In late 2007 (or maybe it was early 2008?), my household achieved the coveted goal of becoming the new owner of a Nintendo Wii. The consoles were scarce and in high demand back then, and in order to obtain this lofty status, we waited in line outside our local Circuit City, of all places. We had “reserved” a console online, and then, with proof of purchase in hand, had to get to the store early on arrival day and wait. There were others there, too, as I recall, but it wasn’t a lengthy line, and there wasn’t much fuss once we were inside. There was, I remember, a specific staffer assigned to handing out reserved Wiis. We went through then first, got the box, checked out, and were sent on our way. At that time, it felt like we were bringing home a gold bar from Fort Knox. It was exciting; the Wii had so much new potential that we couldn’t wait to explore.

The closest to anything like this I’ve gone through since was purchasing our PS5. That was when Sony was doing online, invitation-only purchases through a special site. It was not exciting. “Annoying” and “finicky” was that process. And honestly, I cannot imagine going through that ever again with any new consoles…especially not the Nintendo Switch 2.

Furthering the honesty, however, I am happy that the Nintendo Switch 2 exists. The Microsoft going the “play anywhere” route and Sony seemingly fuddling around with its offerings, I like that Nintendo is still out there doing its own thing – making video game consoles and games to go with them. Is the console’s (fluctuating?) high price point great? Not really, but the days of new, sub-$300 consoles died a while ago, and the new, sub-$400 console has one foot in the grave, too, if not both. Is it also great that at least some of the Switch 2’s games are going to cost more? No. Then again, even with having access to Game Pass, I paid $70 a pop for Veilguard and Avowed, so I’m not fooling anybody. Still, if either of those games were $80 for standard editions…yeah, I’d probably wait for them to go on sale.

Now, I say that I’m not interested in the Switch 2, but that’s only because I’m happy already with my regular ol’ Switch. As long as Nintendo’s supporting it, that’ll be my Nintendo console. I’m far removed from being a day-one player of any Nintendo games. I have a small library of newer games, a couple of which were preorders, but my short Nintendo wishlist is primarily made up of older titles. Ones that I’d consider checking out someday, maybe…or maybe never. While I like the Switch, it’s become a frequently-used console only recently; it wasn’t all that long ago when it just another thing on a shelf gathering dust. Tears of the Kingdom and Super Mario Wonder brought it out of its slumber. The Apollo Justice trilogy kept the flame going. I have no regrets, yet I wouldn’t shed a tear if my available time with the Switch dwindled again.

The Switch 2 is riling feathers, and that’s good, because it is provoking discussion around the limits of what video game players want, can afford, and are willing to fight for. There are already plenty of folks ready to plunk down their money for a Switch 2 the minute it comes out; most, if not more, will wait and see how Nintendo’s chips fall with the new console. Either way, Nintendo’s charting its own path, as it always does. I’m here for the show.

Lede image taken from Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour igdb.com presskit (© Nintendo).