Nintendo Switch 2 Prices Could Rise as US Doubles Vietnam Tariffs to 20%

Whoa, okay, so Trump’s got a new trade thing going on with Vietnam, right? A 20% tariff — that’s bananas, especially since it was at 46% before. But here’s the kicker: Nintendo, with their Switch 2, was totally banking on a 10% tariff for their earnings forecast. PCMag spilled the beans on that. So, this change? Yeah, it’s a curveball.

Switch 2 kinda rocked its launch, though, selling 3.5 million units over the first weekend. That’s like a million more than the old Switch. But folks in countries outside the U.S. and U.K. are grumbling about not being able to snag one. Nintendo’s head guy, Shuntaro Furukawa, had to give a big “sorry” to shareholders for not seeing this crazy demand coming.

There’s this whole geopolitical drama too. The console dropped on April 2, 2025—same day Trump dropped the “Liberation Day” tariffs. Like, can you believe the timing? So that $449 price tag? Might not stick around if they push through with the 20% tariff. Pre-orders hit a snag while Nintendo mulled over what to do. But surprise! Tariffs got paused for 90 days on April 9—phew! Still some tariff at 10%, though. They kept the original price for the console, but accessories? Oh, they went up a tad.

And Nintendo’s keeping fingers crossed, hoping those tariffs stay at 10%. Nothing official yet, so it’s kinda like holding your breath underwater, waiting. If (big if!) that 20% lands, get ready for that $450 price to nudge up to $500. Anyway, guess we’ll just wait and see. Keep refreshing Tom’s Hardware on Google News for the latest scoop.