The Daily Populous Tuesday November 5th, 2024 evening edition
Authored by ign.com and submitted by YouthIsBlind

With the video game world waiting with bated breath for Nintendo to announce the inevitable Switch 2, analysts have said it is now unlikely that the company will say anything before the end of 2024.

The Switch is now in its eighth year and sales have continued to fall, with Nintendo today cutting its revenue and profit forecasts for the current financial year.

All Nintendo has said is it will announce the Switch successor by the end of the current financial year, which means an announcement by the end of March 2025.

Despite the pressure Nintendo is under, company president Shuntaro Furukawa today said there was no change to the company’s plan to announce its next-gen console in the current financial year, but failed to go into specifics, according to Reuters.

How much are you willing to pay for Switch 2? Under $300, the same as the first Switch. I've gotten over seven years of use out of the Switch so I'll pay up to $400. I can stretch to $500 but only if the tech is much better. I'll pay $500-plus if it means I get a new Mario. Answer See Results

IGN's Twenty Questions - Guess the game! IGN's Twenty Questions - Guess the game! 💡 Hint To start: ...try asking a question that can be answered with a "Yes" or "No". 000/250 Ask

So, when will Nintendo finally pull the curtain back on Switch 2? Reuters quoted Toyo Securities analyst Hideki Yasuda, who said an announcement is “unlikely” by the end of the calendar year.

"Making an announcement this year has gotten quite difficult,” Yasuda said. “You would not want to divert attention to an upcoming console in the middle of the critical year-end shopping season.”

If that prediction is on the mark, fans now face having to wait until January at the earliest for a Switch 2 announcement. As for a release date, the console is not expected to launch during Nintendo's current financial year, so April 2025 at the earliest.

In the meantime, Nintendo is focusing on getting as much out of the aging Switch as possible, with a number of exclusives on the way. Donkey Kong Country Returns HD comes out in January, then, looking further ahead, Pokemon Legends: Z-A and Metroid Prime 4: Beyond are due out at some point next year.

Photo by PHILIP FONG/AFP via Getty Images.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.

Masterjts on November 5th, 2024 at 13:59 UTC »

Makes sense considering we are already at the end of 2024...

Cley_Faye on November 5th, 2024 at 11:41 UTC »

A bold move, knowing we're already in november :D

BrokeMyGrill on November 5th, 2024 at 11:38 UTC »

It never made any sense for them to announce it before the holiday season is over.