Nintendo is hoping to repeat the Blockbuster Switch with the 2025 sequel

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Nintendo is betting on the 2025 release of a bigger, better version of its blockbuster Switch console to continue the success of the third-best-selling console of all time.

But the Japanese giant is leaving gamers to wait for full details on the successor model, showing off the console’s appearance in a slick video on Thursday, but postponing any detailed information until an April 2 livestream.

In the just over two-minute long video, Nintendo shows off a console similar to the original hybrid Switch, which can be handheld or connected to a TV screen.

The Switch 2 boasts a larger central tablet-like display with a stand and a similar layout to its predecessor, with paired “joy-con” controllers that clamp to the sides with magnets.

During the video, the console also shows off a new version of the long-running Mario Kart series both on its built-in screen and on a TV, after the latest installment, “Mario Kart 8,” sold more than 64 million copies.

The company said in a statement Thursday that the new machine “plays Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive games, as well as both physical and digital Nintendo Switch games” — which would fulfill a promise of backward compatibility with the old console that it made in November.

But it added that “certain Nintendo Switch games may not be supported on or fully compatible with Nintendo Switch 2” – adding that further details would come “at a later date”.

Nintendo’s announcement was “just what was expected and what people wanted. A bigger, more powerful Switch,” Mat Piscatella, an analyst at market research firm Circana, wrote on Bluesky.

“It should sell very well and be a big boost to the existing market, but (I) don’t see extended reach,” he added.

Nintendo also said that several “Nintendo Switch 2 Experience” events would be held in major cities around the world starting April 4 to allow gamers to test the new console.

Gamers have long been hungry for news of a follow-up to the original Switch, which has sold more than 146 million units worldwide since it hit shelves in 2017.

That makes the Switch the third best-selling console of all time, after Sony’s PlayStation 2 and Nintendo’s DS.

Assembly speculation had been sparked in recent weeks by leaks about some technical details.

Nintendo estimates it has sold 1.3 billion copies of Switch titles, including “Animal Crossing: New Horizons,” which became a must-play among all age groups during the Covid-19 lockdowns.

As sales of the original Switch fell, Nintendo had promised to reveal the new console before the end of March this year.

At the same time, the Kyoto-based company has diversified into theme parks around the world and financed movies based on its games and characters, such as 2023’s global second-place box office hit “The Super Mario Bros. Movie.”

“However, Nintendo still generates approximately 91 percent of its revenue from its Nintendo Switch business, which shows the importance of the Switch 2,” said Darang Candra, an analyst at game market research firm Niko Partners.

Candra said the longevity of the first Switch was Nintendo’s attempt to set a precedent by getting out of the rat race of rapid hardware updates.

“Development costs and timelines have increased significantly in recent years in a way that may not be sustainable, especially as the gaming industry is seeing a downturn in the last year,” he added.

It seems to be in line with the expectations of some lovers of Nintendo’s games.

“Nintendo fans love what Nintendo does at its core – which is to create new content for existing and beloved franchises that gamers have been playing since they were kids,” said LottieRoseGames, a 29-year-old streamer specializing in “Animal” . Crossing”.

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