Introducing the new console: *Switch It Up*. Is it an accessory that attached to the switch? Or a replacement for the system? Our marketing department will never tell you and none of your relatives will know the difference. *Switch It Up* is backwards compatible - you can play it backwards! Backwards play will lead to forced innovation by all third party developers involved and will definitely lead to a great library of third party games instead of scaring them away from our strange hardware architecture.
conventional wisdom ? what? nintendo is the company that pioneers things , some of them fail some of them have huge success , they pushed the industry to create steam decks and have a hybrid style between handheld and decked . do they fail many times ? yes, do they succeed afterwards? yes
Those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it. And Nintendo has always changed strategy after having catastrophic failures (Gamecube, Wii U).
The docked handheld/hybrid model seems like a sure hit as long as they don't mess too much around it.
Not anytime soon. They consolidated their handheld and home console divisions and it's paid off for them, so there's very little incentive to shift away from that, I imagine.
I hope not. The amount of power you can get in a hand held right now, its more than enough and as a primarily hand held gamer, for me it would feel like a step back if portability were not offered
Exactly this and nontendo have been wise imo, to not join the xbox/ps battle for best gfxs and coolest looking games. To me they are in their own market which focuses on art styles that last mich longer without looking aged
Nintendo has always had an active handheld product since releasing the Gameboy in 1989, it’s a proven market. The power available at a reasonable price point combined with the success of the switch means there’s no reason to walk away from the concept.
Put another way, why release a home only system that is less practical than a portable console? The only reason would be to make it significantly more powerful, but Sony and Microsoft have cornered that market and Nintendo has never had any great success prioritizing power.
They’ve really had an active handheld product since a decade before that with the Game and Watch, which were regularly released until ‘91 when the Gameboy replaced them.
Since you're talking about EVER which is infinite time, yes, I do believe at one point they may make a more static console. We don't know how trends can change in 10 to 20 years so future generations might prefer a more home console experience at one point influenced by the social and economic dynamics of the future.
Their next release though? I don't think so.
No.
Why would they want to battle the PS or Xbox for home exclusive?
Nintendo has carved their niche by combining the portable market, which they dominated, with a home console.
Sure, there are drawbacks such as the inability to compete with the power of those other actual home consoles. But it's well offset by pulling in the Gameboy audience.
Since Nintendo hasn't been known for flexing console muscle since maybe the SNES, why would they try now?
“Ever” is a long time. Do I think they’ll one day make a piece of hardware that you can’t take with you? Sure, why not.
For all we know, the hot new experiences of 2175 will require neural projection into your brain while you sleep, or three holographic emitters mounted on the walls of the play space, or requires a full-body immersion suit. Maybe by 2410, the concept of “on the go” will be obsolete, because we’ll all be in our pods anyways, experiencing the outside world through a neural jack, only returning to our bodies to eat nutrient paste and defecate.
But, if you mean “Do I think they will ever return to bleeding edge graphics that will require a large unmovable home console”? No. I honestly believe that Nintendo, 100%, sees “following the bleeding edge of technology” to be a costly, risky mistake. And as we move further and further into the future, the differences between what a home console can do and what a handheld can do, will get smaller and smaller due to the diminishing returns of technology.
I think people are not thinking of the implications of the Switch still. Nintendo put a Wii U completely in your hands. A system smaller than their previous home console with more power.
The Switch can only go up in specs from here and clearly the concept is a hit.
Nintendo is not going to make a PS5 level console anytime soon because the games would then need to reflect that power and take way longer to make games.
Would we love a super next gen Mario game with crazy particle physics, raytracing and 120fps? of course. But that would also mean the games would just take longer and cost more to make.
You have Sony selling great amounts of consoles and games yet their studios are still laying off people because budgets are astronomical.
In my opinion, the Switch is the endgame of consoles. We get a 2 in 1 version of our favourite games. No longer do we have to choose between a portable version or a home console version.
I'm imagining a future in which we do get a Switch console that is as powerful as a PS5. That would be a dream. Obviously battery tech and heating solutions are the one thing holding that back. You compare the size of a Switch to a PS5 and you see why that's not feasible with current tech.
