Nintendo Confirms Backward Compatibility for Switch 2 with Original Switch Games

Following its latest Corporate Management Policy Briefing, Nintendo took to Twitter to share some exciting news: games currently available on the Nintendo Switch will be playable on its upcoming console, which many have dubbed the Switch 2.

The whole briefing, which you can find on Nintendo’s website, delves into where the company stands in the console hardware arena. It’s impressive to note that the Nintendo Switch Family has sold 146 million units, and it claims that more software has been enjoyed on the Switch than any other Nintendo console. The comprehensive 59-page document offers a deep dive into sales figures and historical insight, affirming that the current Nintendo Switch Online will continue when the Switch 2 hits the shelves.

If you’re someone familiar with the compatibility policies of Sony or Microsoft, this announcement from Nintendo might not catch you off guard. Microsoft has set a high bar with its exceptional backward compatibility, letting players enjoy their original Xbox and Xbox 360 games on newer consoles like the Xbox One and Xbox Series S/X. They’ve even enhanced some games with features like FPS Boost and Resolution Boosting. Sony, on the other hand, has been more reserved. Since the PS3— which supported all previous consoles—their backward compatibility hasn’t been as extensive. Nonetheless, the PlayStation 5 plays PS4 games almost flawlessly, and some classic PS2 and PS1 titles are available via emulation. However, PS3 games have been confined to cloud streaming on the PS4 and PS5, a point of frustration for many PlayStation fans.

Nintendo has generally been pretty decent with backward compatibility—until the launch of the Nintendo Switch. The Wii U before it could handle Wii and GameCube discs and even offered a Virtual Console that filled in the gaps of their older game libraries. When it comes to handhelds, the Nintendo 3DS supported playing DS games, although it couldn’t run titles from the Game Boy Advance or other earlier systems.

The transition to the Nintendo Switch, however, marked a significant break. By merging its handheld and home console sectors and switching from PowerPC to Arm CPUs, Nintendo nixed backward compatibility with its preceding systems. Thankfully, the Switch’s straightforward, Nvidia-backed portable fabrication has proven successful enough for Nintendo to continue down this path. This means current Switch game owners can rest easy, knowing their purchases will carry forward when Switch 2 debuts.

With any luck, this also translates to enhanced performance for games originally hampered by the limitations of the Switch’s hardware. Imagine experiencing The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom at buttery-smooth frame rates exceeding 60 FPS, without needing any third-party emulation—a move Nintendo has been keen to curb. Emulators like Dolphin have famously run GameCube and Wii games flawlessly, so it stands to reason that Switch 2 could eventually face similar emulation tactics.