Amazon's Switch 2 Launch Ends Cold War With Nintendo—Exclusive Invites Mark Return To Gaming Frontlines

Nintendo Co. Ltd. (OTC:NTDOY) has launched Switch 2 on Amazon.com Inc. through an invite-only system, marking the end of a year-long retail dispute between the companies.

What Happened: Amazon’s Switch 2 listing went live on Tuesday at standard retail pricing of $450 for the base console and $500 for the Mario Kart World bundle, according to social media reports from gaming industry tracker Wario64.

The invite-only purchasing system represents a significant development for U.S. retail distribution, as Amazon was notably absent from the April 24 pre-order launch that included Target Corp., Best Buy Co. Inc., and Walmart Inc.

Bloomberg previously reported that third-party sellers undercutting Nintendo’s pricing may have contributed to the Amazon distribution dispute.

The conflict affected first-party Nintendo software and accessories availability on the platform for approximately one year, though international Amazon markets maintained normal Nintendo product distribution throughout the period.

See Also: Jeff Williams, Once Tipped As Tim Cook’s Successor, To Retire From Apple

Why It Matters: The retail availability comes amid ongoing supply shortages that have driven strong demand fundamentals for Nintendo’s latest gaming hardware.

Toyo Securities senior analyst Hideki Yasuda noted the Switch 2 is “overwhelmingly popular compared to past game consoles,” with industry analysts projecting fiscal year sales of 18 million to 20 million units, representing a 20% to 30% increase from the original Switch’s initial performance.

The console features enhanced AI processing capabilities and maintains backward compatibility with original Switch software, positioning it competitively against Microsoft Corp.‘s (NASDAQ:MSFT) upcoming ROG Xbox Ally handheld scheduled for holiday 2025 release.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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