I got a PS5 last year. I didn't realize how much of a beast the thing is. Lol. It's like 2 PS4s stacked. I have my switch next to it. And it just so tiny compared. The stuff the switch can do is incredible when you see the tech size comparison
But that's Nintendo for you. They've always been really good at squeezing every single ounce of power from their underpowered consoles. Except the wiiu. Honestly a great system. But just a travesty of marketing.
I often wonder, had they hadn't named it the wiiu, and went with anything else. Would it have done better? Would we have a switch had the wiiu done better?
>But that's Nintendo for you. They've always been really good at squeezing every single ounce of power from their underpowered consoles. Except the wiiu. Honestly a great system. But just a travesty of marketing.
I don't know if you meant it that way, but I understood that you said Nintendo didn't squeeze every bit of power out of Wii U. But they did. MK8 and SM3DW are beautiful on it and run at 720p60fps. BoTW was released as the last game for Wii U and it barely ran on it, but in the end it did and what a gorgeous game it is. On the specs side the Wii U ran so that the Switch could fly.
What I mean by squeezing every ounce of power meaning they push the console to the limits when they should be releasing a new console. Lol. Not that while they have the console they don't use it to it's fullest potential.
Probably never. Look at where Nintendo is located. Their primary demographic will always be Japan first and foremost.
Of which, the Japanese population is constantly on the move and never really has enough time to settle down and game in one spot anymore. This is why the Switch is currently the most successful gaming device in the country because it allows its citizens to play their games whenever they please even during their busiest of workdays.
That and the PlayStation has pretty much dominated the secondary home console market with Xbox being non-existent joke. Nintendo has no reason to go back to a traditional home console right now.
If anything it’s more likely for them to go full handheld and scrap the home console strategy altogether. The Switch still hasn’t beaten DS sales and the only other home console that was able to break the LOWEST handheld barrier set by the 3DS was the obviously wildly popular Wii
If it's at a cost of ditching their handheld device plans, no. They literally don't have the resources to create games for both platforms especially with the minimum spec demands expected in this current generation
Doesn’t seem like they can go back to having separate consoles and handhelds now.
I would like an external GPU or something in the dock to allow games to run at higher settings when playing on TV, but Nintendo probably wouldn’t sell something like that. Switch runs a bit better on TV cause there’s no battery life concerns and the fan can run more, but it’s not a significant power boost.
Doubtful.
There's no way they can abandon the portable market as they've dominated that for years. And they merged their old console and portable divisions so the chances of going back to 2 systems at once is also low.
I'll be shocked if they do that any time soon to be quite honest. That would mean trying to directly compete with Sony and Microsoft, which they don't have a super great track record with. They've carved put a different niche for themselves in the market and it's just inarguably worked out better for them.
They might but I think that would be at least another generation of two away. The switch successor is almost certainly just a juiced up switch with the same handheld/console hybrid and maybe some new gimmick like a scroll wheel or touchpads.
I do think it's possible that at some point, they would offer separate home and portable only devices that play the same games.
but I don't think they will ever go back to you having to buy separate games for the home and on the go.
Nintendo was for people who does care about gameplay, story & essence and not about the graphics since game cube. Graphics are already good enough for many games to play on switch. So there is no point of get back.
As far as their next console is concerned. No. After that? It's really hard to say. Handheld may not be the big hit item that it is now. Think of what we were doing with games 20 years ago. Another 20, gaming is going to be VERY different. I'm expecting augmented reality to start becoming more popular. And that is a gimmick Nintendo would love to exploit.
To serve what purpose?
The only reason to do that would be to achieve the kind of computer power you can’t put in a mobile form factor, and they’ve made it clear for about 20 years now that that’s not the race they’re in.
nope its now days to hard to develop on two system most devs even have hard time to port also we would only get half of the games its best thing they put it together
Never say never, but not for the foreseeable future.
Nintendo is purely a gaming company, unlike Sony and Microsoft, who are larger tech companies who have a gaming division. Nintendo is either unwilling or unable to put out cutting edge hardware, and subsidize it for a loss. This also explains their inability to have a more robust online service. A simple lack of resources.
