The Switch 2 is only two days away! And already people are getting prepared for it to be sold out. According to a post on Reddit (via VGC), gaming stores in the U.S. are being supplied with large “Out of Stock” displays for the Nintendo Switch 2, apparently sent by Nintendo itself to prepare for the forthcoming over-demand for the brand new console. Which is somehow both optimistic and pessimistic at the same time.
A new console selling out on launch isn’t exactly unprecedented—2020 saw the launches of both the Xbox Series and the PS5, where a combination of supply chain issues, covid mayhem, and shipping disasters meant shelves were bare for many months after their intended launch. But it’s still pretty novel to perhaps see the console manufacturer itself preparing for the eventuality.
And canny, too! Traditionally, when your local GameStop or Best Buy has run out of stock, you’ll be greeted either with the dead-eyed stare of beleaguered employees, or perhaps at most a hastily printed sign made in Word and stuck into a plastic stand. But something like the sizeable cardboard signs Nintendo appears to be shipping not only look far more professional, but also perform the handy task of also being giant reminders that the Switch 2 is a thing that exists.
We don’t know for sure right now that these are official Nintendo signs (although this is what the original poster claims), and reached out to those involved to try to find out. But even if it’s just something one particular chain has put together, it’s testament to just how popular the Switch 2 is going to be when it releases June 5.
Availability of the Switch 2 feels a bit all over the place just now. We’ve heard reports that multiple stores are intending to have unreserved stock of the console to sell at launch, but only yesterday learned some of the same outlets are seemingly canceling some pre-orders at the last minute. And that follows the chaos that ensued when people tried to make those pre-orders in the first place.
Nintendo put out apologies in Japan in April saying it wasn’t going to be able to match demand when the Switch 2 launches, and goodness knows what the tariff clusterfuck has done to potential supply for the U.S., although in April reports indicated that it had already stockpiled a decent supply of the console in the country. Nintendo has also made it clear it cannot promise to stick to the $450 launch price for the Switch 2.
We’re less than two days away from the inevitable chaos now. Many stores will open at midnight, the second the calendar flips over into Thursday, so customers can collect pre-orders, or attempt to snap up any consoles that have been held back to briefly decorate shelves. Everyone else will be pacing back and forth, up and down their driveway, waiting for the delivery van to show up. And when that’s done, we can all begin speculating about whether supply will recover in time for the holidays.
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