Nintendo Switch Sports Resort lands in South Africa on 22 October at R1,199

Nintendo Switch Sports Resort comes out on Thursday, 22 October, and South African players can already pre-order it. BT Games lists the boxed version at R1,199. Hypertext, linking to Nintendo's South African eShop, puts the digital download at R1,049.

It runs only on the Nintendo Switch 2, so it is no use to anyone still on the original Switch. It is Nintendo's new motion-controlled sports collection, set on Wuhu Island, the holiday setting of Wii Sports Resort.

Nintendo South Africa's official box carries a Film and Publication Board (FPB) rating of PG V CI. BT Games still lists the rating as "TBC".

What is in the box

Nintendo's announcement lists 12 sports. Nine are classed as sports: boxing, table tennis, archery, tennis, volleyball, bowling, basketball, golf and thumb wrestling. Three are leisure activities around the island: skateboarding, power cruising and prop plane. Jump rope is included as a warm-up and is not counted among the 12.

Players use a Mii or a new "Sportsmate" character. The game is built around the Switch 2's Joy-Con 2 controllers, which act as rackets, bows and handlebars. Skateboarding uses the controllers' mouse mode, which the original Joy-Con do not have.

Nintendo Life reports support for one to four players on one console as well as online play. As with other Nintendo titles, online features need a paid Nintendo Switch Online membership, according to retailer listings. Nintendo's own pages say some multiplayer modes may need extra controllers or consoles, sold separately.

The rand price

The digital version is R150 cheaper than the boxed copy, though a physical copy can be resold or passed on.

Price tracker Deku Deals lists the US digital edition at $49.99 before sales tax. At about R16.43 to the dollar plus 15% VAT, that comes to roughly R945, so the local digital price is about 11% higher.

Hypertext, which reviewed the game, gave it 7 out of 10, praising the depth of its sports while noting it falls short of Mario Party as a casual party game.

Still unresolved

Nintendo has not said how many players can join a single online match, and no South African retailer has published a price for a Switch 2 console bundle that includes the game.