Although Nintendo’s Switch 2 officially launched on June 5, 2025, concerns over developer access to the console’s dev kits continue to emerge. According to Digital Foundry, multiple developers at Gamescom this year expressed frustration over difficulties in obtaining the hardware, with some notable AAA studios excluded from distribution despite their interest in supporting the system.
Speaking on the matter, John from Digital Foundry commented on the situation, noting that Nintendo’s approach appears puzzling. “Nintendo seems to be almost discouraging Switch 2 development to some degree, where I’ve spoken with plenty of developers where they were either told that their game… they should just ship it on Switch 1 and rely on backwards compatibility. There’s a lot of developers that are unable to get Switch 2 dev kits. We talked to a lot of devs at Gamescom this year and so many of them said the same things. They want to ship on Switch 2. They would love to do Switch 2 versions. They can’t get the hardware. It’s really difficult right now.”
Oliver added further perspective, pointing out inconsistencies in Nintendo’s distribution of development hardware. “I don’t really understand the strategy because like you said, even now developers are struggling to get systems. And I know that some months ago when we’re, you know, hearing things through the grapevine and talking to people, there were some weird exclusions with some big developers struggling to get kits for games, from what we’ve heard. And there were some weird inclusions as well, like some indies were included which is nice to see but like there’s that campfire game you know the kind of camera campfire game and they’re getting kits and some big developers on the other hand who developed like AAA stuff aren’t necessarily in the pipeline there for kits.”
The revelations highlight a curious strategy by Nintendo, which typically keeps a tight rein on its hardware ecosystem but rarely restricts large-scale developers in this way. With the Switch 2 already on the market, the lack of widespread dev kit availability could influence the pace of new software releases in its first full year. While Nintendo appears to be encouraging backward compatibility with original Switch titles, this approach may limit the broader adoption of native Switch 2 games in the short term.
