During a Q&A with shareholders, a Nintendo executive allayed concerns: the possibility of a Nintendo Switch 2 is on the horizon!

Nintendo has some good news for fans hoping to get their hands on what is colloquially known as Nintendo Switch 2, the console that will follow Switch. Early buyers will not have to worry about low stock. The availability of video game consoles has been a big talking point in recent years. Partly for reasons beyond the manufacturers’ control. But Nintendo executives hope to address at least one of these problems directly.

When the Nintendo Switch was released in March 2017, it immediately became one of the gaming industry’s most elusive pieces of hardware. It was so rare and in such high demand that Nintendo dismissed claims that it had artificially created a false shortage by deliberately producing fewer consoles than the market demanded.

The idea was that with fewer consoles on the market, Nintendo could generate more headlines about the high demand for the console to make it appear more desirable than it actually was.

Nintendo executives were quick to dismiss these claims. However, the shortage persisted. This was further complicated by distributors buying up stock from retailers and reselling the consoles elsewhere at inflated prices.

In response to questions from shareholders, Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa said that for future console releases, the company plans to have more than enough stock available for any gamer hoping to get their hands on a console. Furukawa did not specify exactly how many consoles the company plans to make available at any given time. Especially at launch, when demand is feverish. There are currently no plans to announce a Nintendo Switch 2.

Furukawa said that the company would also decide whether “there are other possible measures” that Nintendo can take to ensure continued availability. This statement, while vague, suggests that Nintendo is planning strategies to avoid various market demand barriers. The ones the company has faced in recent years, such as the Nintendo Switch chip shortage and scalpers.

The COVID-19 epidemic has limited the supply of chipsets needed to manufacture Nintendo Switch consoles. The shortage led to a massive boom in console scalping. The consequences of the chip shortage were still being felt in early 2023. At that time, Nintendo reported a 22 per cent drop in Switch sales due to a global semiconductor shortage. Only time will tell if Nintendo’s plans to keep more than enough stock on hand will cut into Nintendo’s scalper plans.

Source: NintendoLife