A former Nintendo sales executive predicted that the hardware price of Nintendo Switch 2 will inevitably increase, but said the company can find ways to mitigate the change. The former sales executive stated that if the price of the Switch 2 were to go up, the damage could be offset by an upcoming change in game prices.
It's no secret that the ongoing DRAM shortage crisis has had an impact on the gaming industry, as the rise of AI-based data centers led to demand for key components. Since the fall of 2025, the prices of RAM kits, solid-state drives (SSDs) and other PC parts have skyrocketed in the following months. Although the prices of some DDR5 RAM kits have started to decrease at retailers like Amazon and Newegg, the current prices are still higher than they were before. The RAM crisis has prompted Sony to announce a price hike on all PS5 consoles worldwide, starting on April 2nd. Ergo, the price of the PS5 Pro will jump from $749 to $899.
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Former Nintendo sales executive says Switch 2 will get a price hike
With the PS5 facing an imminent price hike, a former Nintendo executive believes the Switch 2 could follow suit at some point. During episode 216 of the Kit and Krysta Podcast, a former Nintendo salesperson known as Sean discussed the Switch 2 with the show's hosts, former Nintendo of America employees Kit Ellis and Krysta Yang. To kick off the discussion about the Switch 2's future, Sean turned to Nintendo's upcoming pricing changes for first-party Switch 2 games, which will see digital games priced cheaper than physical copies. Sean described Nintendo's upcoming Game Awards as a “pro-consumer move”. This change will take effect on May 21st, starting with the launch of Yoshi and the Mysterious Book on Switch 2. Pre-orders for coming Yoshi the title on My Nintendo Store has already taken this change into account, with digital pre-orders starting at $59.99 and physical pre-orders costing $69.99.
Sean stated that the Switch 2 will inevitably undergo a price increase, and said that Nintendo was likely waiting to see how the US government tariffs would play out in global markets. While he didn't specify an exact price that the Switch 2 could jump to, Sean said, “I think there are things that they can and seem to be doing to try to mitigate that, but I also see this step on software, if I'm reading it correctly, as a way to make a hardware price increase a little more palatable.” Although he claimed that his predictions were “educated guesses”, Sean also said that the price of some physical Switch 2 first-party games could still be as high as $70 or $80, with Mario Kart World is an example of the latter price. Given that upcoming Switch 2 titles like Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave and Pokemon winds and waves approaching the pipeline, only time will tell what the starting prices for these games will be.
Potential buyers shouldn't wait to get their hands on a Switch 2
The price of the Switch 2 console has remained at $449 since its launch in June 2025, along with bundles that include the console and a wrap-around game, such as Mario Kart World or Pokemon Legends: ZAfrom $499. However, Nintendo has shown that even that can change depending on the global market. In February 2026, Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa stated that the company was keeping an eye on the economy and the RAM crisis. Although Nintendo remained unaffected by the RAM shortage at the time, Furukawa said a price increase for the Switch 2 was not off the table.
While the Switch 2 is set to launch four major games throughout April, it remains to be seen when the gaming giant will face the unenviable task of changing its console pricing. Ergo, customers looking to get a new Nintendo console at current prices shouldn't wait much longer.