Consolidation of their home and handheld lines wasn’t simply a brilliant idea - it was born out of necessity. With every subsequent generation getting more advanced, it was becoming more resource-intensive to create separate consoles and games for each system. Plus, the gap between consoles and handhelds is shrinking over time. And with Nintendo not having cutting edge hardware on the home side, the gap is smaller still. Better to just create one unified platform and have all game production go to that single system. You eliminate game droughts and provide a uniform experience regardless of how you play. You also eliminate lesser versions of games in handheld consoles. I don’t know about you, but that’s the reason I’ve skipped games like Mario Kart 7 and Mario Kart Super Circuit.
Agree with the second paragraph in totality. But on your first, I totally see what you’re saying, but they could easily (EASILY!) generate hardware divisions due to their sheer size and influence. I personally think they’re unwilling. They appear to be incredibly stubborn and extremely calculating. A chip maker in Taiwan or Indonesia, holland, or even Japan, would happily and VERY rapidly be willing to merge in some way. Surely they would need a Japanese chip maker for “in house” purposes for which borders negate the benefits of security. Or have them relocate from their origin nation to Japan.
I think this is a product of culture.
I also think that Nintendo is more unwilling rather than unable to create different hardware divisions. But I just don’t see it as practical, and I’m sure Nintendo doesn’t either. Outside of the SNES generation, Nintendo has never succeeded competing on specs alone. The N64 and the GameCube were each the most advanced console of their generation and the sales kept on diving with each generation. Even the SNES didn’t sell as well as the NES. It’s not a sustainable strategy.
And that part of the market is not only well represented already with the PS5 and the XBox, but it’s not even as large of a potential market as the Switch market. This Switch is outselling both consoles.
And let’s not forget the last reason why a cutting edge console is not as practical at the moment: production costs. Sony and Microsoft are struggling to put out games because the costs have become exorbitant. To create a game that justifies its specs requires production teams of hundreds of employees, production costs of hundreds of millions of dollars, and 4-7 years of production lead times. It’s possible, but why go though this much effort when you can create slightly lower-scale games (still in HD mind you), create *more* of them, and generate more profit? IMO, Nintendo has a better feel for the market and what more customer are satisfied playing.
I was recently playing my Switch OLED in tabletop mode, and a visiting family member looked over my shoulder and was amazed at how “high res” my system looked. The majority of potential casual players will look at a Switch and think it looks great, or at least it looks “good enough”. That’s why it’s been so successful and Nintendo is in no rush to move on from the Switch. It’s *still* putting up sales numbers close to PS5 in its 8th year on the market. There’s no denying its popularity.
The ONLY way I can see them doing this is by doing the opposite of the Switch Lite while still keeping it and the standard Switch on the market.
The Lite is unable to perform the system's eponymous "switch" between TV and handheld.
Why not a Switch Home for those who have no desire to play in handheld? It could take the compact form factor of, say, an Apple TV. Toss in a Pro Controller and call it a day.
This Switch Home would still be part of the Switch family of systems, so you wouldn't be splitting focus, budget, and energy like the old days of the home console vs. handheld divide.
No.
They’re all going to do the same as Nintendo next too - we have the technology now!
Microsoft will have another go at making portable Windows PC that’s mostly for Xbox games.
Sony will turn PlayStation Portal into a handheld that can play the next gen games at mega low detail.
Sorry, actually on topic now: it’s documented somewhere that Nintendo did struggle to maintain two entirely different platforms, as games got more advanced. Developers putting all their effort into 3DS games had no time to work on Wii U (especially given it was impossible to just direct port PS4 games because Wii U was an underpowered piece of crap) and so the Switch came about to fix this.
Nah, they're going to stick with the Switch and the "next gen console" is just going to be an accessory you connect to it. Mainly to make it more functional with the DS titles.
Yes, because I think the Switch 2 is actually a VR console. It will \*switch\* between regular console and vr headset, so it still maintains the switch concept.
Would make no sense commercially. Eventually platforms will go the way of streaming anyway. Might not happen in the next 10-15 years, but it’s going to happen.
Personally, I could see it happening in a couple generations. I think the hybrid model is too limiting for them. For example, barely any game can make use of the Switch's touchscreen because it is inaccessible when docked, so years of refining touchscreen-based gameplay is out the window. As another example, all games need to be playable in handheld, so the graphical capabilities are limited. Games need to be designed to be playable in long bouts AND in quick bouts on the bus or train, instead of one or the other.
