Former Sony Interactive Entertainment Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida recently shared his thoughts on the Nintendo Switch 2's reveal during an interview with Easy Allies. His reaction was notably lukewarm, expressing a sense of disappointment and concern about Nintendo's direction.

Yoshida remarked, "To me, it was a bit mixed message from Nintendo. In a sense, I think Nintendo is losing their identity, in my opinion. For me, they are always about creating some new experience, like designing hardware and games together to create something that [is an] amazing new experience. But Switch 2, as we all anticipated, is a better Switch, right? It's the larger screen, more powerful processor, higher resolution, 4K, 120 fps, they even have a hardware person starting the stream, like other platforms do, right? And because it's a better Switch, the core premise of the whole Switch 2 is, you know, 'We made things better'. And that's something other companies have been doing all the time."

He further elaborated that while the Switch 2 is a significant upgrade for those who exclusively game on Nintendo hardware, offering games like Elden Ring for the first time, it may not be as thrilling for multi-platform gamers. Yoshida pointed out the high viewership of the reveal event and noted that many of the showcased games were ports from past generations. However, he was particularly impressed with the announcement of Enter the Gungeon 2, describing it as "amazing."

Yoshida also praised Drag x Drive for embodying the "very Nintendo" spirit and discussed the system's pricing, noting differences between Japan and other regions. He concluded by expressing his disappointment, stating, "Anyway, with some of the things Nintendo is doing, with the camera or mouse controls, creating new experiences, that's great. But other than that, I was personally a bit disappointed, because they didn't disappoint everyone. Because everyone wanted that better Switch."

Despite his reservations, Yoshida acknowledged that the Switch 2 represents a sound business decision, likely crafted by highly skilled designers. He recognized the system's technical enhancements but felt it played it safe, possibly at the expense of the quirky, innovative edge that Nintendo fans cherish.

While Yoshida discussed the Switch 2's pricing in the interview, the actual cost in the U.S. remains undisclosed. Nintendo has paused North American pre-orders due to impending tariffs, announced the same day as the system's reveal. With the global launch scheduled for June 5, Nintendo must resolve these issues swiftly to ensure a smooth release.