Developers have reportedly been told that Nintendo's next console will not launch until April 2025.
This is according to Chris Dring, head of GamesIndustry.biz, who discussed launch plans for the Switch's successor in the publication's latest podcast.
Nintendo confirmed in May that it will announce its next console during its current fiscal year, which runs through March 31, 2025.
“None of the developers I've spoken to expect it to come to market this fiscal year,” said Dring. “In fact, they've been told not to expect it to come to market in the [current] fiscal year. A lot of people I've talked to are hoping it will come out in April or May, so early next year, not later.
“I don't think any of us want Switch 2 to come out so late because we all want a new Nintendo console, we're all really excited about it and we don't want Grand Theft Auto 6 and Switch and all that stuff to come out on top of each other.”
Switch was launched in March 2017 and is now in its eighth year on the market. In July, it overtook the Famicom as Nintendo's longest-lived console before being replaced.
When announcing its first-quarter results this month, Nintendo said it had sold 143.42 million Switch units through June 30, 2024. The company expects to sell 13.5 million Switch consoles this fiscal year, after selling 2.1 million in the first quarter.
If Nintendo meets its hardware sales goal, the Switch will be within touching distance of the all-time record for console sales currently held by the PS2.