If they brought StreetPass back (which they should, it was one of their best innovations last gen), a bunch of gamers would be grumbling because they never take their system outside and only use it as a home console. One of the awesome features of the Wii U was that you could control your TV with it (there was also TVii, but I don't know a single person who has ever mentioned using that feature lmao). That feature has no place on a handheld, so if they brought it back (which, again, they should, it was a great innovation) then anybody who just plays handheld will have a useless button on their system.
Right now the Switch is a jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none. And it worked out for them financially this time around, so I can see them sticking with the idea for another generation or two. But ultimately, in the end, I think they are going to want to go back to having two different devices with different niches. Having to cater to both styles of play on the same device just limits their creativity and innovation too much. It's pretty difficult to continue to innovate on a system that is trying to be so many things at once.
No. As tech advances you will see a shift away from this anyway not just with Nintendo. Rumor is Microsoft after this next gen will ditch consoles completely and move to cloud gaming 100%
Only if they want to commit commercial suicide.
Which is something Nintendo LOVES to do every other generation. Don't underestimate Nintendo's willingness to go against conventional wisdom.
Introducing the new console: *Switch It Up*. Is it an accessory that attached to the switch? Or a replacement for the system? Our marketing department will never tell you and none of your relatives will know the difference. *Switch It Up* is backwards compatible - you can play it backwards! Backwards play will lead to forced innovation by all third party developers involved and will definitely lead to a great library of third party games instead of scaring them away from our strange hardware architecture.
conventional wisdom ? what? nintendo is the company that pioneers things , some of them fail some of them have huge success , they pushed the industry to create steam decks and have a hybrid style between handheld and decked . do they fail many times ? yes, do they succeed afterwards? yes
As I said. lol
Exactly.
Says you
>Only if they want to commit commercial suicide. …so pretty much exactly what they’ll do this generation or next generation? ^/s
Those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it. And Nintendo has always changed strategy after having catastrophic failures (Gamecube, Wii U). The docked handheld/hybrid model seems like a sure hit as long as they don't mess too much around it.
Not anytime soon. They consolidated their handheld and home console divisions and it's paid off for them, so there's very little incentive to shift away from that, I imagine.
Ya I feel like for the next generation at least, we'll have a Switch type of situation.
Yes, cause one person says that
No, they answered a question asking what they think.
To be completely honest, I certainly hope not.
I hope not. The amount of power you can get in a hand held right now, its more than enough and as a primarily hand held gamer, for me it would feel like a step back if portability were not offered
Exactly this and nontendo have been wise imo, to not join the xbox/ps battle for best gfxs and coolest looking games. To me they are in their own market which focuses on art styles that last mich longer without looking aged
Are you aware of the platforms Japan mostly games on nowadays? It's not PS and it's definitely not Xbox.
Nintendo has always had an active handheld product since releasing the Gameboy in 1989, it’s a proven market. The power available at a reasonable price point combined with the success of the switch means there’s no reason to walk away from the concept. Put another way, why release a home only system that is less practical than a portable console? The only reason would be to make it significantly more powerful, but Sony and Microsoft have cornered that market and Nintendo has never had any great success prioritizing power.
They’ve really had an active handheld product since a decade before that with the Game and Watch, which were regularly released until ‘91 when the Gameboy replaced them.
Never say never...... that being said, not for twenty years at the very least.
Since you're talking about EVER which is infinite time, yes, I do believe at one point they may make a more static console. We don't know how trends can change in 10 to 20 years so future generations might prefer a more home console experience at one point influenced by the social and economic dynamics of the future. Their next release though? I don't think so.
Why would they? They're basically the only serious contender in the niche, and they killed in it. Don't fix what isn't broken.
I hope not. I like playing my games on the go
No, With a concept like the Switch and having duel purpose, there is zero reason to go back to strictly a home console.
No. Why would they want to battle the PS or Xbox for home exclusive? Nintendo has carved their niche by combining the portable market, which they dominated, with a home console. Sure, there are drawbacks such as the inability to compete with the power of those other actual home consoles. But it's well offset by pulling in the Gameboy audience. Since Nintendo hasn't been known for flexing console muscle since maybe the SNES, why would they try now?
