In Japan, Nintendo has been working with online marketplaces to restrict scalper-fueled resales of the in-demand Switch 2 console. However, the video game giant may have another ace up its sleeve when it comes to dissuading people from buying the Switch 2 second-hand.
Home electronics and appliances usually come with a physical warranty card. However, social media users in Japan have been noticing that the Switch 2 does not. Instead, owners of Nintendo’s latest console are required to have proof of purchase if they need to request repairs under warranty from Nintendo Japan’s official repair service. As a result, many Switch 2 resellers on online marketplaces in Japan have been including the receipt, with savvy would-be buyers asking for it in the comments. However, receipts have been added to the prohibited items list on Mercari Japan, one of the major online marketplaces where people have been buying and reselling the hot new console (in addition to making prank Switch 2 listings of cardboard light switches, but that’s another story...).
User TeamSubRockman drew attention to the matter among Japanese-speaking users of X, observing that Switch 2s are being listed with receipts included on Mercari but noted: “This clearly violates Mercari’s Terms of Service. It’s gone from a gray area to outright prohibited. Nintendo is setting so many traps, it’s impressive.”
The original Switch had the warranty card printed on the box in Japan. To request the repair of a Switch 1 console under warranty in Japan, you only need to send in the warranty card section (either the original, a photocopy, or a photo). However, this is not the case for the Switch 2. According to the information about warranties on Nintendo Japan’s website, people must include their original receipt along with the console when sending in their Switch 2 for repairs under warranty. This means that buyers of second-hand Switch 2s in Japan could find themselves locked out of free official repair services should something go wrong with their console.
Interestingly, it seems that not being the original purchaser voids your Switch 2 warranty outside Japan too. In the EU, the Switch 2 warranty covers the console for 24 months post-purchase, however “this warranty does not cover the Product if it has been resold, or used for rental or commercial purposes.” (Source: Nintendo Switch 2 Hardware Warranty).
In the Nintendo of America version of the warranty, “The original purchaser is entitled to this warranty only if the consumer can demonstrate, to Nintendo's satisfaction, that the product was purchased within the last 12 months.”
It seems that Switch 2 repairs outside Japan also require proof of purchase for them to be covered by the warranty. The Nintendo UK Terms of Service for repairs, for example, state that “if you are unable to provide proof of purchase with the Product you send to us, the Product will be considered to be outside of your Nintendo Warranty and a service fee will apply for any repair work undertaken.”
However, this requirement is hardly a unique move by Nintendo. Sony also requires valid proof of purchase for console repairs to be covered under warranty. Indeed, this has been true for every Sony console up to the PS5 and PS5 Pro.
Verity Townsend is a Japan-based freelance writer who previously served as editor, contributor and translator for the game news site Automaton West. She has also written about Japanese culture and movies for various publications.
