Facepalm: You knew it would happen. Despite producing and sitting on inventory for a year and locking pre-orders behind a Nintendo Online subscription, there will not be enough Switch 2s to go around in Japan, but just wait. It will happen in the US too. The company will hold a second lottery sometime after launch but still won't have enough to cover initial orders. It's Switch one all over again.
On Monday, the My Nintendo Store in Japan opened its first round of pre-orders for the long-awaited Switch 2 – and closed them just as fast. Within hours, the store marked the new system's availability as "sold out," with pre-order applications closed until at least May 6 – a day after launch.
Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa said pre-orders in Japan alone amounted to more than 2.2 million, far exceeding its ability to deliver. The number even exceeds what Nintendo expects to supply during a second lottery round.
"In order to avoid the trouble of those who were not selected in the first lottery sale having to reapply, My Nintendo Store will automatically carry over those who were not selected in the first lottery sale to the second lottery sale," Furukawa explained via X. "However, even including the quantity for the second lottery sale, we cannot fulfill all of the applications we received. We deeply apologize for not being able to meet your expectations despite our prior preparations."
Unlike typical online pre-orders, Nintendo structured this release as a lottery. Users had to log in with a verified Nintendo account and register interest during a limited window. Winners will be randomly selected and notified after the application period ends. However, it's not entirely random.
The company said it would give users who have paid for at least one year of Nintendo Online and have logged at least 50 hours of gameplay by April 2 higher priority. It's a harsh restriction designed to curb scalping bots and mass purchases, similar to strategies employed during PlayStation 5 scarcity, but did it work?
Although Nintendo's lottery made it harder for automated bots and bulk buyers, anecdotal reports suggest that some scalpers have adapted. Japanese resellers on platforms like Mercari and Yahoo Auctions have already listed Switch 2 "pre-order reservations" at inflated prices despite the lottery still being open outside Japan. Mind you, Nintendo has not even announced winners yet. These listings don't guarantee a console, only an entry into the lottery – yet some buyers who were late on the draw are willing to take the risk.
These early gray-market listings make clear the pre-order system isn't airtight. However, it's a far cry from the chaos of earlier console launches. In past cycles, scalpers openly boasted about automated systems that could buy dozens of units in seconds. The Switch 2's limited application-based rollout has at least forced them to work harder.
Nintendo hasn't revealed how many units it allocated for this first wave, so it's difficult to gauge how much of the sellout reflects genuine demand versus opportunistic flipping. What is clear, though, is that interest in the Switch 2 is high – and the company's efforts to rein in scalpers, while imperfect, have shifted the landscape.
Image credit: The Shortcut
Nintendo apologizes as Switch 2 demand overwhelms supply in Japan
