Don’t take off the Switch 2’s screen protector

If you’re picking up a Switch 2 this week, resist the urge to remove the screen protector you’ll find applied to the console out of the box. This is actually a “film layer designed to prevent fragments scattering in the event of damage,” and the Switch 2’s European safety manual, spotted by fan site NintendoSoup, specifically warns not to peel it off.

This advice might sound familiar, because the Switch OLED had a similar anti-scattering layer with the same warning. In both cases, the goal is to minimize the spread of glass splinters if the screen gets smashed. Foldable phones also commonly ship with protective anti-scratch films that mustn’t be removed, which infamously caused problems when the first Galaxy Fold reviewers did exactly that.

The Switch 2 safety document includes a host of other helpful tips / attempts to cover Nintendo from lawsuits, ranging from the inane (“Be aware of your surroundings”) to the unexpectedly technical (“Pay attention to the load capacity of the circuit when choosing where to plug the product in.”) Nintendo recommends you avoid using the Switch 2 in dusty, smoky, or humid environments; that you stick to playing it in temperatures between 5 and 35 degrees Celsius; and that you charge the batteries at least once every six months.

The new Joy-Con controllers get their own set of warnings. There’s the usual caution about using straps to avoid throwing a Joy-Con into your TV, but the document also warns against placing stickers over the controllers’ shoulder buttons, which might impede the magnets used to attach them to the console. Nintendo also recommends using a mousemat when using the new mouse control mode to avoid scratching up whatever surface you’re playing on.