For months, there have been numerous leaks about the release of the Nintendo Switch 2, the successor to Nintendo’s successful handheld console. There is no official information such as a reveal or even release date. However, a leak has now given a hint about which game the console could launch with.
What kind of leak is this? A leak shared on December 17, 2024, on X.com provides new information about the supposed components of the Switch 2 and additionally shows accessories that are said to be released for the console.
One of the accessories shown is a steering wheel into which you can insert a Joycon to use it for steering in racing games. A similar steering wheel already exists for the Switch 1 and was also available for the Nintendo Wii.
The leak also shows a type of controller holder for a single Joycon, with the stick being in an unusual middle position.
You can see the shared images on X.com here:
Will Nintendo send you back to the racetrack on the Switch 2?
With which game could the Switch 2 launch? You might have already thought about it: The steering wheel accessory could suggest that a new installment of Mario Kart might be launched – and since the steering wheel accessory seems to be already in production, a possible Mario Kart 9 could also be released fairly early in the lifecycle of the Switch 2.
In general, it can be assumed that the Switch 2 will be launched with a major, prestigious title. Particularly, the major Nintendo franchises are considered likely, namely Mario, Pokémon, and Zelda. The Switch 1 was released together with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild on March 3, 2017.
Breath of the Wild, however, only received a successor with Tears of the Kingdom in May 2023:
How likely is the leak? So far, Nintendo has not released any official information regarding upcoming games for the Switch 2 or possible accessories. In general, we are still waiting for a proper announcement for the Switch 2 – more than just the post from the Japanese Nintendo account on X.com at the beginning of November 2024.
You should therefore consider every leak and rumor about the console with a certain degree of skepticism. There are no indications or signs that reveal how realistic a leak is.
However, since Mario Kart 8 was released back in 2014 and even released for the Wii U, it is quite conceivable that a new Mario Kart will be released in the lifecycle of a possible Switch 2. With a total of 64 million units sold (via Nintendo.com), Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is not only one of the best-selling Nintendo games of all time, but the series is also large enough to initiate the release of a new console.
Nintendo has not yet announced the Switch 2 with a trailer or similar, but the company’s president, Shuntaro Furukawa, mentioned a “successor model” of the console in a Q&A in November 2024 and stated that you shouldn’t expect delivery difficulties: Nintendo’s president assures that it will be very easy to get a Nintendo Switch 2
