Update: Nintendo Delays Switch 2 Pre-Orders in North America Amid Tariff Concerns, June 5th Release Date Remains Unchanged
Posted on April 08 2025 by Rod Lloyd
Update: In a statement to news outlet MobileSyrup, Nintendo of Canada confirmed that “pre-orders for Nintendo Switch 2 in Canada will not start on April 9, 2025 in order to align with the timing of pre-orders to be determined in the US.” Echoing Nintendo of America’s statement from last week, the company promised “updated information at a later date” and confirmed that the system’s “launch date of June 5, 2025 is unchanged.”
Jonathan Ore of the CBC had previously reported that pre-orders in Canada would be available on April 9th as planned.
Original: Nintendo is delaying its Switch 2 pre-order plans in the United States following Tuesday’s announcement of sweeping new tariffs by President Donald Trump.
In a statement issued to the Verge, Nintendo of America representatives confirmed that pre-orders for the Switch 2 in the US will not be available on April 9th as originally planned:
Pre-orders for Nintendo Switch 2 in the U.S. will not start April 9, 2025 in order to assess the potential impact of tariffs and evolving market conditions. Nintendo will update timing at a later date. The launch date of June 5, 2025 is unchanged.
While the statement clearly applies to pre-orders made through participating retailers in the US, it is unclear if pre-orders made through Nintendo’s website will be affected. As of the time of writing, the Switch 2’s June 5th release date and price of $449.99 USD have not changed.
Nintendo’s decision follows Trump’s announcement of tariffs on “nearly all US trading partners,” including China, Vietnam, and Cambodia. Just last week, the Financial Times reported that Nintendo shifted half of its Switch 2 production to Vietnam and Cambodia, partly to side-step Trump’s ongoing trade war with China. Tuesday’s announcement has undercut that strategy. While the true impact of these new tariffs on the Switch 2 beyond pre-order delays is yet to be seen, economists are already speculating on a price increase.
Though analysts speculated that, in setting the system’s $449.99 USD price tag, Nintendo was already anticipating future tariffs, Nintendo of America President Doug Bowser confirmed to The Verge on Thursday that “any previous tariffs were not factored into the price itself.”
Zelda Dungeon will continue to provide updates as this situation develops.
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Source: The Verge (via Nintendo Life)
Editor’s Note: This article has been edited to include a quote from Nintendo of America’s Doug Bowser.
Rod Lloyd is the Editor-In-Chief at Zelda Dungeon, overseeing the news and feature content for the site. Rod is considered the veteran of the writing team, having started writing for Zelda Informer in 2014 as a Junior Editor. After ZD and ZI officially merged in 2017, he stepped into the Managing Editor role and has helped steer the ship ever since. He stepped up to lead the writing team as Editor-In-Chief in 2023.
You can reach Rod at: rod.lloyd@zeldadungeon.net
