Switch 2 Gengar & Mimikyu Hori Vault Case review

This Hori Gengar and Mimikyu Vault Nintendo Switch 2 case stands out amongst a sea of bland, all-black and gray fabric-coated accessories. It's not the first Switch 2 case to ditch a plain look for some officially licensed Pokemon artwork since launch. However, the subtle contrasting pastel colors and adorable Gengar and Mimikyu imagery give it a more adult-fan appeal, which is hard to ignore as a millennial Pokemon nerd.

The $37.49 / £26.99 accessory costs a bit more than your run-of-the-mill Switch 2 case, but that's to be expected when it comes to any licensed product. Anyone that's super budget-conscious, especially after working out rhe $400+ for the new handheld, is much better off sticking to an alternative like the PowerA Slim Case, but this Hori option is perfectly suited for Pokemon and spooky ghost-type fans alike.

Hori - Vault Case (Gengar & Mimikyu) | $37.49 at Best Buy
The Hori Gengar and Mimikyu Vault Case is available for its full $37.49 MSRP at US retailers like Best Buy, as is the rest of the accessory line. Those in the UK may struggle to find it in stock outside of the official Hori Europe online store for £26.99.

UK: £26.99 at Hori

Design

The design of the case is the best thing about it, and you don't need to be a Pokemon fan to appreciate it. The exterior of the case features a piece of glossy printed artwork featuring the iconic Pokemon Gengar surrounded by a series of dancing Mimikyu. Unlike a lot of western officially licensed Pokémon tech, instead of strong, highly saturated colors, the officially licensed artwork utilizes a pale purple and yellow color palette, that give it a soft and dainty aesthetic.

Hori is known for giving this beautiful appearance to its Pokemon products, as the use of pastel shades of color and subtle Pokemon details is also found in its Eevee Cottage Core Switch 2 range. As a ghost-type girlie, I'm much more drawn to this case (and the rest of the Gengar and Mimikyu line), though I do wish that Hori had gone the extra mile to include some extra details.

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I absolutely adore the fact that the outer edge, zip, stitching, and entire interior of the case match the light purple of the grinning Gengar found right on the front, but the artwork is all the 'Pokemon' there is to find. Unlike the PlayTrek Mario Bricks Switch 2 Travel Case, there's no use of the license on the back or any other iconography of the franchise, which feels like a missed opportunity for an official product.

I'd have loved for Hori to include a little Gengar-shaped zip tag, or even just additional artwork on the back to admire. Instead, other than the swirls of confetti and little Pikachu/Mimikyu outlines that surround the character artwork, that's it as far as unique design elements go.

Features

The Hori Gengar and Mimikyu Vault Case is just Hori's flagship Vault Case design, but with a Pokemon coat of paint. The 18.31 x 14.2 x 12.8 inch accessory features a fabric strip handle at the top, coated in a silicon-like plastic coverng for easy travel. After you unravel the Hori-branded zippers, you're met with the purple fabric mesh pocket on the upper exterior of the case.

This area is essentially just two pockets that overlap one another. While simple, it actually doubles up as a way to keep the game storage flap out of the way, as once lifted, it easily slides between the pockets to stay in place. Talking of that game storage flap, it has 10 individual pockets that are compatible with both Switch 2 and Switch game cards. Right at this very moment, it's keeping everything from my Animal Crossing New Horizons copy to Donkey Kong Bananza safe and snug.

The bottom of this section includes a small square piece of velcro, which stays in place by the matching strip that pokes out from the bottom of the case. It's this tiny strap that you have to undo in order to slip in the Switch 2 (or compatible Switch OLED), which is easily kept in place by small ridges moulded into the bottom of the case.

Performance

I enjoyed my time with this Hori case so much that I was incredibly reluctant to remove my Switch 2 from its lovely pastel colored interior when it came to testing the next case I had on my testing bench.

I'm a Pokemon fan and a big Gengar one at that, so being able to carry around my handheld in a case featuring some of the loveliest artwork featuring one of my favorite ghost-types was an utter treat. Gengar gaming accessories aren't new by any means, and I even took a look at some of Razer's Gengar Collection late last year, but I much prefer Hori's choice to use subtle, pastel colorways over the dark, highly saturated purples used by other brands.

Of course, it's not just Gengar who's featured on top of the case, but Mimikyu too, and the choice of combining the two was a great one. The subdued purple and color contrast well together, and it's easily one of the best-looking cases I've tested so far. The case didn't just look the part, but it's held up pretty well in the little over a month that I've had my handheld stuffed inside.

I've pretty much not left a room in my house without having this case by my side, and the carrying handle made that an easy feat. I've also not noticed any cosmetic damage to my Switch 2 or the games I've stored inside since I switched to this case. I wish I could say the same of the case itself, as there are some small abrasions to the glossy plastic artwork. It's not enough to be noticeable to the human eye, but I do worry about how the printed art will hold up in a year's time.

Should you buy the Gengar & Mimikyu Switch 2 Vault Case?

Pokemon fans on the hunt for a travel-friendly case for the Nintendo Switch 2 with a hardshell exterior should definitely pick up this official Hori accessory, so long as they're fans of Gengar and Mimikyu.

Hori's signature Vault Case is also available in official Super Mario and and Pokemon Eevee designs for those who could do without the menacing grim of Gengar and the purple and yellow color scheme. For those privy to ghost-types, this case is more than robust enough to keep the Ninty handheld, some games, and accessories safe and protected. Annoyingly, the interior accessory pocket doesn't fit the matching Gengar and Mimikyu Game Storage case if you were interested in grabbing the entire line, but the biggest issue here is whether or not you can find the case in stock to begin with.

The official Hori Gengar and Mimikyu accessories feature some of the most unique Pokemon artwork I've spotted on Switch 2 tech so far, resulting in it already being snapped up at many US and UK retailers alike. Even when it is at stock, the price of the $37.49 / £26.99 case can fluctuate. If you can find it for its MSRP, this adorable hardshell case is one of the best options for spooky Pokemon fans. I just hope its availability will get better over time, and it won't disappear into the shadows.

How I tested the Gengar & Mimikyu Switch 2 Vault Case

Since the end of last year, my Nintendo Switch 2 has been stored inside this official Hori case. In the little over a month that it's been in there, I've taken the case with me wherever I go, whether that's just between rooms in my house or into the big city for whenever I need a quick check-up of my Animal Crossing New Horizons island on the go.

During that month of testing, I also stored a bunch of Switch 2 and Switch games and smaller accessories in the interior of the case to see how they fared when taken on the go, and to examine if they would be kept protected or receive any unwanted cosmetic damage during that time. For more information on how we test accessories for the Nintendo Switch 2, check out our full GamesRadar+ Hardware policy.

For more Switch 2 accessories, check out our guides to the best Nintendo Switch headsets, the best Nintendo Switch 2 cameras, and the best Nintendo Switch 2 microSD Express Cards.