🔍 Summary:
Nintendo’s highly anticipated Switch 2 preorders launched in the U.S. but were immediately plagued by technical difficulties and stock shortages. The preorders, which began at midnight ET on Thursday, were available through Best Buy, Target, and Walmart. Customers faced various hurdles; at Target, issues ranged from needing to update addresses to lost payment details, with some orders even being canceled after confirmation. Walmart had a vague queuing system, though some customers, including those from The Verge, eventually managed to secure their preorders. Best Buy’s website displayed a “coming soon” status for about 30 minutes before allowing some users into a purchasing queue, which also quickly ran out of stock.
The preorder chaos follows a delay from the original April 9th date, which Nintendo postponed due to tariff concerns, pushing the date to April 24th while maintaining the console’s price at $449.99. This incident comes right after Nintendo’s president, Shuntaro Furukawa, warned of supply issues in Japan. Additionally, Nintendo hinted that not everyone might receive an invitation to its direct sales in the U.S. before the launch. Similar preorder issues were also reported with GameStop. The Switch 2 is set to officially launch on June 5th.
📌 Source: https://www.theverge.com/news/654571/nintendo-switch-2-preorders-issues-problems