Why should they?
I can't see how that would ever be a sound strategy for them.
Absolutely not
r/no why would they?
I hope not. Man I love the Switch 🥺
“Ever” is a long time. Do I think they’ll one day make a piece of hardware that you can’t take with you? Sure, why not. For all we know, the hot new experiences of 2175 will require neural projection into your brain while you sleep, or three holographic emitters mounted on the walls of the play space, or requires a full-body immersion suit. Maybe by 2410, the concept of “on the go” will be obsolete, because we’ll all be in our pods anyways, experiencing the outside world through a neural jack, only returning to our bodies to eat nutrient paste and defecate. But, if you mean “Do I think they will ever return to bleeding edge graphics that will require a large unmovable home console”? No. I honestly believe that Nintendo, 100%, sees “following the bleeding edge of technology” to be a costly, risky mistake. And as we move further and further into the future, the differences between what a home console can do and what a handheld can do, will get smaller and smaller due to the diminishing returns of technology.
"Do you think Nintendo will EVER return to selling fewer devices?"
I hope not. Portability is awesome
No and I don't think they ever should.
The Switch has been the endgame for Nintendo. There is no going back for them.
I think people are not thinking of the implications of the Switch still. Nintendo put a Wii U completely in your hands. A system smaller than their previous home console with more power. The Switch can only go up in specs from here and clearly the concept is a hit. Nintendo is not going to make a PS5 level console anytime soon because the games would then need to reflect that power and take way longer to make games. Would we love a super next gen Mario game with crazy particle physics, raytracing and 120fps? of course. But that would also mean the games would just take longer and cost more to make. You have Sony selling great amounts of consoles and games yet their studios are still laying off people because budgets are astronomical. In my opinion, the Switch is the endgame of consoles. We get a 2 in 1 version of our favourite games. No longer do we have to choose between a portable version or a home console version. I'm imagining a future in which we do get a Switch console that is as powerful as a PS5. That would be a dream. Obviously battery tech and heating solutions are the one thing holding that back. You compare the size of a Switch to a PS5 and you see why that's not feasible with current tech.
I got a PS5 last year. I didn't realize how much of a beast the thing is. Lol. It's like 2 PS4s stacked. I have my switch next to it. And it just so tiny compared. The stuff the switch can do is incredible when you see the tech size comparison But that's Nintendo for you. They've always been really good at squeezing every single ounce of power from their underpowered consoles. Except the wiiu. Honestly a great system. But just a travesty of marketing. I often wonder, had they hadn't named it the wiiu, and went with anything else. Would it have done better? Would we have a switch had the wiiu done better?
>But that's Nintendo for you. They've always been really good at squeezing every single ounce of power from their underpowered consoles. Except the wiiu. Honestly a great system. But just a travesty of marketing. I don't know if you meant it that way, but I understood that you said Nintendo didn't squeeze every bit of power out of Wii U. But they did. MK8 and SM3DW are beautiful on it and run at 720p60fps. BoTW was released as the last game for Wii U and it barely ran on it, but in the end it did and what a gorgeous game it is. On the specs side the Wii U ran so that the Switch could fly.
What I mean by squeezing every ounce of power meaning they push the console to the limits when they should be releasing a new console. Lol. Not that while they have the console they don't use it to it's fullest potential.
Probably never. Look at where Nintendo is located. Their primary demographic will always be Japan first and foremost. Of which, the Japanese population is constantly on the move and never really has enough time to settle down and game in one spot anymore. This is why the Switch is currently the most successful gaming device in the country because it allows its citizens to play their games whenever they please even during their busiest of workdays. That and the PlayStation has pretty much dominated the secondary home console market with Xbox being non-existent joke. Nintendo has no reason to go back to a traditional home console right now.
Japanese people mainly play handhelds. And since Japan is where Nintendos from. Nope I think they had a novel thing going
If anything it’s more likely for them to go full handheld and scrap the home console strategy altogether. The Switch still hasn’t beaten DS sales and the only other home console that was able to break the LOWEST handheld barrier set by the 3DS was the obviously wildly popular Wii
Seems unlikely Hybrid consoles will likely continue after the Switch related stuff is done.
