfits and gear. Players won’t want to stop playing, and they won’t have to since Nintendo Switch allows them to continue the adventure anywhere, anytime.
The game is compatible with Zelda 30th Anniversary series amiibo, the Wolf Link amiibo (which will be re-issued as a standalone amiibo on Feb. 3) and the new Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild series amiibo. In addition to the previously announced Link (Rider), Link (Archer) and Guardian amiibo, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild series amiibo will also include new Zelda and Bokoblin amiibo. The amiibo in this series carry a suggested retail price of $15.99, except for the massive Guardian amiibo, which has a suggested retail price of $19.99.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild will provide players with a landmark Nintendo Switch experience on the system’s launch day in March, and will be available as a standard edition, Special Edition and Master Edition. The Special Edition includes the game, a Nintendo Switch Sheikah Slate Carrying Case, Sheikah Eye Collectible Coin, Relic of Hyrule: Calamity Ganon Tapestry and Weather-Worn Map, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Sound Selection CD for a suggested retail price of $99.99. The Master Edition includes all of those items plus a Master Sword of Resurrection figure, and has a suggested retail price of $129.99.
1-2-Switch: This is the first Nintendo video game in which players compete in fun activities while staring into each other’s eyes instead of at the TV screen. From Wild West gunslinging to copying each other’s dance moves, the games in 1-2-Switch make creative use of a broad variety of Nintendo Switch features to liven up parties with anyone, anywhere, at any time. 1-2-Switch will be available alongside the Nintendo Switch system on its launch day in March.
ARMS: Featuring a unique multiplayer fighting sport that lets players trade blows using extendable arms, this game includes elements of both boxing and shooting games, plus a new cast of characters. After customizing a character with a variety of arms, the player holds one Joy-Con in each hand and throws left and right punches at the opponent. Characters can jump and dash, and players can bend their punches by twisting their hands as they swing. As players learn the game and improve their skills, they will discover a deeper level of advanced tactics. Players can compete against the computer, against a friend on a split screen using a second set of Joy-Con (sold separately), against worldwide rivals online, or with two Nintendo Switch systems over a local wireless connection. ARMS will be available this Spring.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe: With Nintendo Switch, fans can enjoy the definitive version of Mario Kart 8 anywhere, anytime, even with up to eight friends in local wireless multiplayer. All your favorite tracks and characters return from the Wii U version, plus all DLC tracks and characters, and new characters join the roster, too: Inkling Girl and Inkling Boy from Splatoon, as well as King Boo, Dry Bones and Bowser Jr.! Plus, Battle mode has been revamped and includes Balloon Battle and Bob-omb Blast, with new courses such as Urchin Underpass and Battle Stadium, and returning ones like GCN Luigi’s Mansion and SNES Battle Course 1. Players can now carry two items at a time, including new items returning from previous Mario Kart games such as Boo (the item-stealing ghost) and the Feather, which gives players a high jump in Battle mode. Players can even choose to use a new Smart Steering feature, which makes driving and staying on the track easy for novice players and kids, even at 200cc. Play in TV mode in up to 1080p. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe launches in April.
Splatoon 2: Traditional 4-on-4 turf battles return in this full sequel to the original breakout hit game, along with new stages, new fashions and new weapons such as the two-handed Splat Dualies. Players can compete on the TV or on the go. Whether they use the Nintendo Switch Pro Controller (sold separately) or Joy-Con, players can aim their ink using gyro controls. Splatoon 2 supports both local and online multiplayer matches. The game will also support voice chat using the new Nintendo Switch smart device app (a free, limited version of the app will be available this summer), and will add new stages, fashions and weapons after launch, as the original game did. Splatoon 2 is scheduled to launch this summer.
Super Mario Odyssey: This is the first sandbox game that allows Mario to fully explore his world since Super Mario 64 on Nintendo 64 and Super Mario Sunshine on Nintendo GameCube. Mario jumps out of the Mushroom Kingdom and embarks on a journey through mysterious new places and new experiences, such as sailing between worlds aboard an airship and the ability to throw Mario’s cap. Super Mario Odyssey is scheduled to launch during the 2017 holiday season.
