Even former Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime was surprised by the somewhat sparse launch lineup of the Nintendo Switch 2.
“I wouldn’t be completely honest if [I didn’t say] from a business perspective, when I first saw that lineup, I scratched my head a little bit,” said Fils-Aime–who served as Nintendo of America’s president and chief operating officer from 2006 until he retired in 2019–during an interview with The Game Business. “But I think certainly what I underestimated was the enhanced performance, the enhanced Nintendo Switch 1 content, I think has been compelling. The stuff that you get for free as part of the Nintendo Switch Online subscription, I think that has helped drive some of the momentum. And then certainly Bananza was a key driver for them.”
When the original Switch launched in 2017, it was accompanied by The Legend of Zelda: Breathe of the Wild and joined later in the year by Super Mario Odyssey. Switch 2’s big launch title was Mario Kart World in June 2025, followed by Donkey Kong Bananza a month later. But while many didn’t consider those games to be system sellers, they were both hits with players and critics alike.
Fils-Aime attributed the success of the Switch 2 launch to Nintendo’s global team and noted that “being able to successfully launch a new system after you’ve had historical success with the prior system is quite a challenge.” He pointed to several examples of that, including Nintendo following the Wii with the less successful Wii U.
Earlier this year, Fils-Aime appeared to disagree with Nintendo’s decision to charge $10 for the Switch 2 Welcome Pack. As a contrast, he compared it to his decision to release Wii Sports as an included title for Wii consoles in North America. In 2022, Fils-Aime predicted that the large number of studio acquisitions by Sony and Microsoft would lead to senior designers breaking away and launching their own innovative games. There have been some high-profile directors and designers that left larger companies, but Fils-Aime noted a lack of innovation during his new interview.
“I do hope that this industry doesn’t stagnate,” said Fils-Aime. “There are, at times, signs that the innovation isn’t there. The breakthrough new type of content seems to be a little bit further and far between. That concerns me, and I hope that doesn’t stop.”
