All About Interwebz: Walmart's new Nintendo Switch bundle is now available

Black Friday and Cyber Monday may have come and gone, but a new Nintendo Switch bundle is now available at Walmart that includes a 12-month subscription to Nintendo Switch Online and a Neon Blue Edition carrying case.

The Walmart bundle went live on December 3 and costs $299. That’s the same price as Nintendo’s Black Friday Switch bundle, which included a three-month membership to Nintendo Switch Online and a digital copy of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

The bundle includes the regular Nintendo Switch and not the Nintendo Switch OLED model, which continues to be sold out across the US. Still, this is another tempting bundle for anyone who's planning on purchasing a Nintendo Switch before Christmas and includes everything you need to enjoy gaming sessions over the holiday season.

Nintendo Switch Walmart bundle which includes a carrying case and 12 months of Switch Online — (Image credit: Nintendo)

Even though a game isn’t included, a membership to Nintendo Switch Online lets you access hundreds of NES and SNES games, as well as Nintendo Switch Online-specific titles like Tetris 99, which is a battle royale version of the classic puzzle title.

It’s unclear how long Walmart will offer its new Nintendo Switch bundle, but stock is likely to be snapped up fast. Nintendo’s hybrid console continues to be extremely popular with consumers, and with titles such as Breath of the Wild 2, Pokémon Legends Arceus, and Splatoon 3 still to come, it’s hard to see demand waning anytime soon.

Nintendo has also previously warned that it won’t be able to meet Switch demand during the holiday season, so if you missed out during Black Friday and Cyber Monday, we’d recommend pouncing on this deal when it does go live on December 3.

Analysis: don’t expect a Nintendo Switch 2 in the near future

Press image of the Nintendo Switch OLED — (Image credit: Nintendo)

Nintendo has recently said that the Switch is only reaching "the mid-point of its lifecycle", even though it has, somewhat predictably, conceded that it’s planning another system in the future.

“We are not able to comment about the next game system at this time,” said Nintendo president Furukawa-san at the company’s financial briefing in November. “It is now the fifth year since the launch of Nintendo Switch, and the total hardware sell-through has exceeded 90 million units. We recognize that the system is at the mid-point of its lifecycle.”

Nintendo recently released the Nintendo Switch OLED, a refined version of the original Nintendo Switch, but one that doesn’t improve the internal hardware of the console in any way.

There’s clearly demand for a more powerful Nintendo Switch 2 or Nintendo Switch Pro, but for now, Nintendo seems content to continue cashing in on the success of the Switch, which has been a global hit from day one.

Nintendo is about to get some stiff competition in the handheld console space, though. Valve’s Steam Deck is set to release in February 2022 after a short delay, and the new handheld could meet the needs of many gamers who want a more powerful Switch – subject to availability of course.