For Nintendo enthusiasts in Japan, April 24, 2025, marks a significant date as Nintendo is poised to announce the winners of the Switch 2 pre-order lottery through the My Nintendo Store. However, the overwhelming demand led to the temporary shutdown of the My Nintendo Store website for maintenance, and Nintendo issued a warning regarding phishing emails that falsely claim to notify recipients of their lottery win for the Switch 2.

Nintendo opened the application window for the Switch 2 pre-order lottery on April 2, giving hopeful fans in Japan the chance to secure a console for the launch date of June 5. According to a message from Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa, an astonishing 2.2 million people entered the lottery, far surpassing Nintendo's expectations and leaving many fans disappointed.

As the results of the first Switch 2 presale lottery were set to be revealed, the surge in traffic forced Nintendo to take the site offline for maintenance. Concurrently, scammers capitalized on the excitement, sending out deceptive emails that appeared to be official lottery results.

On social media platform X, Japanese-speaking users were quick to share screenshots of these fraudulent emails, highlighting various scam iterations. The subject lines proclaiming "You have won the Switch 2 lottery" would understandably thrill any Nintendo fan, but the emails often contained suspicious links, such as those directing to LINE messenger app or requiring immediate payment through dubious URLs. These phishing attempts ranged from blatant emoji-filled fakes to more convincing versions with minor errors like misspellings in email addresses and non-Japanese URLs.

The official warning from the Japanese Nintendo Support account clarified, "Although we plan to send out the lottery result emails today (April 24), we have not sent them yet. Please be aware that any such emails that you have received up until now were not sent by Nintendo."

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In the United States, Nintendo updated its website to inform those interested in purchasing a Switch 2 from the My Nintendo Store that they could not guarantee delivery by the June 5 release date. This means that invitation emails might arrive after the Switch 2's launch, although Nintendo promised to confirm shipping dates upon purchase. The company suggested that fans might have a better chance of securing a Switch 2 at launch by pre-ordering through third-party retailers, a recommendation that raises concerns given the console's rapid sell-out following the opening of pre-orders.

The challenges faced by fans trying to pre-order the Switch 2 on April 24, along with Nintendo's warnings, indicate that obtaining the next-gen console will be difficult at least around its launch date.

A FAQ posted on Nintendo's website details that the first batch of invitations for the My Nintendo Store in the U.S. will be sent out starting May 8, 2025. Subsequent batches will follow "periodically" until pre-orders are open to all. The initial invitations will be sent on a first-come, first-serve basis to "eligible registrants who meet the priority criteria," with invitees given 72 hours to complete their purchase.

Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order invitation priority requirements:

• You must have purchased any Nintendo Switch Online membership.
• You must have maintained any paid Nintendo Switch Online membership for at least 12 months.
• You must have opted in to share gameplay data and accumulated at least 50 hours of total gameplay.