U.S. Tariffs May Impact Switch 2 Demand, Warns Nintendo President

Nintendo has recently unveiled its financial outcomes for the fiscal year 2025, spanning from April 2024 to March 2025. During the online press conference held on May 8, Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa provided further insights into the company's ambitious expectations for the upcoming Switch 2, alongside potential challenges, including U.S. tariffs.

As the launch date of June 5 draws near, excitement for the Switch 2 is palpable, with Nintendo's official pre-order lotteries being overwhelmingly oversubscribed, particularly in Japan. In response, Nintendo is actively working to ramp up production to meet this soaring demand. The company forecasts selling 15 million units of Switch 2 hardware and 45 million units of software worldwide during the fiscal year 2026, from April 2025 to March 2026.

Beyond hardware and software, Nintendo anticipates that the launch of the Switch 2 will significantly enhance its overall sales in FY2026, projecting a 63.1% increase to 1.9 trillion yen (approximately $13.04 billion USD) and a 7.6% rise in final profits to 300 billion yen (approximately $2.05 billion USD).

However, Furukawa's address also highlighted concerns about the U.S. market and the future profitability of the Switch 2. As a next-generation console boasting enhanced features and improvements over the original, the Switch 2 comes with a higher price tag, presenting its own set of challenges. "The unit sales price is high, and there are corresponding hurdles; however, we are aiming for a launch on par with the first Switch," Furukawa stated, as reported by the Yomiuri Shimbun. The original Switch sold 15.05 million units in its debut year, and Nintendo is targeting at least 15 million units for the Switch 2.

These "corresponding hurdles" include concerns over the U.S., which has been Nintendo's largest market for the original Switch. Furukawa expressed worries about the potential impact of Trump's tariffs on the Switch 2 and American consumers' purchasing power. During the press conference, he noted that the tariff policy could affect Nintendo's profits by "tens of billions of yen." He further elaborated, "If prices of daily necessities like food increase due to the tariffs, then people will have less money to spend on game consoles. If we were to adjust the price of the Switch 2 in response to the tariffs, this could decrease demand."

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Analysts have described Nintendo's 15 million unit sales forecast for the Switch 2 as "conservative," citing the uncertainty surrounding tariffs. Despite these concerns, demand for the Switch 2 remains incredibly strong. Following a delay due to tariffs, pre-orders for the Switch 2 commenced on April 24, with the console's price set at $449.99, and they were met with overwhelming enthusiasm. Nintendo has also issued a warning to U.S. customers who applied for a Switch 2 pre-order through the My Nintendo Store, stating that release date delivery is not guaranteed due to the high demand.

For more detailed information, check out IGN's Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order guide.