Nintendo has responded to a recent leak that seemed to reveal new GameCube games would be playable on Nintendo Switch 2 in the future. Just a couple of days ago, retailer Walmart posted a new image on its site that claimed Pikmin 2 and Metroid Prime 2: Echoes would soon be joining the catalog of GameCube titles that are available to Switch 2 owners via Nintendo Switch Online. The image itself seemed similar to others that Nintendo had shared in the past, which led to the leak being quite believable. Now, Nintendo has released a statement on the matter and has claimed that this was simply accidental.
In a message given to IGN, Nintendo says that Pikmin 2 and Metroid Prime 2: Echoes are not going to join Nintendo Switch Online “at this time.” Nintendo verified that the image itself did come from the company, which is how Walmart obtained it in the first place. Despite this, Pikmin 2 and Metroid Prime 2 weren’t meant to appear in the promotional material as they won’t be coming to Switch Online.
“We recently provided a retailer with an image of Nintendo GameCube – Nintendo Classics titles that incorrectly included games that are not planned for release at this time,” said Nintendo. “The image has been removed, and we apologize for any confusion.”
These GameCube Games Still May Release on Switch 2
Nintendo’s statement on this situation is somewhat confusing, as it doesn’t entirely rule out that Pikmin 2 and Metroid Prime 2 will one day launch on Switch Online. The company’s caveat that they simply haven’t been announced for the platform “at this time” suggests that they could reverse course in the future. As such, this promotional image may have been accurate all along, and Nintendo simply jumped the gun on its formal announcement of these games coming to the service.
Even if Pikmin 2 and Metroid Prime 2 truly never come to Nintendo Switch Online, though, then it wouldn’t be all bad news. Pikmin 2 is actually playable already on Nintendo Switch platforms via the remastered bundle Pikmin 1+2. Metroid Prime 2 has then been rumored for quite some time to be getting a remaster of its own on Switch platforms one day. And if that doesn’t happen, the original Metroid Prime and the newly released Metroid Prime 4: Beyond are still on Switch hardware and should scratch the same itch that players may be looking for.
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