The Nintendo Switch OLED’s new dock can be purchased separately

By Giovanni Colantonio July 6, 2021

Players will be able to purchase the new dock that comes with the Nintendo Switch OLED separately, according to Nintendo. The company says that the stand-alone dock will be available to buy exclusively through its website.

The newly announced Nintendo Switch OLED comes packaged with a redesigned TV dock, which includes a wired LAN port and rounded corners. It comes in either black or white, depending on which OLED model players buy. In a statement to Digital Trends, Nintendo confirmed that people who don’t want to buy the new system will be able to pick up the stand-alone dock.

OLED Nintendo Switch — Nintendo

“The white dock and black dock will be sold separately (no HDMI cable, no AC adaptor, not in a package) on the Nintendo online store. It will not be sold at retail,” Nintendo tells Digital Trends.

That means it won’t be available through retailers like Amazon or Best Buy. Those who want to get one will have to go through Nintendo directly. The company did not reveal how much the stand-alone dock will cost or when it will be available to purchase.

For comparison, Nintendo sells the current Switch dock, with no cables included, through its website for $60. The company also offers refurbished Switch docks for $40 with a 90-day limited warranty.

According to The Verge, the old and new docks are interchangeable, so players can use the OLED dock with a regular Switch model. That’s good news for players who want access to wired internet, but don’t want to shell out for a new console.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Giovanni Colantonio

Section Editor, Gaming

Giovanni is a writer and video producer focusing on happenings in the video game industry. He has contributed stories to…

Gaming

Play this Zelda hidden gem for free with Switch Online before Tears of the Kingdom

Ahead of the release of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, it’s a great time to look back on the stalwart Nintendo’s series presence on Nintendo Switch. From Breath of the Wild to a plethora of classics on Switch Online, it’s probably the best console for any fan of this series to own. That said, there’s one Switch exclusive that may have flown under your radar and is worth checking out before Tears of the Kingdom. That game is Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the Necrodancer featuring The Legend of Zelda.
All About Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer Ft. The Legend of Zelda - Nintendo Switch
Free for Nintendo Switch Online members until May 7 and available at a 50% discount on the eShop through the launch of Tears of the Kingdom, this game is a rare case of Nintendo collaborating with an indie studio for a project tied to one of its biggest franchises. The result is a Zelda game that expands on the rhythm-based action formula established in Brace Yourself Games’ 2016 hit Crypt of the NecroDancer.
Although this roguelite doesn’t play like any other Zelda game out there, it makes some design choices that call back to the series' most iconic titles. That, as well as its rhythmic nature, will feel refreshing ahead of Tears of the Kingdom’s ambitious and systems-heavy open-world adventure. If you haven’t played it, give Cadence of Hyrule a shot while it’s free.
A unique adventure
As a crossover between Crypt of the Necrodancer and The Legend of Zelda, the game begins with NecroDancer protagonist Cadence being whisked away to Hyrule. She quickly inspires Link or Zelda to explore the world and fight back against Octavo, who put Hyrule’s king to sleep with a magical Lute. Those who prefer the more minimalist stories of earlier games in the series will enjoy how quickly the game gets players to the rhythmic action. People begging Nintendo to make Zelda playable in Tears of the Kingdom will also appreciate that they can play most of the game as her if they want.

The act of playing Cadence of Hyrule is where things get really interesting, as it combines old and new ideas to create something that feels familiar yet refreshing. Starting with the new, this is a rhythm game where players must move and attack enemies on the beat. The Zelda franchise is known for its music, and Cadence of Hyrule takes full advantage of that by including versions of some of the series’ greatest hits. Until we get a Theatrhythm-like game for Zelda music, this is game fans of the franchise's iconic soundtracks can't ignore.
Hopping tile-to-tile on the beat is pretty simple to understand, but it can get quite difficult as players must also account for the fact that every enemy also moves and attacks on the beat. Recognizing that players will probably die a lot, the game is structured as a roguelite where some dungeons are procedurally generated (as is the world each time you start a new file). Items can be found or bought with Rupees to help players during an individual run, while Diamonds are collected in dungeons or by clearing a screen of enemies can be spent on more permanent upgrades.
This may sound daunting, but gameplay options like setting the controllers to vibrate on the beat or only letting enemies move when you do can make it easier. Most Zelda fans should also feel more at home with how other parts of Cadence of Hyrule are designed.
But still familiar-feeling

Rhythm-based movement and combat aside, this is a classic top-down Zelda action-adventure game with aesthetics, presentation, and iconography that the series was once known for. The familiarity in terms of the locations visited, enemies fought, and items obtained makes those more distinct elements easier to embrace. It’s also novel to see elements from post-2D Zelda games show up in this style, like Skull Kid via DLC.
It demonstrates just how malleable and well-designed the core Zelda formula is because it still feels faithful despite its rhythmic nature. While Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom’s massive open worlds and deep gameplay systems impress, they’ve also created a yearning for a more classically structured Zelda experience from some fans.

Gaming

Marvel’s Midnight Suns for Nintendo Switch canceled ahead of last-gen launch

Hulk shouts at an enemy in Marvel's Midnight Suns.

Superhero strategy game Marvel's Midnight Suns is getting its long-delayed Xbox One and PS4 port on May 11, but there's some bad news for Nintendo Switch owners: The Switch version of the game has been canceled.
2K Games and Firaxis released Marvel's Midnight Suns, a card-based strategy game focusing on the supernatural side of the Marvel comic book universe, for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S last December. While Digital Trends enjoyed the game, it underperformed financially and the game's director left Firaxis altogether following its release. Originally slated to launch alongside the current-gen versions of Midnight Suns in October 2022, the PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch versions of the game were indefinitely delayed when the game was pushed to December.

Now, the PS4 and Xbox One ports will finally come out digitally alongside the Blood Storm expansion on May 11, but 2K confirmed in the press release announcing the date that "the Nintendo Switch version of Marvel's Midnight Suns will no longer be offered as part of updated plans."
Additionally, the release calls Blood Storm the "final" DLC for Midnight Suns, so it seems unlikely that the game will continue to receive lots of post-launch support, unlike other Firaxis titles such as Sid Meier's Civilization VI and XCOM 2. That's certainly a more muted ending than one would expect from a Marvel game from the industry's premier strategy developers.
Marvel's Midnight Suns will finally launch for PS4 and Xbox One on May 11. It's currently available for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.

Gaming

The best upcoming Nintendo Switch games: 2023, 2024, and beyond

Zelda holds a tear-shaped object in her hand in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom's final trailer.

The Nintendo Switch is one of the most popular consoles Nintendo has ever produced, with a wide variety of games to choose from and plenty of unique features. We’ve already gotten to play new entries across the Zelda, Super Mario, and Pokémon series on Nintendo Switch, but there are still plenty of great games on the way for the hybrid console. These include exclusive games developed internally by Nintendo, as well as third-party titles and ports also available on other platforms.

There are lots of games to look forward to on the platform. These are the best upcoming Nintendo Switch games for 2023 and beyond. Of course, some titles without release windows could skip the Switch entirely and wind up on Nintendo's next-gen console.
Confirmed 2023 releases
The games listed below either have 100% confirmed release dates or solid release windows that we expect them to hit this year. Anything that's up in the air due to more vague launch predictions or previous delays will be listed under the following header.