Nintendo Switch 2 launches in June with new ‘Mario Kart World’ game

A man walks by a Nintendo Switch display at an electronics retail chain store in Tokyo, on Oct. 13, 2021. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara, File)

NEW YORK — Nintendo has announced a June 5 launch date and US$449.99 price tag for its latest gaming console, the Switch 2, which will introduce interactive chat and screenshare functions to connect gamers.

In its 60-minute Nintendo Direct presentation on Wednesday, the company revealed a more vibrant display on the Switch 2, a larger screen and several games that will launch with the console.

Central to its updated system is a new “C” button on its Joy-Con controller, which will launch a new “GameChat” feature that requires a subscription to Nintendo’s Switch online service. It allows players to “communicate with friends and family while playing a game,” and lets them share their game screen with others. A built-in microphone will also allow chatting with other gamers.

“When you think about some of the biggest titles on (the Nintendo Switch), it’s like Mario Kart, Super Mario Jamboree, even though that’s quite a new title, has cracked the top ten of most played games on the console. So, it does make a lot of sense that the sort of headline feature is geared primarily towards that sort of use,” said Hannah Cowton-Barnes, a London-based video game industry expert for Tech Advisor.

Perhaps the most contemporary function yet for the Switch 2 is the ability to use the Joy-Con controllers like a computer mouse. The developer displayed multiple ways to use the new function, such as angling a club in a golf game.

The new portable console features a 7.9 inch LCD screen that displays in 1080p. Nintendo also revealed in the live stream that, when docked, the system will be able to support 4K resolution for compatible games.

The presentation started with an extended look at Mario Kart World -- the console’s launch bundle game -- which adds a bit of flair to the series with in-game characters doing tailwhips, flips, rail grinds and other tricks.

The developer also unveiled a new James Bond game, dubbed Project 007, revisiting a classic Nintendo 64 console hit revered by many first-person shooter fans.

Nintendo also announced two more Switch 2 exclusives featuring its marquee characters. Donkey Kong Bananza, a 3D adventure with the big ape punching his way through a huge underground world, arrives July 17. Kirby Air Riders, a racing game from the director of the Super Smash Bros. series, is due later in the year.

Third-party exclusives likely to create some buzz include Koei-Tecmo’s Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment, a hack-and-slash prequel to The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, coming this winter. From Software’s The Duskbloods, a baroque multiplayer title from the creators of Elden Ring, is scheduled for 2026.

Miss the GameCube? Nintendo said Switch Online subscribers will be able to access a limited selection of GameCube titles such as The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker and F-Zero GX.

The new console will be backwards compatible -- able to play physical and digital Switch games -- but users will need to purchase a microSD express memory card for the Switch 2. The presentation revealed that normal microSD cards will not be compatible with the system. However, data from the original Switch can be transferred to the new console.

The Switch 2’s launch price is significantly higher than the original Switch’s $299 price tag. A separate bundle that includes the new Mario Kart game will also be available for $499.99.

The Trump administration’s tariffs have hit the video game console industry at a fragile moment, said Joost van Dreunen, author of “One Up: Creativity, Competition, and the Global Business of Video Games.”

“At the beginning of a new hardware cycle, all of a sudden we’re looking at this price hike,” said van Dreunen, a games industry researcher. “I had originally predicted that the Switch 2 would be $400. Now it’s announced that it’s $450. That $50 difference is a Trump tax.”

The tariffs, he said, impact games hardware because console devices are manufactured and shipped from China and that region at large.

The early stages of a hardware life cycle are already very low margin, or usually a loss for hardware manufacturers, van Dreunen said. Those manufacturers typically eat the margin in order to get the devices out to stores.

“But with an increased tariff, that means that margin is probably even worse than it historically is. But their hands are kind of tied. They can’t not progress. They can’t not launch a new hardware generation. So for the consumer base, people are just going to pay more.”

Nintendo plans to host “Switch 2 Experience” events in several countries, where gamers can get a hands-on experience with the new system. Those events are planned for cities such as Los Angeles, New York, London and Paris beginning this month.

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By Ryan Kryska

Associated Press reporter Lou Kesten in Washington contributed to this report.