Nintendo Switch 2 Will Be Backwards Compatible With Nintendo Switch

The successor to the Nintendo Switch will support backwards compatibility with the Switch, Nintendo confirmed Wednesday. At a company briefing, Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa announced that Nintendo Switch software would be playable on the Switch 2. While announcing the company’s second quarter financial results for fiscal year 2025, Furukawa also reiterated that the Nintendo Switch successor would be announced during the current fiscal year, ending March 31, 2025.

Nintendo Switch 2 Backwards Compatibility

Nintendo also confirmed that Nintendo Switch Online, the company’s subscription service for Switch that provides access to online multiplayer, cloud saves and a library of select games from older consoles, will be available on the Nintendo Switch 2.

“This is Furukawa. At today’s Corporate Management Policy Briefing, we announced that Nintendo Switch software will also be playable on the successor to Nintendo Switch,” the Nintendo president said in X post sent from the official handle of the company. “Nintendo Switch Online will be available on the successor to Nintendo Switch as well. Further information about the successor to Nintendo Switch, including its compatibility with Nintendo Switch, will be announced at a later date.”

While detailing Nintendo’s second quarter financial results for FY 2025, Furukawa said it was important for the company to support long-term relationships with its consumers. “We believe that it is important for Nintendo’s future to make use of Nintendo Account and carry over the good relationship that we have built with the over 100 million annual playing users on Nintendo Switch to its successor,” he said.

“In addition to being able to play Nintendo Switch software they currently own, consumers will be able to choose their next purchase from a broad selection of titles released for Nintendo Switch,” he added.

Furukawa did not provide additional details about the launch timeline of the Nintendo Switch 2, but the console will be officially announced before the end of the financial year 2025, Nintendo has confirmed.

Nintendo reported its financial results for the second quarter, ending September 30, 2024, Wednesday, confirming a YoY decline in both hardware and software sales. The company sold 4.72 million units of the Nintendo Switch in the quarter, a 31 percent decline in quarterly sales compared to FY 2024. Consequently, the Japanese company adjusted its FY 25 Switch sales forecast to 12.5 million units, down from the previous estimated sales of 13.5 million units. The company also confirmed that the cumulative sales for the Nintendo Switch had reached 146 million units.