Switch 2 Was Very Nearly Called 'Super Nintendo Switch'

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Hopefully, you'll have gotten used to the name 'Nintendo Switch 2' by now. Given how much we now know about Nintendo's latest hardware, the firm's approach to its name actually makes a lot of sense.

According to an Ask the Developer interview with Kouichi Kawamoto, Takuhiro Dohta, and Tetsuya Sasaki, however, it very nearly had a different name altogether; one that many fans were sincerely hoping for in the run up to the official reveal earlier this year.

Super Nintendo Switch.

The reason why didn't ultimately didn't opt for this is rather simple: the Switch 2 is backwards compatible, but the SNES wasn't, so the company didn't want to follow the same naming convention.

Here's what Kawamoto had to say:

"There were a lot of ideas for the name, and we really struggled to find the right one. We even considered ideas like "Super Nintendo Switch". However, Super NES, which came out after the NES, couldn’t play NES games. Since Switch 2 can play Switch games, it didn't feel right to use the same naming convention as Super NES.

"Switch 2 is a new console with improved performance, but we'd like players who get their hands on it not to focus on the specs, but rather to think of it as the latest console developed by Nintendo. So in the hope that it becomes the new standard for Nintendo Switch, we named it Nintendo Switch 2."

The Switch 2 will officially launch on 5th June 2025. Launch games include Mario Kart World, Street Fighter 6, and Hitman: World of Assassination, along with paid upgrades for Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom.

Be sure to check our pre-order guide for all the latest info.