Game consoles are for sure the most hyped and hardest deals to get this Black Friday. The newest ones the Xbox Series X and PS5 are barely in stock. It may be three years old, but the Nintendo Switch is still at the top, right next to those new consoles, of many people’s holiday wish list. Since late summer, pandemic-starved inventory channels have been replenished, and the Switch remains difficult but not impossible to get. But that may change soon: As of Sunday, Nov. 22, a special Black Friday Switch bundle has become available at major retailers. Here’s what you get in the box for $300:
- The “version 2” hardware with red and blue controllers (this has better battery life than the original 2017 Switch)
- A download code for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (a $50 to $60 value)
- A download code for three months of Nintendo Online (an $8 value, this enables online multiplayer and access to dozens of free retro classic games from the NES and SNES library)
In other words, you’re getting the same great hardware that can connect to a TV or be played in your hands, with some free games thrown in. So even if you’re brand-new to the Switch, you can grab a Joy-Con controller and jump into a Kart race right out of the box. Then, because much of the Switch library is digital, you can download a digital version of any game your heart desires.
Nintendo
The bundle is available most major retailers this week — Amazon, Walmart, Target, Best Buy and GameStop — but we’re only seeing product pages at Best Buy and GameStop for now. You might want to bookmark this page, because we’ll be adding the other retailers as their pages come online.
The problem, of course, is that this bundle will likely go out of stock instantaneously. To that end, we’re also keeping tabs on the inventory on the “regular” Nintendo Switch — same exact hardware, but no bundled digital codes. And keep in mind that Walmart and others will be offering some of the biggest Switch games for $15 to $30 in the coming days, so you could put together a nice gift bundle of your own.
We’ll continue to update this story as inventory changes.
Nintendo Switch Black Friday Bundle
These bundles will be available for sale starting Nov. 22.
Best Buy has the bundle as of Sunday morning.
The bundle is also available at GameStop.
Nintendo Switch consoles (not the Black Friday bundle)
These are the same Switch hardware, but without the bundled digital codes in the versions above. It’s available with red/blue controllers, gray controllers or in an Animal Crossing edition (a design based on the game, but without that title included).
Amazon
Best Buy
GameStop
What’s a good price for the Switch?
Unsurprisingly, there’s no “deal” to be had at the stores above; the price is set at or near $300, which is the regular MSRP. Indeed, it’s been quite a while since we’ve seen any kind of real Switch discount. (The 2019 holidays, to be specific.)
That said, with bundles and used consoles selling for $400 or more, paying “only” the suggested retail price is a win on this product.
Read more: The best Nintendo Switch games for 2020
This post is updated regularly as inventory changes occur.
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