The mysterious Nintendo Switch Online: Playtest Program will return later this month, now supported on Switch 2.
Nintendo has confirmed this playtest will again focus on the "same service" it previously shared with a limited group of fans in October 2024—back then, exclusively on the original Switch.
While applications are open to all Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack subscribers, participation will be limited to just 40,000 players worldwide, and the test’s content remains strictly confidential. (Though, as last year’s leaks showed, details about the secretive software have already surfaced online before.)
Applications for the playtest—whether as an individual or a group—open later today and can be submitted from Monday, July 21 through Wednesday, July 23. If selected, the playtest will run from Tuesday, July 29 to Monday, August 11.
Participants must be at least 18 years old, hold an active Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack membership, and have an account linked to the US or Canada, UK, Japan, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, or Mexico.
Nintendo’s official application page again emphasizes the need for secrecy:
"We ask that you do not discuss or disclose any content from the Nintendo Switch Online: Playtest Program software or website with others," the company states. "If you participate as a group, you may share information among group members, as long as it stays within your group."
We will perform another test in the #NintendoSwitchOnline: Playtest Program. From 8:00 AM PT on July 21st, Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack members can apply to participate on a first-come, first-served basis.
Find out more: https://t.co/xed7zzwzBb pic.twitter.com/JfnMRd9eoH
— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) July 17, 2025
During last year’s playtest, Nintendo issued copyright takedowns to remove screenshots of its undisclosed software from social media. Yet, as expected, some traces of the test still remain—and are easily found with a quick search on Reddit.
So what’s being tested? Often likened to a Nintendo-style version of Minecraft, the experiential game lets players pick up and assemble blocks to build structures in designated areas of a shared world alongside others. The brief gameplay clips that surfaced last year appeared to be early builds, but hinted that Nintendo is eager to explore the concept further with real players and observe how they interact.
This latest test appears to focus on the same software, but it will be fascinating to see what new features emerge—if, or rather when, new footage leaks again.
