Nintendo Fans Already Camping Out for Switch 2 – Two Months Early

Yep, you read that right—people are already camping out for the Nintendo Switch 2, even though the console doesn’t release until June 5. It’s not a queue of thousands (yet), but a couple of die-hard Nintendo fans have officially started the line two whole months early.

Leading the charge is YouTuber ChickenDog, who posted up outside the Nintendo Store in New York City on April 5. His goal? To be first in line to buy the Switch 2 and immortalize the journey online, just like YouTube legend Alex CND did back in 2017 with the original Switch.

Switch (2017)

So far, ChickenDog’s been keeping fans updated with vlog-style content featuring clips of him gaming from his car, visiting the Switch 2 Experience event, and generally hanging around the area like it’s Comic-Con Eve.

Swittch 2 (2025)

Now, when he says “camping out,” he’s not exactly curled up in a sleeping bag 24/7. He’s got access to a hotel and an Airbnb, so he’s mixing in some warm showers and soft beds with his street presence. Still, committing two months of your life to this kind of public stunt isn’t small potatoes—it’s a full-time content grind.

Meanwhile, on the West Coast, another YouTuber named Super Café is doing something similar in San Francisco. He’s claimed the sidewalk outside the upcoming Nintendo Store, which doesn’t even open until May 15, three weeks before the console launch. Unlike ChickenDog, Super Café is doing this solo—and from the sounds of it, he’s not planning on booking an Airbnb anytime soon. “I’m going to skip a couple of showers if I have to,” he joked in one of his videos. A little grim, but you can’t say the guy’s not committed.

Both of these “line sitters” are clearly inspired by Alex CND’s Switch launch stunt, where he waited outside the Nintendo NY store for over a month to claim the first publicly sold Switch in 2017. His video featuring Doug Bowser (before he became Nintendo of America’s president) pulled over a million views, and now these new challengers are hoping to go bigger: two months, two consoles, two creators. It’s a niche tradition, but it’s definitely one with some YouTube pedigree.

And let’s be real—this isn’t really about buying a console anymore. It's about being seen buying it. In 2025, when online pre-orders are the norm and launch-day lines are mostly a thing of the past, this kind of waiting-in-line spectacle has more to do with content creation than consumerism. It's performance art with a side of Mario Kart.

Speaking of pre-orders, if you’re not about that sidewalk life, UK and European retailers have already opened Switch 2 pre-orders. North America, however, is still waiting, thanks to newly introduced tariffs that delayed availability. Add that to the £74.99 ($80) price tag for Mario Kart World, and you can see why some fans are opting to turn their hype into headlines instead.

So will ChickenDog and Super Café stick it out for the full two months? Or will exhaustion (and probably the smell) send them home early? We’ll find out. But for now, they’re keeping the hype train rolling—and probably running on a steady diet of cold fries and Red Bull.