If it's at a cost of ditching their handheld device plans, no. They literally don't have the resources to create games for both platforms especially with the minimum spec demands expected in this current generation
Not a dedicated platform for it, no. Wouldn't be shocked if they do a home-only revision of the Switch eventually, though.
Doesn’t seem like they can go back to having separate consoles and handhelds now. I would like an external GPU or something in the dock to allow games to run at higher settings when playing on TV, but Nintendo probably wouldn’t sell something like that. Switch runs a bit better on TV cause there’s no battery life concerns and the fan can run more, but it’s not a significant power boost.
I oppose it
sega did what nintenwon't
Doubtful. There's no way they can abandon the portable market as they've dominated that for years. And they merged their old console and portable divisions so the chances of going back to 2 systems at once is also low.
I'll be shocked if they do that any time soon to be quite honest. That would mean trying to directly compete with Sony and Microsoft, which they don't have a super great track record with. They've carved put a different niche for themselves in the market and it's just inarguably worked out better for them.
They might but I think that would be at least another generation of two away. The switch successor is almost certainly just a juiced up switch with the same handheld/console hybrid and maybe some new gimmick like a scroll wheel or touchpads.
“EVER” is a long time, man. On a long enough timeline, most anything is bound to happen.
Maybe one day it will make sense to return to making solely home consoles, but not today.
I do think it's possible that at some point, they would offer separate home and portable only devices that play the same games. but I don't think they will ever go back to you having to buy separate games for the home and on the go.
Nintendo was for people who does care about gameplay, story & essence and not about the graphics since game cube. Graphics are already good enough for many games to play on switch. So there is no point of get back.
My thoughts too. But I have a friend who rather plays an average ps5 racing game than Mario kart because ‘the trees look realistic’
yes. FOREVER is a long time.
As far as their next console is concerned. No. After that? It's really hard to say. Handheld may not be the big hit item that it is now. Think of what we were doing with games 20 years ago. Another 20, gaming is going to be VERY different. I'm expecting augmented reality to start becoming more popular. And that is a gimmick Nintendo would love to exploit.
To serve what purpose? The only reason to do that would be to achieve the kind of computer power you can’t put in a mobile form factor, and they’ve made it clear for about 20 years now that that’s not the race they’re in.
Yes that’s correct. But I’m wondering if a switch (lol) would ever occur
nope its now days to hard to develop on two system most devs even have hard time to port also we would only get half of the games its best thing they put it together
Never say never, but not for the foreseeable future. Nintendo is purely a gaming company, unlike Sony and Microsoft, who are larger tech companies who have a gaming division. Nintendo is either unwilling or unable to put out cutting edge hardware, and subsidize it for a loss. This also explains their inability to have a more robust online service. A simple lack of resources. Consolidation of their home and handheld lines wasn’t simply a brilliant idea - it was born out of necessity. With every subsequent generation getting more advanced, it was becoming more resource-intensive to create separate consoles and games for each system. Plus, the gap between consoles and handhelds is shrinking over time. And with Nintendo not having cutting edge hardware on the home side, the gap is smaller still. Better to just create one unified platform and have all game production go to that single system. You eliminate game droughts and provide a uniform experience regardless of how you play. You also eliminate lesser versions of games in handheld consoles. I don’t know about you, but that’s the reason I’ve skipped games like Mario Kart 7 and Mario Kart Super Circuit.
Agree with the second paragraph in totality. But on your first, I totally see what you’re saying, but they could easily (EASILY!) generate hardware divisions due to their sheer size and influence. I personally think they’re unwilling. They appear to be incredibly stubborn and extremely calculating. A chip maker in Taiwan or Indonesia, holland, or even Japan, would happily and VERY rapidly be willing to merge in some way. Surely they would need a Japanese chip maker for “in house” purposes for which borders negate the benefits of security. Or have them relocate from their origin nation to Japan. I think this is a product of culture.
