Platform: Nintendo Switch

Among the material uncovered in the 2020 Gigaleak, a large-scale data leak from Nintendo's internal servers, was a series of documents surrounding Project INDY, an early iteration of the Nintendo Switch co-developed with ST Microelectronics. Project INDY was envisioned as a successor to the Nintendo 3DS and was halfway between it and the Wii U in terms of processing power.

The system would've carried over many of the 3DS' features, including dual-screen functionality, touch controls, stereoscopic 3D, motion sensors, augmented reality functionality, and StreetPass support. The system also would've featured backwards compatibility with 3DS game cards, Bluetooth connectivity (including support for wireless speakers and headsets), GPS functionality, a videotelephony app, the ability to wirelessly project games to a TV screen via Miracast, and support to quickly convert a commercially released unit into a developer system, easing development costs for independent studios. Many of these features would be carried over to the Switch in modified forms.

Technical documents for Project INDY show that while prototype software was developed for the system, Nintendo were unsure about its specifications and came up with various alternative options, such as support for 120 fps video, an 800p display, and a design with a single, oblong touchscreen that spans the full face of the device save for two joysticks near each end. The latter design was the final iteration that Nintendo came up with before ceasing work with ST Microelectronics in late 2014. By this point, Nintendo had devised the Switch's final name, listing it on the design's blueprints.

An earlier iteration of this oblong design would also become the basis for a hoax image created in the interim between Nintendo president Satoru Iwata's announcement of the Switch's development in March 2015 and the company's first public reveal of the device in October 2016. The image is a 3D-printed mockup of the Switch based on a patent filed earlier in 2014, which itself reveals that Nintendo was still considering stereoscopic 3D, backwards compatibility with 3DS games, and videotelephony support.

Within the Nintendo Switch firmware prior to Version 4.0.0 (for Japanese, US and European systems only), there is a hidden NES emulator stub called "flog" that can be unlocked under very specific conditions. flog can only be unlocked on the Home Screen and when the console's internal clock is set to July 11th (if the date is changed in System Settings, but the console is connected to the internet and can see the actual date, this method will not work). The method to unlock it involves detaching the Joy-Cons from the console, holding them pointing forwards/downwards, then moving them to a vertical position and holding it for a few seconds. This gesture may take some time to hone due to it being a specific movement tracked by the Joy-Cons, but when it is matched, the system will check to see if flog is installed. When checked, an audio clip of a man saying "chokusetsu" ("直接"), the Japanese word for "direct", will play and the screen will cut to black and launch the 1984 NES title Golf. This emulator is unique in that it includes specific instructions in English and Japanese on how to play depending on how the Joy-Cons are held, and has a more stripped-down and simplistic appearance than the emulators that would be used for NES games on Nintendo Switch Online. Pressing the Home button while playing Golf will return you to the Home Screen without any visible software running there.

With Version 4.0.0, Nintendo removed all of the code required to launch flog and play Golf, but the company seemed unusually hesitant to even acknowledge its existence when asked by news outlets. One month before its removal, Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Amie released two statements regarding it when asked by Kotaku:


While this seems to allude that the secret emulator and Golf's inclusion were not authorized within Nintendo, this all but confirms that their purpose was to act as a tribute to Nintendo's late CEO Satoru Iwata. Iwata, who programmed Golf and previously hosted the company's Nintendo Direct showcase series, passed away on July 11th, 2015, with the method to unlock the emulator mimicking a gesture he used during Nintendo Directs. Japanese fans on social media referred to the Easter egg as an "omamori", an amulet purchased at Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples in Japan that if kept close are said to protect the bearer and bring good luck, speculating that Golf was included by Iwata as a secret charm to watch over every Nintendo Switch unit after his death.

As of 2023, only 4 licensed IP adapted games have been released on Nintendo's retro game digital download services: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for NES on Wii (which was later delisted on January 26, 2012), Transformers: Mystery of Convoy for NES on Wii, Quest for Camelot for Game Boy Color and GoldenEye 007 for N64, the latter two being on Switch.

