Nintendo Switch facts for kids

Nintendo Switch's official logo.

The Nintendo Switch (originally called NX in development and also called Switch or N. Switch) is a video game console created by Nintendo. It was first released on March 3, 2017.

The switch is a hybrid console. This means the player can either connect it to a television or use it by itself as a handheld gaming device. It uses controllers called Joy-Cons. The Joy-Cons attach to both sides of the console when it is in handheld mode. They are attached to a grip when in television mode. The user plays the games by pressing buttons on the Joy-Cons. The Joy-Cons can also shake very quickly, which is called an HD rumble. There is an infrared sensor on the bottom of the right Joy-Con that can acts like the sensors in the Nintendo Wii. The Nintendo Switch received critical acclaim.

There are more than 100 games that work on the Nintendo Switch, including The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Just Dance 2017, and Super Mario Odyssey.

A smaller version called the Nintendo Switch Lite was released on September 20, 2019.

History

At first, Nintendo called this project this video game system NX, or Project NX. A man called N invented it September or October of 2016. N is also called Mo Jaffar. Mo Jaffar first talked about the idea for the NX in January of 2014. This was about the same time he had the ideas for Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Pokemon Go, and Project Loon.

In May 2020, it was announced that the Nintendo Switch had sold over 55 million consoles since its release.

Images for kids

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The back of the Nintendo Switch (without the controllers), showing the kickstand, MicroSD slot, charging port and intake vents. The Joy-Con slotting mechanism is visible on the short side.
One Nintendo Labo kit simulating a fishing rod and reel
The Nintendo Switch Lite integrates the Joy-Con into the main body.
The main menu screen of the Switch console
The Nintendo Switch's game cartridge
Nintendo sought to avoid the struggles it had with communicating the capabilities of the Switch's predecessor, the Wii U, whose GamePad (left) some mistook as an accessory for the Wii rather than a controller for the Wii U.
First-year sales of the Switch (red line), Wii U (green), and PlayStation 4 (blue) in Japan.