Nintendo is telling studios to release on Switch 1 amid a lack of Switch 2 dev kits, report claims

A new report has claimed that Nintendo is instructing developers to release their games on the original Switch as Switch 2 development kits remain scarce.

The details:

• According to Digital Foundry’s John Linneman and Oliver Mackenzie on the DF Direct Weekly podcast, several developers have stated that they are still unable to get ahold of Switch 2 development kits. Linneman claims that studios are being told to instead release games for the console’s predecessor, which will allow it to be played via backwards compatibility. “There’s been a lot of talk about this lately, that Nintendo seems to be almost discouraging Switch 2 development to some degree,” Linneman said. “I’ve spoken with plenty of developers where they were told that for their game, they should just ship it on Switch 1 and rely on backwards compatibility.”
• Mackenzie explained that Nintendo’s decision on which studios are given Switch 2 dev kits is not clear, as smaller publishers, such as Chillin’ by the Fire’s Oink Games, have been provided with a system while larger developers have failed to secure one. “I know that some months ago when we were hearing things through the grapevine and talking to people, there were some weird exclusions with some big developers struggling to get kits for games,” he shared. “And there were some kind of weird inclusions as well. Some indies were included, which is nice to see.”
• The lack of Switch 2 development kits is puzzling given that the console's current library of exclusives is small, with many of its biggest hits being first-party re-releases. It has been noted that the best-selling third-party title, Cyberpunk 2077, couldn't run on the original Switch due to a lack of power, rendering Nintendo's advice for studios to release games on the console pointless for those looking to push the new hardware to its limits.