Additionally, J.J. & Jeff, Punch-Out!! Featuring Mr. Dream, and Super Mario Bros. 2, all reskins of licensed titles, have been available in their license-less formats.

The N64 Controller that was released for Nintendo Switch Online's Expansion Pack can be used on any Switch game. However, it lacks X and Y buttons leading to some games being partially unplayable when someone attempts to play them with one.

A Nintendo Switch actually helped to solve a murder investigation. On November 20, 2019, Matthew Wiser, a professor at the University of South Alabama, was shot and lost his life while his house was being burgled. One of the Items Stolen was Wiser's Switch. Authorities were able to track down the console's unique online signature when one of the perpetrators signed on to it long after the tragic theft had taken place, leading to investigators identifying Tiquez Timmons as one of the men involved in the incident. Timmons then implicated Derric Scott as the one who shot Prof. Wiser and burgled his house, while Timmons drove the getaway vehicle. This unique digital piece of evidence was actually used in court and helped to successfully convict the two young men of the crime.

Within 10 months after its release, the Nintendo Switch sold more units than the Wii U sold during its entire life span. By comparison, the Switch sold 14.86 million units in the first 10 months of its release on March 3, 2017, while the Wii U sold only 12.5 million units from its launch on November 18, 2012 until it was discontinued on January 31, 2017.

On July 17th, 2019, as part of a promotion with Nintendo, Southwest Airlines gave everyone on a flight heading to San Diego for San Diego Comic-Con a free Nintendo Switch bundled together with Super Mario Maker 2.

As of the 4.0.0 Update, which originally brought USB headphone support to the Switch, it was discovered that, via the use of the Wii U's Gamecube Controller Adapter, that almost every Switch game can be played with a Gamecube Controller. However, since the Gamecube Controller lacks a left Z-button the player does not have access to all of the controls of games that normally would utilize the Switch's ZL button.

The phrase "thx2allgamefans!" can be found written on the Switch Pro Controller's motherboard, just above the right analog stick; the positioning of this message allows it to be easily viewed by holding the right analog stick in the down position and peering through the surrounding socket.

The first batch of Nintendo Switch consoles suffered an issue where the left Joy-Con would frequently desync as the result of a manufacturing error. This could be remedied by placing a small square of conductive foam atop the Joy-Con's antenna traces, which would significantly reduce interference. Nintendo themselves would amend the desyncing issue in later batches of the Switch.

To avoid anyone from possibly swallowing Nintendo Switch game cartridges, Nintendo had them laced with Denatonium Benzoate, a non-toxic bittering agent, so they would taste horrible. The agent is also known to be used in animal repellent, nail-biting prevention, shampoos and soaps.

In the system's Photo Album set-up page, one of the drawn characters closely resembles the character 'GO' from the Japanese gay pornographic movie A Midsummer Night’s Lewd Dream. The film's character had become part of a popular meme in Japan which had spawned as a result of the film's over-the-top acting.

In 2020, hackers Gary Bowser and Max "MAXiMiLiEN" Louarn were arrested and extradited to the United States for money laundering and selling products meant to crack the Nintendo Switch's copy protection to run pirated copies of games. The two were members of Team Xecuter, a hacking group which specialized in similar measures for a large number of Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft consoles. In 2021, Bowser pled guilty on conspiracy and trafficking charges and was sentenced to 40 months in prison; Nintendo later filed a separate civil suit against him, which together with the prison sentence left him $14.5 million in debt. The company's legal department claimed during the court case that the unusually severe punishments were intended to send a chilling effect through the piracy world, intimidating would-be hackers by using Bowser's punishment as an example.

Following the case, multiple news outlets noted the irony of Gary Bowser's last name, which is shared with Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser and Mario series antagonist Bowser.