Nintendo has released their Black Friday deals for 2019.

This deal may be a bit familiar to those who shopped for a Switch last year.

The included model is actually the older one with poor battery life, which Nintendo does not make clear.

Black Friday is approaching, which means deals from every corner. From gaming to books everything goes on sale for rock-bottom prices, and American citizens all over the country try to kill each other for them. What a wonderful time of year.

It’s not all happiness and sunshine though. Nintendo appears to be trying to fool their potential customers with their latest Black Friday offering. It might be worth looking at the fine print before investing in a Switch bundle this year.

The Problem With the Switch Black Friday Bundle

The big issue with the Switch bundle isn’t immediately apparent. As advertised in many outlets recently, you will soon be able to get your hands on a Nintendo Switch console and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe for $299.99. The Nintendo premium is coming into play yet again, as this is the same exact deal offered on the console for last Black Friday in many places.

That’s not the real issue though. The real issue is that if you look closely, you’ll find out that this deal includes the previous model version of the Switch. The one with 2.5 – 6 hours of battery life. If you’re unaware, the Switch recently had a model revision that took the battery life up to 4.5 – 9 hours instead.

It basically seems like Nintendo is trying to unload its inferior stock onto consumers without actually lowering the price at all. Talk about your shady sh*t.

It’s All in the Fine Print

Possibly the worst part about this entire situation is that it’s not even made clear. The only place which does make it obvious is the fine print of a press release. If you scroll all the way to the bottom of the release, you’ll see an asterisk from Nintendo themselves.

*Includes original Nintendo Switch model HAC-001. Battery performance ranges from 2.5 to 6.5 hours. For more information, see support.nintendo.com/switch/battery.

If I were you, I’d just plumb for a Switch Lite. They cost around $200 and have dramatically improved battery life, without having to worry about checking the fine print. Considering that Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is only about $60, that’ll still be cheaper.

Nintendo Act Like Monsters

This dodgy deal really is the height of skullduggery from a company more than willing to screw over their customers. Nintendo seem to be getting progressively worse and worse for their consumers. Their online services are a complete joke, they’re constantly producing crappy, micro-transaction-riddled mobile games, and they refuse to accept responsibility for their Joy-Con screw-up.

Worse than anything they do it all with a non-threatening smile on their face, claiming to have their customers’ best interests at heart. My main retort to that would have to be: What sodding heart?