At $450, the Switch 2 is Nintendo's most expensive console ever. Many of the factors behind the price are beyond Nintendo's control, and even then the company is apparently eating a loss on every unit sold. Investors in Japan are reportedly pressuring Nintendo to follow in Sony's footsteps with the PS5 and finally hike the price.
That's according to Bloomberg, which notes that Nintendo's stocks have fallen precipitously over the past year, coming uncoupled from Japan's Nikkei Index around September 2025. The same fate has befallen Sony's stock over the same period, but Nintendo has suffered far worse – largely, the report suggests, because Sony hasn't been shy about raising the price of the PS5, having done it multiple times now. (Of course, Xbox is just as guilty of raising prices, but its fortunes are not a factor on the Japanese stock market.)
You don't need me to run down all the factors keeping console prices high – the AI-driven RAM crisis, the effects of US tariff policy, and the pressure the war in Iran has put on both general shipping costs and the particular price of plastics are all things that have been affecting our daily lives well beyond our gaming hobby. But they're all making it more expensive for Nintendo to manufacture Switch 2 consoles.
"The market is punishing stocks that lack inflation-hedging power," according to analyst Hideki Yasuda at Tokyo Research Advice. Bloomberg suggests that an array of investors and analysts believe the current $450 price tag is untenable amid rising costs, especially since, the outlet says, Nintendo is already selling the machine at a loss.
But if Nintendo does raise Switch 2 prices, that could also drive down demand for the hardware, which in turn would be another negative for the stock value. Such is the absurd world of the stock market.
Nintendo's next financial report is scheduled for this coming Friday, May 8, so if there's to be any change in the Switch 2 price, it could be announced then.
We've been hearing similar suggestions about Switch 2 price hikes for some time, both from notable analysts and former Nintendo employees. Incredibly, that $450 price tag which seemed so shocking a year ago might just be a steal compared to what we soon may have to pay.
These are the best Switch 2 games you can play right now.
