earlier this monthAn anonymous Reddit user has claimed to have seen the Switch 2 model in person. The Verge and others While we found him to be a potentially trustworthy source, fans eager for information about Nintendo’s long-awaited next console had to settle for a simple written explanation. Now the same user is back with real photos. The photo quickly became the center of a huge debate over whether it was legit or an AI-generated fake.
A Reddit user posting under the handle NextHandheld previously said it would be too risky to share actual images of the console. But on December 25th, they returned to X (formerly Twitter) to do exactly that. “I couldn’t resist sharing this gift with all of you this holiday season.” Posted. “Some might call it an early reveal, but I call it the best kept secret of the year.” The message was accompanied by a photo showing what appears to be a Switch 2 hand held sideways in what appears to be a hardware testing lab.
The voracious Switch 2 leaks community immediately looked into the strange artifacts and inconsistencies in the image, accusing it of being an AI-generated fake. NextHandheld later posted a second post sharing an image of the Switch 2 dock, cheekily writing, “It’s all AI generated.” Strange anomalies again appeared in the background and outline of the console. Looking more closely at the shared images, believers speculated that the damage was too clean to have been created by AI, and instead pointed out that NextHandheld simply used AI to replace everything to protect their identities and the location where the photos were taken. . image but The hardware itself.
One user on the Switch 2 subreddit, DoctorHoneywell, compared the various outlines and dimensions of previously claimed Joy-Con leaks and found that NextHandheld’s photos were very similar. This may indicate that both photos are actually from production units that are close to the final build. Design and shape. “You can create a high-quality resin 3D print with a nice finish and then apply custom stickers. It can be a really great Photoshop job than an AI image,” concludes DoctorHoneywell. “But that still means what I said every time I was asked about this before they came out was right: It’s either real or a high-quality fake.”
The debate raged throughout Christmas, with NextHandheld’s own poll shared by The mysterious leaker also promised to reveal new details in the coming days. Another once-famous Nintendo leaker Like the Pyoro I confessed to earlier An attempt was made to get in on the action to secure sources of access to Nintendo’s website backend. But without sharing any decisive details. For some, this is all reminiscent of the infamous “Grinch leak” from 2018. Super Smash Bros. UltimateThis is a list of . It turned out to be a cleverly constructed scam. Is NextHandheld using a similar trick?
The risks surrounding these leaks are still very low. Unless everything that’s come out so far is completely made up and baseless, all the rumors and reports about Nintendo’s next console are likely to be very similar to the existing Switch, save for the upgraded specs. Every time it feels like speculation about the Switch 2 might die down again, there’s a new data point for fans to argue about, and it looks like this will continue to happen until Nintendo finally releases official information. The company has committed to doing so by April 2025, and the time for the traditional February Direct is fast approaching.
.