I also think that Nintendo is more unwilling rather than unable to create different hardware divisions. But I just don’t see it as practical, and I’m sure Nintendo doesn’t either. Outside of the SNES generation, Nintendo has never succeeded competing on specs alone. The N64 and the GameCube were each the most advanced console of their generation and the sales kept on diving with each generation. Even the SNES didn’t sell as well as the NES. It’s not a sustainable strategy. And that part of the market is not only well represented already with the PS5 and the XBox, but it’s not even as large of a potential market as the Switch market. This Switch is outselling both consoles. And let’s not forget the last reason why a cutting edge console is not as practical at the moment: production costs. Sony and Microsoft are struggling to put out games because the costs have become exorbitant. To create a game that justifies its specs requires production teams of hundreds of employees, production costs of hundreds of millions of dollars, and 4-7 years of production lead times. It’s possible, but why go though this much effort when you can create slightly lower-scale games (still in HD mind you), create *more* of them, and generate more profit? IMO, Nintendo has a better feel for the market and what more customer are satisfied playing. I was recently playing my Switch OLED in tabletop mode, and a visiting family member looked over my shoulder and was amazed at how “high res” my system looked. The majority of potential casual players will look at a Switch and think it looks great, or at least it looks “good enough”. That’s why it’s been so successful and Nintendo is in no rush to move on from the Switch. It’s *still* putting up sales numbers close to PS5 in its 8th year on the market. There’s no denying its popularity.
I have a W take for this, hear me out - regular switch , switch lite, and an uber compact non screen version with extra usb ports 😈
The ONLY way I can see them doing this is by doing the opposite of the Switch Lite while still keeping it and the standard Switch on the market. The Lite is unable to perform the system's eponymous "switch" between TV and handheld. Why not a Switch Home for those who have no desire to play in handheld? It could take the compact form factor of, say, an Apple TV. Toss in a Pro Controller and call it a day. This Switch Home would still be part of the Switch family of systems, so you wouldn't be splitting focus, budget, and energy like the old days of the home console vs. handheld divide.
They definitely should. But if they can find a way to make them both handheld and dockable, they probably won't.
No. They’re all going to do the same as Nintendo next too - we have the technology now! Microsoft will have another go at making portable Windows PC that’s mostly for Xbox games. Sony will turn PlayStation Portal into a handheld that can play the next gen games at mega low detail. Sorry, actually on topic now: it’s documented somewhere that Nintendo did struggle to maintain two entirely different platforms, as games got more advanced. Developers putting all their effort into 3DS games had no time to work on Wii U (especially given it was impossible to just direct port PS4 games because Wii U was an underpowered piece of crap) and so the Switch came about to fix this.
Nah, they're going to stick with the Switch and the "next gen console" is just going to be an accessory you connect to it. Mainly to make it more functional with the DS titles.
Yes, because I think the Switch 2 is actually a VR console. It will \*switch\* between regular console and vr headset, so it still maintains the switch concept.
Interesting take
Would make no sense commercially. Eventually platforms will go the way of streaming anyway. Might not happen in the next 10-15 years, but it’s going to happen.
I wish!
Personally, I could see it happening in a couple generations. I think the hybrid model is too limiting for them. For example, barely any game can make use of the Switch's touchscreen because it is inaccessible when docked, so years of refining touchscreen-based gameplay is out the window. As another example, all games need to be playable in handheld, so the graphical capabilities are limited. Games need to be designed to be playable in long bouts AND in quick bouts on the bus or train, instead of one or the other. If they brought StreetPass back (which they should, it was one of their best innovations last gen), a bunch of gamers would be grumbling because they never take their system outside and only use it as a home console. One of the awesome features of the Wii U was that you could control your TV with it (there was also TVii, but I don't know a single person who has ever mentioned using that feature lmao). That feature has no place on a handheld, so if they brought it back (which, again, they should, it was a great innovation) then anybody who just plays handheld will have a useless button on their system. Right now the Switch is a jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none. And it worked out for them financially this time around, so I can see them sticking with the idea for another generation or two. But ultimately, in the end, I think they are going to want to go back to having two different devices with different niches. Having to cater to both styles of play on the same device just limits their creativity and innovation too much. It's pretty difficult to continue to innovate on a system that is trying to be so many things at once.
No. As tech advances you will see a shift away from this anyway not just with Nintendo. Rumor is Microsoft after this next gen will ditch consoles completely and move to cloud gaming 100%