Zelda Switch 2 hides pixel-art Link and Zelda under its dock cover
The imprint shows 16 heart containers, the health cap in the NES original. The matching Pro Controller and carry case add more retro Zelda pixel art.
Owners of the Zelda-themed Nintendo Switch 2, which went on sale on October 29, 2026, are finding a hidden piece of pixel art inside the console. Slide off the cover over the dock connector and there is a small imprint of Link and Zelda raising their pieces of the Triforce, topped by a row of 16 heart containers.
A nod to 1986
The heart count is the detail Zelda fans are sharing. Sixteen hearts is the most health Link can hold in the original NES Legend of Zelda, so the imprint works as a quiet callback to where the series began, 40 years ago. Polygon, which first highlighted the find, notes that Nintendo never showed it in the console's reveal trailer. The only official look was buried as the ninth image in the product carousel on Nintendo's own store, which is why many buyers only found it after unboxing.
The rest of the Zelda 40th anniversary hardware keeps the theme going. The back of the matching Switch 2 Pro Controller carries a retro-styled Link caught mid-swing, and the dedicated carrying case ships with a microfibre cleaning cloth embossed with more classic pixel art. The console itself has Triforce decals and fully coloured Joy-Con 2 controllers in green and gold.
Not Nintendo's first hidden detail
Nintendo has a habit of tucking small surprises into special-edition hardware. Polygon points to the hidden Triforce on the Zelda Game & Watch and the coins printed on the back of the red Mario-themed Switch 2 as earlier examples.
A rough launch
The green-and-gold model has been hard to buy. Major US retailers oversold their launch-day stock and told some customers at the last minute that orders would not arrive, and restocks have sold out almost instantly. The hardware arrives a week ahead of the Ocarina of Time remake for Switch 2, which releases on November 5.
Nintendo has not shared Southeast Asian allocation numbers for the Zelda edition. If you are hunting one locally, check official Nintendo retail partners rather than marked-up resellers, and once you have it, pop the dock cover off before you plug it in.
Source: Polygon.
