The original Switch was tricky to find at launch (Nintendo)
As Nintendo’s next console steps closer to launch, the company has a simple strategy in place for preventing scalpers who sell hardware at inflated prices.
Most recent game consoles have encountered some sort of issue with scarcity when they launch, most famously when the global chip shortage during the pandemic impacted the amount of PlayStation 5s available in 2020.
The scarce supply and heightened demand is fertile ground for scalpers, who buy console in bulk and sell them for hiked up prices to take advantage of the situation.
While the original Switch suffered from a constrained supply when it launched in 2017, Nintendo has said this should be less of a problem for its next console.
During an investor-focused Q&A, Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa outlined how they have a simple ‘countermeasure’ for preventing scalpers: making more consoles.
‘As a countermeasure against resale, we believe that the most important thing is to produce a sufficient number to meet customer demand, and this idea has not changed since last year,’ Furukawa said (as translated by IGN).
‘In addition to this, we are considering whether there are any other measures that can be taken to the extent allowed by laws and regulations, taking into account the circumstances of each region.’
Furukawa explains that the component shortage issue, which has affected the production of Switch consoles over the past two years, has now been ‘resolved’ – so it shouldn’t be an issue when it comes to the company’s next piece of hardware.
‘Although we were unable to produce sufficient quantities of Nintendo Switch hardware last year, and the year before, due to a shortage of semiconductor components, this situation has now been resolved,’ he added. ‘At this time, we do not believe that the shortage of components will have a significant impact on the production of the successor model.’
Apart from the fact it exists, we still don’t know anything official about Nintendo’s next console. Nintendo has said it will announce the follow-up to the Switch ‘within this fiscal year’, so at some point before March 31, 2025.
Earlier this year, reports claimed the console had been internally delayed from the end of 2024 to next year in order to bolster its software line-up. Although subsequent rumours suggest the plan was always for 2025.
As for details on the actual machine itself, rumours have indicated it will be an ‘iterative’ improvement over the original Switch, possibly with magnetic Joy-Cons and backwards compatibility.
While many expected this year to be a quiet one for the Switch, Nintendo’s slate for the rest of 2024 is surprisingly busy, with The Legend Of Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom, Super Mario Party Jamboree, and Mario & Luigi: Brothership – which further suggests that there was no delay.
What the world looks like without scalpers (Nintendo)
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