Nintendo revealed the long-rumored “Switch Mini” system in a new video today. It’s called the Nintendo Switch Lite and will release September 20 for $199.99.
The Nintendo Switch Lite does pretty much everything the rumors said it would. It’s slightly smaller, with a 5.5″ touch screen, as opposed to the original Switch’s 6.2″ touch screen.
The system is also handheld-only, with the controllers being fully integrated into the system, and it boasts a slightly longer battery life of 3-7 hours, as opposed to the original’s 2.5-6.5.
The Nintendo Switch Lite does away with the pseudo control pad from the vanilla Switch and finally gives us a real D-Pad. Nintendo of America President Doug Bowser spoke with CNET shortly after the announcement and confirmed both that players can transfer games between their regular Switch and Switch Lite, and that the latter uses more efficient processors that allow for smaller heat vents.
Naturally, some concessions had to be made. It won’t support HD Rumble or motion controls, and it can’t be used with a dock.
That means it also can’t play games that don’t support handheld mode. Nintendo said the way to tell what games are supported from here on is to check for the handheld icon either on the back of the game box or in the eShop listing.
Games that require detached Joy-Con can still be played using an extra set of Joy-Con, though, which fits with the Nintendo Switch Lite’s marketing as a second system in the home.
The system will launch in three different color options: blue, yellow, and grayish-black.
However, there’s a special Pokemon Sword and Shield edition already announced, or more specifically, the Nintendo Switch Lite Zacian and Zamazenta Edition. It features a silver chassis with cyan and magenta button color schemes, matching the upcoming Pokemon games’ primary colors. The back sports a graphic of Zacian and Zamazenta, the Galar region’s legendary Pokemon.
The Zacian and Zamazenta edition will be available starting November 8 for $199.99. It’s a little while before the games themselves release, and that’s because the system is just a system; it doesn’t include pre-installed versions of either new Pokemon game.
