Nintendo has announced that Microsoft’s Minecraft will be heading to the Nintendo Switch next month. Digital copies will be made available on May 11 while physical versions of the game will be released on a later date. Nintendo confirmed this on their latest Direct stream. During the stream, Nintendo also confirmed that Splatoon 2 and Arms have release dates of July 21 and June 16, respectively.
In addition, Nintendo said that the Switch version will be able to support online and local multiplayer. Up to eight players can play together online, while up to four can craft at once on the TV in split-screen mode or table top mode. Coming with the “switch” (pun intended) to the Nintendo Switch, the Super Mario mash-up pack will be available, allowing you to make blocky Mushroom Kingdom worlds, along with characters like Luigi and Waluigi.
The Nintendo Switch version of Minecraft is seemingly being done by 4J Studios, the developer that brought Mojang’s PC version of Minecraft to the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PS Vita and Wii U. Telltale’s narrative-driven adaptation called Minecraft: Story Mode has also been confirmed for the Nintendo Switch. However, it is unknown when Minecraft: Story Mode will be available for download.
Microsoft previously revealed that some versions of Minecraft come with a new kind of marketplace where you can purchase user-generated skins and maps. That store will not be coming to Nintendo Switch, though. It is currently only available for the PC and mobile editions of the game.
Minecraft was originally made on the PC in 2011 but was then made for the Xbox 360 six months later. From there, it hopped to the PS3, PS Vita, PS4 and Wii U before it was bought by Microsoft for $2.5 billion. It is currently the most successful Microsoft game, topping the likes of Microsoft first-person shooter staple Halo.