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SALT LAKE CITY — The wait is finally over for gaming fans. As of 10 p.m. Wednesday, the highly anticipated Nintendo Switch 2 is officially on sale — and it's flying off the shelves.
At a Best Buy store in West Jordan, a line of people wrapped around the building.
"I've been here since 1 p.m.," one excited gamer told KSL-TV.
At the GameStop in Taylorsville, eager fans enjoyed a little pre launch party outside the store where employees dressed up like Mario characters. For these gamers, this was the best day ever. It's been eight years since the original Nintendo Switch was released, and this moment has been a long time coming.
"I'm super excited for it," said CJ Raulli. "This new one is supposed to be a lot more powerful. It's more like a PlayStation 4 in your hand."
Earlier in the day, Damir Krizanovic managed to make it inside the store to snag the very last preorder.
"We stopped everything we were doing," Krizanovic said. "We had one goal in mind, and it was to get a Switch 2."
What's new with the Switch 2?
The Nintendo Switch 2 is expected to be a major upgrade over its predecessor. Gamers are especially excited about its enhanced performance and redesigned controllers.
"Eight years is a huge gap, the specs and everything are much better than they were before," said Krizanovic. "I always thought the controllers were too small, they're really fragile. These are better — improved, bigger, going to fit in your hand nicely."
Price tag and what's next
The console, bundled with the new Mario Kart game, will set buyers back about $600. Additional games are priced at $80 each.
"Absolutely, I got work off (Thursday)," one gamer laughed, ready to spend the night immersed in the new system.
