The big picture: The Switch 2 launched in mid-2025 and quickly proved successful for Nintendo. The handheld ended the year with 4.4 million units sold in the United States, making it the fastest-selling home console launch in US history. To the casual onlooker, it appeared as if Nintendo somehow managed to avoid the memory-related supply chain woes that have impacted so many others in the technology sector. Dig a bit deeper, however, and you'll realize that's not entirely accurate.
Many associate the NAND crisis with higher priced memory sticks for desktops or laptops, more expensive consumer electronics like Raspberry Pi hobby boards, and smartphones with less RAM than we are accustomed to. Companies like Nintendo also have to be cognizant of how the shortage will affect software sales.
As Bloomberg correctly highlights, Nintendo sells its consoles with razor-thin margins and has historically made money from new platforms like the Switch 2 through software sales. Digitally delivered games consume storage space and in a world where that space now costs a lot more than it once did, some gamers are rethinking game purchases altogether.
The publication did the math and found that the average number of games purchased by the time the Switch 2 reached 17.37 million units sold (at the end of December 2025) was 2.18 units. For comparison, when the first-gen Switch hit the same hardware milestone, software sales averaged 3.88 units per console.
Further compounding the issue is the fact that modern AAA games are much larger than older titles, and physical game sales are way down compared to digital delivery. For example, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth – due out on the Switch 2 in June – will require just over 100GB of space, or nearly 40% of the handheld's built-in storage.
Memory cards to expand the system's storage capacity exist, of course, but they have also gone up in price. Samsung has an officially licensed MicroSD express card for the Switch 2 on sale through Nintendo's store for $59.99.
Image credit: Petar