Nintendo Switch 2 backwards compatability was "almost unavoidable" because players have a total catalogue of 1billion+ games they still want to play

The Nintendo Switch 2 was finally officially announced this week, and to everyone's delight (and no one's surprise), it's coming with backwards compatibility.

There were a lot of leaks and rumors before the Switch 2 was actually unveiled by Nintendo, but we all expected it to be able to play Switch games. Nintendo has always been fairly good at ensuring its consoles, even handhelds, can play games from the previous generation, and this time around is no different.

"I believe backwards compatibility was almost unavoidable, industry analyst Serkan Toto tells us. "Nintendo sold 1 billion Switch 1 games, and it makes sense to let buyers of the new device carry over their library."

I knew Nintendo had sold close to 150 million Switch consoles, but I never imagined the number of games people bought would be that high. But when you do the math, that's almost seven games per Switch player on average, so the figure makes a lot of sense.

Last year, a market research firm said Nintendo would be the "clear winner" of the next console generation, with Sony and Microsoft battling it out for second place, with whichever comes third likely struggling greatly. With the Switch 2 coming out before Sony or Microsoft's next projects, and now that we know it will allow us to keep all our games, that prediction looks right.

The first game officially revealed for the Switch 2 is a new Mario Kart. It features a redesigned Donkey Kong, who not everyone loves the look of. Hollow Knight: Silksong may also be a launch title, as one of the devs left us a lot of cryptic clues.

To keep up with all the news, check out our Nintendo Switch 2 spotlight that has all the latest.