Nintendo Would "Absolutely Love" Red Dead 2 On Switch, But It's Not Going To Happen

Nintendo would "absolutely love" to have Red Dead Redemption 2 on Nintendo Switch, but more than likely it won't happen. That's according to Nintendo of America executive Reggie Fils-Aime, who explained in a new interview one of the reasons why the acclaimed western isn't on the company's hybrid console.

Fils-Aime told The Hollywood Reporter that developer Rockstar Games likely started work on the game years before Nintendo started to talk about the Switch. As a result, the developer might not have been able to accomodate another platform, Fils-Aime suggested.

"We'd love for it to be there. But again--and this is where there needs to be an understanding of just the development process--Red Dead has been in development for years, time that predated any communication of Nintendo Switch," Fils-Aime said.

"So, from the developer's mentality, they need to move forward and finish the game they've been working on and then be in a position to look at other opportunities. Any game from a key third-party that's coming out now, typically that development started well before any conversations about Nintendo Switch."

Fils-Aime acknowledged that he can't say for sure what will happen with future Rockstar games, but for now, this explains why Red Dead Redemption 2 isn't on Switch.

Additionally, it's not uncommon for platform-holders to show their new, unannounced consoles to developers well ahead of when they are publicly revealed. By some accounts, Red Dead Redemption 2 began development just after the first game shipped in 2010, and if that is indeed the case, that was still during the Nintendo Wii days.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is a graphically demanding game, and the Switch is underpowered compared to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Fils-Aime doesn't mention this is in his comments.

Rockstar's owner, Take-Two, has released a few games on Switch already. L.A. Noire, NBA 2K18, NBA 2K19, and Carnival Games are all available on the console.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is doing just fine without releasing on Switch. The game shipped 17 million copies and generated more than $725 million in revenue just days after release. What's more, it took only eight days for Red Dead Redemption 2 sales to surpass the number of copies of Red Dead Redemption 1 sold in eight years.