Nintendo of America is reportedly cutting 120 contractor roles ahead of Switch 2’s launch

Nintendo of America is reportedly cutting around 120 contractor jobs as part of a restructuring of its testing department ahead of Switch 2’s launch.

That’s according to Kotaku reporter Ethan Gach, who was told that some contractors are being laid off while others will be converted to full-time employees.

The split between job losses and full-time hires is unclear, with the site’s sources claiming the move represents a massive downsizing of the Washington-based testing department, while Nintendo said it would lead to the creation of “a significant number of new full-time employee positions”.

Sources said the restructuring comes amid a “lull” in activity at Nintendo’s testing department, with no big first-party Switch games on the horizon.

None had any knowledge of anyone having exposure to Switch’s upcoming successor, which VGC reported last month had been delayed from this year to an early 2025 launch.

One publishing source suggested the delay was so that Nintendo could prepare stronger first-party software for the console, while others have claimed the move was made to avoid potential hardware supply issues.

“Nintendo of America (NOA) has reorganized its Product Testing functions to drive greater global integration in game development efforts,” a spokesperson for Nintendo said. “The changes will also better align NOA with interregional testing procedures and operations.

“These changes will involve some contractor assignments ending, as well as the creation of a significant number of new full-time employee positions. For all assignments that are ending, the contractors’ agencies, with NOA’s support, will offer severance packages and provide assistance during their transition.

“For those contractor associates who will be leaving us, we are tremendously grateful for the important contributions they’ve made to our business, and we extend our heartfelt thanks for their hard work and service to Nintendo.”