Did Walmart Cancel Your Switch 2 Preorder? You Might Still Be In Luck
Nintendo's Switch 2 figures to be one of the hottest console launches of all time. If you managed to secure a unit via preorder, you should be able to sit back, relax, and not have to worry about trying to track one down on launch day. In theory, anyway. In practice, there are reports of Walmart cancelling preorders just ahead of the system's retail release. That's the bad news.
The good news? If this happened to you, the situation may not be as bleak as it first appears. Those affected, or at least some of those affected by the late wave of preorder cancellations, are being given an opportunity to reorder via a one-time-use product link.
So, what exactly is going on? Joel Contreras (@49erJojo) posted a couple of screenshots on X, one of which shows a message from Walmart indicating that his Switch 2 preorder was cancelled "due to a system a error."
"Damn
@Walmart
you all just sent me that you all canceled my
@NintendoAmerica
Switch 2 I preordered on preorder day. How the HELL does that happen Walmart? I already ordered games for it and you all send me cancel text this morning WTF?! So disappointed!," Contreras wrote.
He posted that message on May 22. In the same thread, he elaborated by saying he placed his preorder on April 24 at 4:44 a.m., nearly a full month before Walmart pulled the rug out from under him.
Having a preorder cancelled, especially so late in the game, is infuriating. Not knowing exactly why it was cancelled or being offered any kind of meaningful mea culpa only adds to the frustration. Fortunately, however, Walmart is backtracking on at least some of the cancellations.
I just got sent this from @Walmart 💩 pic.twitter.com/9PGvweh4lg
— Joel Contreras (@49erJojo) June 3, 2025
In a follow-up post this week, Contreras shared a screenshot of Walmart apologizing for the inconvenience and adding the Switch 2 back to his online shopping cart, with a one-time link to complete his purchase...again. The message indicates that he only needs to checkout, and that he has 24 hours to do so.
Contreras provided more details to Matt Swider at The Shortcut, saying he was told by an associate on the phone that "it was a problem with Nintendo's distribution of units and not a Walmart inventory problem, which I'm not sure I believe."
"She also said that people who had pr-orders previously would be given priority notification of restocks, which I'm also not sure if I believe. People who pre-ordered should be given priority in accessing the restocks, and after mentioning that several times, she escalated my case to an upper level of management," Contreras said.
As is often the case with major product launches, the preorder situation was rocky at best. That's just how it goes these days.
Be that as it may, you might not be out of luck if Walmart cancelled your Switch 2 preorder. Check your inbox, including your spam folder, to see if you have an email from Walmart. If not, you can try contacting Walmart support. Just bear in mind that time is of the essence with reorder offers expiring after 24 hours.
One final note: according to Contreras, his Switch 2 preorder will not arrive on launch day (June 5), but three days later on June 8.
