The company posted a video on its website showing the 2017-era Switch transforming into the new iteration of the gaming machine.
“The Nintendo Switch 2 … will be released in 2025,” the company wrote in a brief statement, adding that it would provide more information about the console in an April 2 live stream.
In the just over two-minute video, Nintendo shows off a console that looks very similar to the original hybrid Switch, which can be handheld or connected to a TV screen.
The Switch 2 boasts a larger central tablet-like screen with a kickstand and a similar layout to its predecessor, with similar paired “joy-con” controllers that clip to its sides with magnets.
During the video, the console is also seen showing off a new version of the long-running Mario Kart series both on its built-in screen and on a TV, after the latest instalment, “Mario Kart 8”, sold more than 64 million copies.
Nintendo also said that several “Nintendo Switch 2 Experience” events would be held in major cities around the world from April 4 to give gamers an opportunity to test the new console.
Players have long been hungry for news on a follow-up to the original Switch, which has sold more than 146 million units worldwide since hitting shelves in 2017.
That makes the Switch the third best-selling console ever after Sony’s PlayStation 2 and Nintendo’s DS.
Mounting speculation had in recent weeks been stoked by leaks about some technical details.
Nintendo estimates it has sold 1.3 billion copies of Switch titles, including “Animal Crossing: New Horizons”, which became a must-play among all age groups during Covid-19 lockdowns.
The company said in its statement today that the new machine “plays Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive games, as well as both physical and digital Nintendo Switch games” – which would fulfil a promise on backwards compatibility with the old console that it made in November.
But it added that “certain Nintendo Switch games may not be supported on or fully compatible with Nintendo Switch 2” – adding that further details would come “at a later date”.