However, GameStop might have just leaked the new system by accident, using the name, New Nintendo Switch, in one of its recent ads.
GameStop Accidently Drops Switch-Sized Bomb
Waiting for Nintendo to confirm the New Nintendo Switch Pro has made for quite the confusing waiting game. Fans have long speculated that Nintendo was going to reveal the console before E3 2021. After all, Nintendo Mexico had already leaked the upgraded version of the Nintendo Switch console weeks earlier, so why wait, right? But, considering that Nintendo will take the center stage at E3 2021 soon, we guess that Nintendo thought they might as well reveal it then. What’s more, there is a new listing from GameStop that gives further credence to this theory. As you can see from the image above, it says, “$50 Extra Credit when you trade select systems toward purchase of a New Nintendo Switch, Switch Lite, or Xbox Series X/S”, followed by “Offer valid on systems traded toward purchase of New Nintendo Switch/Nintendo Switch Lite or Xbox Series X/S.” Three things help give this leak a lot of weight. One is that it’s from GameStop, which, if real, is a legitimate as it gets. The second is that it is in line with Nintendo’s naming scheme. The company has named upgrades of its previous consoles before things like the New 3DS. Third, there has been rumors going around that Nintendo plans on phasing out the original Nintendo Switch. The New Nintendo Switch Pro would supposedly displace it with the Nintendo Switch Lite being offered as a more budget-friendly alternative.
Weirdly enough, the Gamestop promotion is stated to only run from June 13 to June 19. It’s already June 13 today. The New Nintendo Switch or Nintendo Switch Pro (whatever you might want to call it) is nowhere in sight. There’s no official announcement or pre-order of the rumored console yet. For this leak to be real, Nintendo will have to reveal the New Nintendo Switch Pro today at the Nintendo Direct showcase. In an earlier article, we talked more about the rumored specifications of the upcoming Nintendo Switch upgrade. However, as much as we’d love to see our wishlist for Nintendo Direct at E3 2021 come true, we have to admit that we don’t see as much value in it. Not to mention, the timing just doesn’t seem right. The Switch and Switch Lite are both selling like hotcakes. In fact, they’ve outsold both the Xbox Series S/X and PlayStation 5 combined in 2021. Although a hardware upgrade would help make games like Pokémon Legends: Arceus look prettier when it launches in 2022, we’re confident that Nintendo can find a way despite the relatively weaker hardware of the Switch and Switch Lite. There’s also the fact that the Nintendo Switch Pro will be launching in the middle of a global component shortage that’s expected to last until 2023. Ultimately, the ball is in Nintendo’s court. All we can do is sit tight, wait, and theorize.
