After months of leaks and rumors, Nintendo officially announced the Nintendo Switch 2 on January 16th.

The trailer, which teases the console’s features as well as a new Mario Kart game, promises more information to be announced in early April, and a release year of 2025.

However, for long-time Nintendo fans, this initial 2 minute sneak peak is more than enough for rampant discussion.

The announcement

While the “first-look” trailer for the original Switch focused on the application of the hybrid console in the real world, the Switch 2 reveal takes a different approach.

The trailer abandons any real-life setting, instead focusing all of its effort on showcasing the consoles upgrades from the original Switch.

In this way, Nintendo has made one thing very clear: The selling point of the Switch 2 is that it is simply a better version of a console they already know fans love.

“The Nintendo Switch 2″

Now, once again, Nintendo is taking a crack at turning a successful console into a series of successe., the companyes has a rocky history with “sequel” consoles.

Back in the 90s, Nintendo’s “Super” NES, while successful, failed to capture the same audience as the original.

Then, in the 2010s, Nintendo’s new iteration on their massively successful Wii, the Wii U, wound up being the company’s biggest home console failure.

Now, once again, Nintendo is taking a crack at turning a successful console into a series of successes.

A glimpse into the future

Nintendo has long been known for consoles predicated on their “gimmicks” – the motion controls of the Wii, the GamePad of the Wii U, and the hybrid nature of the Nintendo Switch.

However, the Nintendo Switch 2 reveal instead focuses on the upgrades from the Switch.

While this does not mean extra gimmicks are off the table (there has already been a fair share of speculation in that regard), it is indicative of where Nintendo’s priorities lie: no nonsense, all fun.

The new Mario Kart game teased in the trailer furthers the idea that the Switch 2 is a step in a new direction.

Alongside a new, more cartoonishly stylized look that deviates from what fans have come to expect from Mario and friends over the years, the footage also suggests that the game will be able to handle 24 racers at once.

If true, this would be a massive leap from the 12 racers in the Switch’s Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and a testament to the new console’s computing power.

The lingering questions

Ultimately, for everything the Nintendo Switch 2 trailer did show, there are many questions still left in the air: What is with the mysterious button on the right Joy-Con? What games can we expect on launch? Will the Switch 2 finally fix Joy-Con drift?

While the Switch 2 Direct in early April – as well as the “Switch 2 Experience” alluded to at the end of the trailer – is destined to clear up some of the mystery surrounding the console, only time can answer the biggest question of the console: will it be a success?

When the Nintendo Switch 2 releases, it will enter a dangerous legacy of “sequel consoles.” But if it winds up a success, it could break a longtime Nintendo curse, and mark a new era for the company.