Snipperclips – Cut it out, together!: In this creative new kind of Action-Puzzle game, players communicate, cooperate and use their imaginations to solve basic and advanced puzzles by cutting paper characters into new shapes. People can play solo or with a friend in the main game, then bring in a bigger group to solve up to four-player dynamic puzzles or compete in other activities. Snipperclips – Cut it out, together! will release in March exclusively in Nintendo eShop.
For more information about Nintendo Switch, including a video of the announcements, visit http://www.nintendo.com/switch.
Source: Nintendo PR
Has anyone seen the BotW Master Edition for preorder yet?
Gamestop had it up last night, but it looks like it’s not available now.
Thanks. I just got one from Bestbuy. Thankfully they didn’t list it until just now.
It’s kind of up on Best Buy… Can’t seem to place an order though
It probably sold out as you were trying to order your own.
Thought you all might want to know that:
PREORDERS ARE UP ON BEST BUY’S WEBSITE
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/video-games/nintendo-switch/pcmcat1476977522176.c?id=pcmcat1476977522176&pageType=REDIRECT&issolr=1&searchRedirect=nintendo+switch
Buying the console at launch is a horrible idea.
If it were any other manufacturer I would agree. But this is Nintendo we’re talking about here, their failure rates are always <1%.
Besides, it will have the definitive version of Zelda and Mario later this year. I don't see an issue with it especially if you plan on getting it later. It's definitely better than Super Mario Bros U and Nintendo Land.
Well yes dude. Nintendo always do better at some point.
Mario, yes, but Zelda is a launch title on Switch so not later this year for that.
Yeah. This is not going to do shit for Nintendo’s install base. This is not the Savior-console you were looking for. I mean wow. Underwhelmed. And I am NOT fucking falling for the whole Xenoblade bullshit again. I waited so many years for that game. It was worth the wait, but not worth buying WiiU at launch. I’m waiting for a Xenoblade US release, and buying the Switch Bundle that will almost certainly be available.
I might buy one of the Switch BotW deluxe versions though. I mean, for when I pick one up in holiday of 2018.
Same goes for me 2017 holiday.
Are you always this much of a buzzkill?
Agreed. I cancelled my preorder as sadly…..I can’t see this succeeding at this price point.
Well good thing I don’t pre-order my switch so I’m gonna wait for the right moment to get it. Not at launch but I’m gonna get it in may just in case they ask for tax once you buy it. So I’m saving 400$ just in case they ask for tax. I’m aware of that. :/
I was gonna disagree with you. That is until they went on record saying NETFLIX, YOUTUBE, HULU or any other app wont be ready by launch!! We’ll have to wait & see when Apps will be available for the Switch.
“….we’re gonna have to wait & see when Apps are gonna be available?” we’re not speaking about comcast, showtime or hbo. Just regular fucking apps! On a tablet!
Fucking nintendo!!!
Well then this might be a right time to save up for the switch my friends.
If I had to sum up the presentation, I’d say it wasn’t super good, but it wasn’t super disappointing either. There were some good things, but also some things that were missing. Like, there weren’t many launch titles, if we’re honest here. In fact, there weren’t many games in general I feel, especially for a console that’s so close to launching. Also, what about some info on the console itself? No footage of the UI and all. Will we still have Miiverse – or Miis at all? Are we completely getting rid of friend codes? Will unified accounts finally happen?
Things I personally found to be really good were Mario, and the new Square Enix game looked pretty nice too. Xenoblade 2 honestly didn’t look too appealing to me in terms of visuals, and I haven’t played the previous Xenoblade games, so I’m not really excited for it so far, but we’ll have to see about it. I’m not interested in Warriors games, never played Shin Megami Tensei so I’m not feeling anything in particular about it. Zelda looked amazing, but it’s not really anything new, ya know? But voice acting in the video was fantastic, just like the music; loved it. But yea, I’ll probably stick to the WiiU version, honestly.
