Nintendo finally confirms that the Switch 2 will be backwards compatible

(Image credit: Shutterstock/Kyli Petersen)

Nintendo has confirmed that the Nintendo Switch 2 will be backwards compatible
It will also support Nintendo Switch Online
More details to come at a later date

We now know for sure that the Nintendo Switch 2, our tentative name for a Nintendo Switch successor, will be backwards compatible with Nintendo Switch software.

In a new post to the official Nintendo investor relations X / Twitter account, CEO Shuntaro Furukawa said that “at today's Corporate Management Policy Briefing, we announced that Nintendo Switch software will also be playable on the successor to Nintendo Switch.”

The post then goes on to explain that “Nintendo Switch Online will be available on the successor to Nintendo Switch as well” with more details set to be “announced at a later date.”

Rumor mill

Although quite sudden, this news won’t come as a surprise to anyone who has been following the latest rumors about the upcoming console, many of which have pointed toward backwards compatibility. Back in 2023 a Nintendo executive even hinted at the possibility that the Nintendo Switch 2 could be backwards compatible.

Backwards compatibility could be hugely important for existing Nintendo Switch owners thinking about an upgrade, as it will allow them to play some of the best Nintendo Switch games on their new system right out of the box.

Hopefully, any software played on the Nintendo Switch 2 will be able to benefit from its almost inevitably improved technical specs, with smoother frame rates and potentially improved resolutions. Just bear in mind that this is pure speculation at this time and we’ll just have to wait and see what Nintendo has in store.

The confirmation that Nintendo Switch Online will be coming to the platform is rather interesting too, suggesting that the transition between the two platforms could be quite smooth compared to be previous generations.

In case you need a recap, in May this year Nintendo confirmed that a "successor to the Nintendo Switch" will be announced, "within this fiscal year". As the Japanese fiscal year ends on March 31, 2025, there’s a strong chance that we will learn even more about the system in the coming months.

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Dash is a technology journalist who covers gaming hardware at TechRadar. Before joining the TechRadar team, he was writing gaming articles for some of the UK's biggest magazines including PLAY, Edge, PC Gamer, and SFX. Now, when he's not getting his greasy little mitts on the newest hardware or gaming gadget, he can be found listening to J-pop or feverishly devouring the latest Nintendo Switch otome.