Switch 2 can be pre-ordered on April 8. In order to make life difficult for resellers, also known as scalpers, interested parties must overcome a whole series of hurdles and out themselves as true Nintendo fans.
The Nintendo Switch is not only one of the most successful game consoles ever released, but it was also offered for eight years with only limited changes. The successor to the outdated console is, therefore, an event that fans eagerly anticipate.
Nintendo is allowing them to place a pre-order from April 8. To secure Switch 2 in advance, which will cost $449.99 or $499.99 with the Mario Kart 9 bundle, additional conditions must be met. Apparently, these will be used to create an internal ranking, which will then decide on the distribution of the first consoles.
The Pre-order is now a Race
The first hurdle that interested parties must overcome on their way to pre-ordering a second-generation Switch is to be a member of the Nintendo Switch Online Club, having been one for at least two years. They must also have allowed Nintendo to analyze their gaming habits and have agreed to receive promotional emails from the company.
If these conditions are met, you may belong to the illustrious circle that receives an invitation from the company. However, this still does not mean that you are guaranteed to own one of the first of the new Nintendo consoles. The next criterion is the amount of game time spent with the previous Switch, and finally, the number of games played by each pre-order candidate is compared to decide who will be among the first to receive a Switch 2.
Unlike the PS5: Scalpers Look Set to be Empty-handed
These strict guidelines in place by Nintendo for pre-ordering the Switch 2 were probably initially intended to make life difficult for scalpers. Scalpers tend to try to secure larger quantities of a product as part of such pre-registrations and sell them at higher prices at market launch. At the launch of the Sony Playstation 5, for instance, a limited supply met with high demand, translating to insanely high markups on the game console in the secondary market.
Nintendo, therefore, announced in advance that it would take measures to prevent such behavior. It promised that a large number of consoles would be available so that resellers looking to make a quick buck would not stand a chance. This promise does not appear to have been fulfilled right now, and it seems the Switch 2, like so many highly coveted devices, will only be available in limited quantities. Will hardcore Nintendo fans actually end up selling their preordered console to make a quick buck?
