Switch 2: Dismount Woes

Nintendo sold a lot of Switch 2 consoles.

That is fine if they could stick the landing, but there are signs that they can't.

There are reports of the consoles overheating. A common problem for PS5 owners, but Nintendo was spoiled by the lower performance, lower heat Switch. Now that they joined the Frames Per Second Rat Race, they are experiencing something they are unaccustomed to. Chances are they didn't design with low ventilation spaces like cubbys and cupboards in mind, but chances are the Switch 2 is occupying those spaces because the original Switch could handle them.

That pesky word "Proprietary" has popped-up around the Switch 2s USB-C port, which might start some interesting coversations around legality. That U in USB stands for Universal. It is an industry standard. If Nintendo isn't following an industry standard, but marketing it as an industry standard port, there could be some grounds for false advertising. Not great when the console is already overheating. 

Speaking of law, Brazil is ready to fight the End User Agreement for the Switch 2, stating it is abusive and over-reaching. Nintendo has a lot of banned Brazilian models that could give users fire to join a false advertising class action. Or they could sell them second-hand like those south east asia companies.

Which brings us to the Amazon USA ban and the desperate attempt by Nintendo to avoid losing profit on each Switch sold. They don't want south east asian retailers buying the Switch 2 in those countries, then making a profit by undercutting the mark-up on consoles sold in the USA, but still making a massive profit because the large difference in Switch 2 prices for countries in east Asia vs the USA or Canada. Especially after all those questionable price increases for the Canadian market. Tariffs are one thing, but climate change has opened up the Northwest passage and given Nintendo little excuse to not ship directly to Canada and distribute to the US from Canada. 

We haven't even entered the inevitable drift era of the Switch 2 and the strong launch is showing signs of a console that wasn't ready, perhaps not even practical. The need to squeeze profit out of a launch console is a sign that Nintendo is in a bad spot, perhaps not financially, but their relationship with investors is pushing unrealistic expectations. The shirk the reinforcement of brand loyalty and good faith for higher margins at launch instead of saving the mark-up for later in the console life cycle. The idea that they could go so far as to never reduce price on the current Nintendo Switch, nothing said about Switch 2, really sparks the question of why charge so much.

The future of the Switch 2 is almost guaranteed at this point to be dimmer than the golden success of the Nintendo Switch. Hopefully the Wii U feeling is met with an equally swift correction.