Costco Wholesale Members can purchase the
Nintendo Switch 2 + Mario Kart World (Digital Download) Console Bundle from
Nintendo.com for
$399.97 (+ tax) by purchasing discounted
Nintendo eGift Cards from Costco Wholesale using the steps below
. Shipping is free.
Alternatively,
Costco has for
Members:
Select Nintendo eGift Cards on sale below.
Thanks to community member
captainguy for finding this deal.
Note: If you're not a Costco member there is a
deal on memberships.
Deal Instructions:
- Must be an active Costco Wholesale member
- Purchase a quantity of 2x $200 (4-Pack of $50) Nintendo eShop eGift Card for $319.98
- Purchase 1x $100 (4-Pack of $25) Nintendo eShop eGift Card for $79.99
- Note: The maximum allowable balance for Nintendo gift card credit on your Nintendo account is limited to $800 (in case you already have gift card credit loaded)
- Click here and redeem all $500 in Nintendo eGift Card credit you purchased from Costco Wholesale to your Nintendo account
- At Nintendo.com, add Nintendo Switch 2 Console + Mario Kart World (Digital Download) Bundle to cart for $499.99 and proceed to checkout
- Your price will be $399.97 (plus tax) after using your $500 Nintendo account balance to purchase the console
Specs:
- 7.9" 1920x1080 (Full HD) built-in LCD touchscreen display: supports up to 120 FPS (frames-per-second) & VBR (Variable Bit Rate)
- Supports up to 4K HDR resolution at 60 FPS output when docked
- 256GB built-in storage capacity
- microSD Express card slot (note: does not support standard microSDHC/microSDXC cards)
- Nintendo Switch / Nintendo Switch 2 physical game card slot
- 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 | Bluetooth
- 5220mAh Battery
- 1-Year Limited Warranty
- In the box:
- Nintendo Switch 2 console
- Joy-Con 2 (L) in Light Blue (left controller attachment)
- Joy-Con 2 (R) in Light Red (right controller attachment)
- Nintendo Switch 2 Console AC Adapter
- USB-C Charging Cable
- Nintendo Switch 2 Console Dock
- 1x Joy-Con 2 Grip
- 2x Joy-Con 2 Straps
- 1x Ultra High Speed HDMI Cable
- Mario Kart World full game digital download
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Top Comments
Logic:
$500 GC but then you pay $46.25 in cash.
Alternate:
$600 GC then you have leftover balance of $53.75
Difference:
You paid $80 in cash instead of $46.25 but that extra $33.75 got you $53.75 in balance.
That may be great deal for a lot of people.
1. While in the eShop, click on your profile settings and change your billing zip code to a state with no sales tax. I just use a random zip code from Montana. Nintendo only goes off of that zip code when you use your available eShop balance to purchase games.
2. Nintendo game vouchers can still be purchased until the end of January and can be used on some new releases like Metroid Prime 4 and Pokemon Legends Z-A.
For example, the Switch 2 version of Metroid Prime 4 is normally $69.99. However, by using this Costco GC deal, you could get a two-pack of game vouchers on the eShop for basically $80. You can redeem one of those vouchers for the Switch 1 version of Metroid Prime, meaning you're getting the base game for $40. Then you can buy the upgrade pack separately for $9.99. So you'd have the Switch 2 version of Metroid Prime for $49.99, a savings of $20.
You can also use vouchers in a similar manner for good savings on older titles with Switch 2 versions. For example, the Switch 2 version of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is normally $79.99. However, using this Costco GC deal, you can use a a voucher to get the base version of the game for $40, and then buy the the upgrade pack separately for $9.99, for a total of $49.99 and a $30 savings.
Congrats on the FP deal
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Whether they're helpful or not, please be kind to whoever you're connected with.
Nintendo's hardware model and software ecosystem are fundamentally different from Sony, Microsoft, and now Valve.
Nintendo runs a closed hardware ecosystem where the business model depends on:
- High hardware margins
- First-party software as the primary driver of adoption
- Strict control of licensing, cartridges, and distribution
That model was viable in the NES/SNES era because they controlled the entire pipeline. But starting with N64, the economics turned against them.Cartridge economics were catastrophic for third parties. ROM carts cost orders of magnitude more per unit than CDs. Sony offered cheap CDs, a developer-friendly SDK, and favorable publishing terms. The result: publishers fled to Sony, just like you said. The N64 lost the third-party ecosystem almost overnight. Nintendo leaned into first-party because they had no alternative.GameCube tried to repair that with tiny proprietary optical discs still a mistake because it limited capacity and increased manufacturing cost vs DVDs. Third-party support remained shallow. Wii exploded in sales because of casual gimmick appeal, not software depth. That audience didn't buy games beyond Wii Sports, Wii Fit, and Mario Kart. Third parties again found attach rates too low. Wii U cratered. Switch succeeded because hybrid form factor was novel and Nintendo finally delivered Zelda + Mario at high quality again, but the third-party gap never closed. Switch's hardware is ancient, so ports are compromised and many publishers don't bother investing. The library is padded with shovelware, low-budget indies, and remakes.
Flagship Nintendo IP carries the platform. Everything else is noise.
Breath of the Wild / Tears of the Kingdom
Mario Odyssey / Mario Kart
Smash
Animal Crossing
Maybe one Pokémon
Maybe one Xenoblade
Maybe one Fire Emblem
That's the tentpole list.
That's what sells tens of millions.
Compare that to PlayStation, which has dozens of ecosystem-defining AAA franchises backed by enormous third-party support and studio acquisitions. Sony's business model is software licensing and third-party royalties. Nintendo's model is hardware margin and evergreen first-party sales.
Switch ownership = basically paying $500 for Mario Kart + Zelda + a couple other titles is not wrong. Attach rates on Switch skew extremely top-heavy, meaning the average Switch owner buys very few games.
Steam Deck (and its successors) invert this. You pay hardware cost once, then have access to the entire PC library, deep sales, mods, emulation, and no paywalls. Software is virtually free compared to console economics. That's why the Deck and other PC handhelds are eating into Switch-like use cases.
SNES had Chrono Trigger, Earthbound, FF6, Link to the Past, Super Metroid, Castlevania 4, Secret of Mana, Mega Man X, Donkey Kong Country, etc. It won the 16-bit era on library strength. N64 had breakthrough first-party 3D titles (Mario 64, Ocarina, Majora, GoldenEye, Smash 64), but the platform lost the broader market to PlayStation because the cost of cartridges strangled third-party development. Since then, Nintendo has never recovered that breadth. Switch is the most successful "limited library" console ever created. But it is still a limited library console.
PS has dozens of ecosystem-defining AAA franchises? More like half a dozen. Compare this with Switch's "limited library" and their sales [wikipedia.org]. Yes, these are almost entirely first party, but this is what makes it compelling to buy their hardware. PS games are now on PC, why bother buy their console? To play two exclusives and a bunch of third-party games? No, thanks.
You also, very conveniently, overlook the fact that NS2 is much more powerful than the original one, and as a result it is receiving much better third-party support (if this is what you care for): Cyberpunk, FF7 Remake, sports games and other titles coming day-and-date. Sure, these aren't the best versions of these games, but you can't expect a tablet to have the same power as a tabletop gaming console that is 10 times bulkier. Not to mention that even the original Switch received great third-party support in certain areas, like indies and RPGs, and these matter to a lot of people.
If you want a hardware platform with maximum value per dollar of software, it's PC/Steam Deck and it's not even close.
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