Zelda drove Switch 2’s best U.S. sales week of 2026 — why?

Zelda just gave Nintendo’s new console a boost. For the U.S. week ending October 31, 2026, Switch 2 posted its highest weekly hardware dollar sales of the year, a jump Circana analyst Mat Piscatella tied to the special Zelda: 40th Anniversary Edition console that arrived October 29. That reading comes via Circana and was highlighted by multiple outlets, including GameSpot and GamingBolt. The surge is about dollars, not units—and it landed days before The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time’s full remake dropped exclusively on Switch 2 on November 5.

The momentum doesn’t end there. Nintendo’s latest system update adds eShop gifting for family groups and, reportedly, closes the door on a recent Switch 2 jailbreak. Update 23.5.0 went live November 9, as noted by Nintendo Life and Nintendo. On the security side, Polygon reports the same update has stopped dumping and modding for most games following a late-October exploit.

Why did Switch 2 sales jump?

The timing lines up with hardware, not software. Nintendo launched the Zelda: 40th Anniversary Edition Switch 2 on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026, at $519.99. Circana data shows the following U.S. week (ending Oct. 31) delivered the system’s highest weekly hardware dollar sales of the year to date. Circana’s Mat Piscatella said that special-edition console helped drive the record, and overall U.S. video game hardware spending that week climbed 81% year over year. Importantly, the record is measured in dollars, not units, and it covers Switch 2 hardware overall. Because the console (late October) and the Ocarina of Time remake (Nov. 5) fall into different tracking windows, the game’s sales effect appears later in Circana’s reporting, as noted by GamingBolt and GameSpot.

What is the Zelda 40th Anniversary Edition Switch 2?

It’s a themed hardware bundle celebrating four decades of The Legend of Zelda. Priced at $519.99, the package includes a black-and-gold dock featuring a large Triforce and green-and-gold Joy-Con 2 controllers. The console does not include a copy of Ocarina of Time or any other game. Details on the design and pricing were covered by GameSpot and GamingBolt.

Is the Ocarina of Time remake worth it? What reviewers say

The remake launched Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, exclusively for Switch 2. It’s $60 digitally and $70 on cartridge, per GameSpot and games.gg. Early reception has been among the year’s best. GamingBolt notes a 96 Metascore that tops 2026 so far. GameSpot rated it 9/10 and called it the highest-rated release of the year to date, while Eurogamer gave it five stars. For context, the original Ocarina of Time debuted on Nintendo 64 back on Nov. 21, 1998, and was the first 3D entry in the series.

What’s new in the Ocarina of Time remake?

Nintendo says the remake was built for Switch 2 with wide-ranging updates: overhauled visuals, voiced cutscenes, expanded dialogue, and a symphonic orchestral score. Camera and movement controls have been reworked, and new modes and collectibles round out the package, including the “Hall of Fallen Foes” boss-rematch feature and collectible “fairy thoughts.” You can see Nintendo’s full feature list in its announcement post on Nintendo.

How does Nintendo eShop gifting work?

With system update 23.5.0, Nintendo is enabling digital gifting for Switch and Switch 2. Starting Monday, Nov. 16 in the U.S. (Tuesday, Nov. 17 in Nintendo’s European notes), members of a Nintendo Account family group—up to eight people—can gift digital games, DLC, and upgrade packs to one another. Supervised (child) accounts can’t send gifts, and Nintendo says there are limits on how many gifts can be sent over a period. You can even pick a gift-wrap color, and gifts appear on the recipient’s HOME Menu. The patch also lets Switch 2 owners set accessibility options during first-time setup and adds Portuguese (Portugal) text-to-speech. For details, see Nintendo, The Verge, and Nintendo Life.

Did the Switch 2 update kill the jailbreak?

Reportedly, yes—at least for the method that was spreading in late October. A hacker had demonstrated a modified Mario Kart World running on a jailbroken Switch 2 via an exploit involving the SmileBASIC 4 app. After system update 23.5.0, dumping and modding games no longer works except for some cartridge titles, according to Polygon. Nintendo Life also notes the exploit has been “supposedly” addressed. As always with console security, workarounds can evolve, but this patch appears to have shut down the current avenue.

What we don’t know yet

• Nintendo has not released sales numbers for the Ocarina of Time remake.
• Circana’s weekly record is in dollars, not units; unit counts for that week were not disclosed.
• Nintendo hasn’t detailed the exact limits on the number of gifts you can send in a set period.
• It’s unclear whether other jailbreak methods will emerge following update 23.5.0.

Related: GTA VI is nine days away: the characters, music and confirmed launch details

What’s next

• Thu., Nov. 12 (ET): Pikmin 4 – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Dandori Academy (Nintendo’s November list).
• Mon., Nov. 16 (ET): eShop gifting rolls out in the U.S. for Switch and Switch 2.
• Tue., Nov. 17 (ET): eShop gifting rolls out in Europe, per regional notes.
• Thu., Nov. 19 (ET): GTA VI launches on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S; not coming to Switch 2 at launch.

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*ARCHIVE PHOTO: A standard Nintendo Switch 2 in its dock (not the Zelda 40th Anniversary Edition). Photo: Crisco 1492 / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped).*

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