As for the early launch of the console, it wouldn’t be a bad thing, if it didn’t seem rushed, seeing how there were barely any launch titles announced.
About the paid online service, it honestly doesn’t bother me too much, as long as Nintendo delivers and we actually get a good online infrastructure and a good online multiplayer experience, compared to the shitty online we had up until now; I want it to be worth the money.
Though what truly disappointed me – no Animal Crossing… yet again… :(
But ya, that probably sums up my personal view on the whole presentation.
As far as post-presentation info goes, the controllers seem extremely overpriced and the internal storage of the system way too small.
Also, the free game offered with the paid online subscription. It’s “only“ one game, plus, it’s “only“ a NES or SNES game, which are worth just a couple bucks anyway. But if that’s a good or a bad thing will be determined by the price Nintendo will be asking for the subcription.
To conclude it all, I really doubt I’ll get the Switch at launch, simply because there aren’t enough games I’d be interested in, and I’m not going to buy a whole new console at launch just for one game. Most likely gonna wait for the Mario Odyssey release, hopefully there will be more interesting games on the horizon by then, especially from Nintendo themselves. And seeing how Mario is set for the holiday season, I might get a nice deal too, so waiting really seems to be the all-around better option to me personally.
As far as Virtual Console goes, I would absolutely love it if Nintendo introduced a subscription based on demand platform similar to Netflix where you get unlimited access to all of the games in the catalogue for a monthly fee.
Also wouldn’t it be awesome if Nintendo added an achievement system and put the VC games on it! I would absolutely lose my fucking mind trying to ‘Platinum’ all of my favorite games!
Why are people still wondering about friendcodes? Are they really dumb enough, nintendo will be stupid enough to force that onto us for another generation? We didn’t even ave friendcodes on Wii U Ya’lll remember?
I asked if we’re completely getting rid of them, and in the very following phrase, I asked about unified accounts. The 3DS had friend codes, if you can remember, and I was considering the possibility of connecting your older Nintendo devices and accounts with the Switch, which includes the 3DS. I am aware of the WiiU using NNIDs but as mentioned above, I asked if we’re getting rid of the whole FC thing entirely, which means, I was basically asking if we would never have to have anything to do with them ever again, not if the Switch itself would use friend codes. :)
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WHAT!?!? MOTHERFUCKER!!! FINALLY GONNA BE RELEASED SEPARATELY IN THE US NEXT MONTH!!!*goes to see how much I paid to get Wolf Link amiibo a month or two back* Fuck, fuck, fuck! I paid $23.95 for mine..! …. *thinks for a minute* WORTH IT!!! D:<
I fucking want that Master Sword of Resurrection figure! I can put it right next to my Master Sword stylus with the Pedestal of Time & sound effects thingy!
Breath of the Wild, Mario Kart 8: Deluxe, Splatoon 2, Super Mario Odyssey, & no telling what else I’ll want that probably hasn’t even been revealed yet!
I have no clue how you are this excited over what we just saw.
Because he is actually lightening up and not being a sour grape.
I can and often am a sour grape. I’ll grant you that. I’ll try to not be overly negative for a week or so, but Nintendo better pull some more games out of their ass or this WILL be a WiiU repeat.
Thank you.
As long as the Wii U repeat is only for 2017, I’m good. If it’s in 2018, too… *twitch*
*right eye twitch**Fixed.
There’s nothing wrong with being a little realistic about things and seeing the disappointing presentation for what it is. It just so happens that while loads of people liked it, many also were disappointed like me and him. So please refrain from calling anyone who criticizes nintendo or is negative in any way a “sour grape” as it makes you sound like a massive fanboy who just wants everyone to be 100% positive about the while thing.
“I have no clue how you are this excited over what we just saw.”
That’s not being realistic, that’s getting at someone for liking it.
