3 Crucial Takeaways From The Switch 2 Reveal Trailer

This week has felt like an eternity, but today Nintendo finally ended the excruciating wait for an official Switch 2 reveal. It was right on schedule, too, with the trailer going live on the day Nate The Hate, Tom Warren, Jeff Grubb, and several other industry insiders predicted. And all those other leaks, from Genki’s physical mockup to the colorway and dimensions were right on the money.

This reveal trailer validates several of the major Switch 2 leaks that have been circulating, which lends even more credibility to the as-of-yet unconfirmed ones. It’s probably time to take another look at Digital Foundry’s analysis of the leaked motherbaord.

In the meantime, the trailer itself holds a few strong hints about the Switch 2’s functionality, and one of its flagship games.

24-Player Mario Kart 9

Blink and you might miss it. During the short tease of what we can assume is Mario Kart 9, you can clearly see a 24-position starting grid. This would effectively double the player count from Mario Kart 8. Online multiplayer is going to be frantic!

Switch 2 Joy-Con Mouse Functionality

During a section of the Switch 2 reveal trailer, we see the new Joy-Cons gliding smoothly along a black surface before magnetically clicking into place on the new console. That certainly seems like a crystal clear indication that both of the upgraded and upsized Joy-Cons will have mouse functionality. Perhaps for emulating the touchscreen when the system is docked, and perhaps even for shooters and more traditional mouse use.

This would validate one of the credible leaks showing an optical sensor on the side of the new Joy-Con. If that’s one of the new “innovations” for the Switch 2, I’m curious how Lenovo feels about it (the company’s “TrueStrike” controller on the Legion Go features this kind of functionality). But the real concern is comfort. Are these ergonomically designed in a way that will feel comfortable after extended use?

Not ALL Switch Games Will Be Playable On Switch 2

Last year one of Nintendo’s first promises about the Switch 2 is that it would be backwards compatible. Today’s trailer sheds a bit more light on that, confirming that the Switch 2 is backwards compatible with both physical and digital Switch games.

However, it also contained a mild disclaimer.

The slide at the end of the trailer reads: “Certain Nintendo Switch games may not be supported on or fully compatible with Nintendo Switch 2.”

I don’t believe this is anything to get worried about, but a handful of games may not work if, for example, Nintendo has altered had gyro controls work, or has made changes to IR functionality. This would potentially affect games like Nintendo Labo, 1/2 Switch, and reload functionality in Resident Evil Revelations.

The size difference of the Joy-Cons also comes into play; any games like Switch Fit Adventure that rely on physically connecting to the original Joy-Cons would obviously be incompatible.

But with a gargantuan library of more than 12,000 titles, a few exceptions are certainly not a dealbreaker.

Now, the waiting game begins again. A Nintendo Direct focused on the Switch 2 is scheduled for April 2, 2025, which should give us a deep dive into the new hardware and the launch game lineup.