Nintendo’s pre-order invites go out in May, so don’t worry if you missed out at retailers

Retailers opened pre-orders for Nintendo Switch 2 consoles on Thursday, and it was… chaotic. No one was surprised because console releases are always like this: People flood websites for Best Buy, Walmart, Target, and GameStop and are met with broken pages and slow loading times. Many people did secure pre-orders for the consoles, but a lot of folks likely didn’t. Those who missed out will want to keep an eye out as retailers randomly load in more console stock, but also, there’s another way. Nintendo still hasn’t notified people that can pre-order consoles through the My Nintendo Store.

Nintendo has been accepting sign-ups for people interested in getting a Nintendo Switch 2 on its website, but there are a bunch of requirements — a method designed to prevent resellers from buying up stock. If you’ve signed up there and haven’t gotten a message, don’t worry: no one has. The first invitations for people to pre-order will go out on May 8, according to Nintendo’s website.

Nintendo will continue to roll-out invitations after then. “If you do not receive an invitation at this time, you will remain in the invitation queue,” Nintendo wrote. “Additional invitations will be sent periodically via email until all eligible registrants receive an opportunity to purchase.”

However, Nintendo “cannot guarantee a timeline for when invitations will be sent,” due to “a high volume of registrations and fluctuations in supply.” Nintendo intends to keep the invite system up for the console even after launch, “until purchases are opened for everyone.” Nintendo also said in its FAQ that it can’t guarantee release-day delivery either; shipping dates will be confirmed once an order has been placed.

Nintendo’s Switch 2 console will be released on June 5. Pre-orders were originally slated to open on April 9, but was delayed until Thursday due to the U.S. tariff chaos. Nintendo makes a lot of its consoles in China, but Bloomberg reported early in April that the company has earmarked its supply of Vietnamese-made consoles for U.S. buyers — a way to get around the Trump administration’s 145% tariffs.