At the same time, what he said wasn’t especially offensive either but I see your point. I think both sides should just leave each other alone for now and calm down…myself included.
>.< Me & Jaded are on great terms and have a mutual understanding, so unlike some other cretins on here, he's not gonna get any heat from me. That & I understand how he feels so I don't hold it against him for not being as excited by the reveal. If the presentation didn't reveal what I wanted or gave a very strong hint as to what I wanted, I wouldn't be nearly as excited as I have been in the last 12 or so hours. That & if I was in his position, I'd still be hesitant.
I can understand why we are overhyped for Zelda. I truly have No idea how he is so hyped for Switch. I really don’t know how most of you are.
Still, I don’t have to piss in his lemonade on the first day. Lol. That does teeter in asshole territory. But don’t get too comfortable, cause Imma going to be sure the scales stay balanced and Nintendo never gets comfortable until they stop pulling shit on their fans, especially the ones that don’t know better! D;
thats what i want to nintendo from some people.
I appreciate your support and I am a VERY realistic, calculated person, and a very old-school gamer. However he was pretty nice about how he wrote his comment, and it is the week of the switch release. I can tone it back for a short time. I wouldn’t be here handing out shit if I couldn’t take some shit right back. Haha.
Funny thing, I was a Nintendo priest back in the Gamecube days and earlier. It wasn’t until we got fucked with the 3DS that I went AWOL. (Most won’t remember that, especially given the 3DS’ current state of Epicness)
It wasn’t til Wii U that I truly lost my cool & trust with Nintendo and that was in the middle of the system’s life. If I had lost it as soon as you did at the beginning of 3DS’ life, I’d probably be still waiting til later in the year to buy the Switch since you’ve had a lot more time than me to be continuously let down by them. But make no mistake, I’m still gonna be giving the screws to Nintendo when they do something I don’t like. It’s not gonna be like it was before 2015 where I was still highly defensive of Ninty. I can’t go back to those days. So I got the backs of you & others that are still not giving Nintendo an inch. Unless it’s gamingfan2009 or sonicgalaxy27, though. Those two suck and are whining over the stupidest of things like “it’s too expensive” or “I don’t like the features I won’t ever use.” And as for the ones upset with paying for online, well it sucks for them. xD
I wanted region locking gone; it is. I wanted it to be at least 300 or more bucks; it is. I wanted a better universal account system; it’s most likely got that since we will be paying for online later in the year. These were the main things I wanted from the Switch & if I got them, I was gonna think about getting it day 1; I was hesitant to preorder it today for a few minutes so I did that, too. And since I got a PS4 with a backlog of games, I feel perfectly comfortable getting the Switch day 1 as the drought won’t bother me as much as it did Wii U. Oh & keeping my expectations extremely low did wonders for me. lol I understand how you feel, though, as the presentation did have it’s weak spots but, for me, they were overshadowed by the good I saw. It sucks you couldn’t get as excited as me but I hope that will change for you & others in the next 8-16 months. With any luck, Nintendo held back some of the reveals so they’ll have something to show during E3 & that will be what gets others still on the fence to jump over. Might be grasping at straws but Nintendo has done a few surprises in the last year. First Zelda with the break from the old Zelda formula. Super Mario with open world instead of the old map for levels or hub world scenario of every single Mario before Odyssey.
I think I’m way too hyped right now. QUICK!!! *holds out a steel bat* SOMEONE HOMERUN MY HEAD!!!
*Winds up, smash.* KREEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
….Smash reference.
Didn’t work but nice try.
You countered didn’t you?
Who the hell buys a console on launch? Consoles should be bought a couple of years after launch. When there are actually good games already released. I’m only interested in ONE game so far. I won’t buy a console for one game I’ll be done with in a week.
One game. That is The Legend of Zelda Breath of The Wild? Because I would count that as 5 games of content.
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why did you forget to mention the internet? We have to pay to play game on their crappy servers
But when xbox does it its OK?
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this a good promise from nintendo. i guess they can’t ignore there fans.
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