TOKYO — Eager customers lined up outside electronics stores hours in advance in Tokyo on Thursday to collect their pre-ordered Nintendo Switch 2 video game consoles.

The much anticipated Switch2 is an upgrade to its eight-year-old predecessor with new social features meant to draw players into online gaming. The new consoles were sold through a competitive lottery system that Nintendo said got about 2.2 million applications in Japan alone.

Outside the official draw, some retailers offered their own lotteries to pre-order the devices.

Koji Takahashi was among those who missed out on the official draw but he was selected in the second round of a lottery held by a major electronics retailer in Japan.

He was first in line waiting outside the store, arriving four hours ahead of its opening.

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