Nintendo has confirmed that they are shifting to have the Nintendo Switch 2 be their “primary development focus” going forward, indicating that cross-gen game releases will become far from the norm after 2026.
The company plainly states that “Going forward, we will shift our primary development focus to Nintendo Switch 2 and expand our business around this new platform.”
It’s a small statement from Nintendo’s latest quarterly financial report, which saw the company announce that the Switch 2 has continued its record-setting launch and has already sold more than 10 million consoles after just four months – selling faster than the original Switch, PS5 and PS4 through the same time span. With such rapid early momentum, it absolutely makes sense that Nintendo can focus more directly on the new generation of console.
This means that cross-gen games like Metroid Prime 4: Beyond and Pokémon Legends: Z-A will remain rare and fleeting. Metroid Prime 4 has been in development for so long (and is a relative niche for Nintendo) that it makes sense for it still to receive a cross-gen release when it arrives in December, while Pokémon always needs to try and reach as large an audience as possible… but then enjoyed around 50% of its launch sales on the newer system.
2025 has already shown that Nintendo is all-in on the Nintendo Switch 2, launching with Mario Kart World and with Donkey Kong Bananza following shortly afterwards. Through the rest of this year, we still have Kirby Air Riders and Metroid Prime 4 to release as well.
For 2026, it’s also very heavy on the Switch 2 exclusives, with Pokémon Pokopia, Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, Splatoon Raiders, Mario Tennis Fever and Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave all announced for next year. They’re also continuing to announce and release Switch 2 Edition upgrades for Switch games, with Animal Crossing: New Horizons and Super Mario Wonder both enhancing and expanding two big hits for the newer hardware.
That said, there are still some titles coming to original Switch, including Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream, Rhythm Heaven Groove, and Pokémon Champions – all games that benefit from as large a potential audience as possible.
Source: Nintendo
