The Switch 2 has already sold 3.5 million units, making it Nintendo's fastest selling console yet—but I'm struggling to feel enthusiastic about this hardware launch

Just in case you've been living under a nice mossy rock, the Nintendo Switch 2 finally launched this time last week. Though it looks like the slightly taller, younger sibling of the original Switch, this successor boasts beefed up hardware capabilities—including a bespoke chip from Nvidia. Despite the obvious similarities at a glance and a launch lineup that didn't exactly have the wow-factor, the Switch 2's sales numbers are definitely worth a double take.

3.5 million—that's how many units the Switch 2 shifted in its first four days on sale according to Nintendo. The original Switch was a much slower burn comparatively, shifting 2.74 million units in its first month. Obviously that's still a whole lot of games consoles, and the original Switch still wears the crown for Nintendo's best-selling console, having shifted 152.12 million hardware units in total as of March 2025. Still, if it keeps up this pace, the Switch 2 could well be on its way to breaking that record all over again with swiftness.

So why, as a games and tech journalist, am I not excited about a whole new Nintendo console dropping this month—beyond the fact I write for a website called '18WENKU'? After setting up the Switch 2, navigating past the almost identical UI to boot up Puyo Puyo Tetris 2S, a thought dawned on me, "Oh no, have I really just spent $500 on the same console I bought in 2017?"