After much speculation, rumors, and leaks, the Nintendo Switch 2 is finally here. It launched just last week on June 5, and I’ve already spent dozens of hours playing Mario Kart World and Bravely Default: Flying Fairy HD Remaster. Frankly, it has a pretty great launch lineup overall. Since we’ve spent the last eight years with Nintendo’s saving grace in the original Nintendo Switch, now is the perfect time to show off each console side-by-side. Check out our comparisons of the consoles, Joy-Con, games and more.
Consoles and Docks Side-By-Side
Let’s start with the meat and potatoes; the consoles and docks themselves. The Nintendo Switch 2 is an iteration on the concepts the original Switch has. However, it comes at a much larger scale and with better performance. For the purposes of this comparison, I’m using the launch Switch I’ve had for the entirety of its lifespan. No Switch Lite or Switch OLED here.
The original Switch measured in at a 4 inches high, 9.4 inches long, and 0.55 inches deep (with Joy-Con attached) per Nintendo’s official site. Comparatively, the Switch 2 is naturally much larger, at approximately 4.5 inches tall x 10.7 inches wide x .55 inches thick (with Joy-Con 2 controllers attached), according to Nintendo.
Other than the size, the Switch 2’s features offer a much higher quality-of-life than its predecessor. The new kickstand is significantly more sturdy and allows for more modularity, there’s now a headphone jack on top of the tablet so you can play with headphones easier in kickstand mode, and the new Joy-Con 2 are held in by magnets. Not to mention that higher resolution screen. It’s no OLED, but this is still a massive improvement over the original Switch.
What about the Joy-Con?
Like the docks and tablets, the Joy-con 2 design is virtually unchanged from the original. The most notable differences are, of course, the size, the magnet attachment of the Joy-Con 2, the mouse functionality (which works extremely well!), and the new Chat button. Sadly, no Pro Controller comparisons today, as I’m waiting on a fun special edition for Switch 2 to be released. Thankfully, you can still connect your old Joy-Con and Pro Controllers to the Switch 2.
Physical Game Boxes
Finally, we have the whole reason to pick up a Switch 2: the games. With Mario Kart World costing a whopping $79.99 and many “physical” games coming on game key cards, it’s easy to come to the conclusion that Nintendo may be interested in phasing out its physical media support in the near future. Still, that won’t stop a collector like me from picking up boxed versions of my favorite games.
Compared to the original Switch boxes, the Switch 2’s game boxes are the same exact dimensions but sport an all red color scheme and bespoke spines. I appreciated the Switch’s uniform spine design for all games both first and third party, but I won’t complain about Nintendo doing something different moving forward. Notably, like with Bravely Default HD Remaster, if the game is a game key card, it’ll tell you on the front with a big, ugly label. This really is an eyesore, and would be just fine on the back of the box.
The cartridges are the same size and shape. They have to be, since the Switch 2 is backwards compatible with original Switch cartridges. This time, they’re all red unlike the drab gray from before. And yes, they do still taste awful.
Were you able to pick up a Nintendo Switch 2? Or are you waiting for more games? Let us know on our socials, and be sure to join the conversation in our Discord community!
