Topic: Next Nintendo Direct?

I still don’t buy that Nintendo would be dumb enough to release a big new console iteration during a literal chip drought, allowing the scalpers to take as much as they want.. but it’ll be ironic to see this forum, and nintendo youtubers go insane when they realize you can’t even buy the consoles.

@BongoBongo if the rumors are accurate and is going to replace the current model I cannot see it having that big of a boost in power... But apparantely we will know as soon as today...

@BongoBongo shares prices are not actually directly connected to the company’s performance. If they have gone share prices are rising so a new Switch is coming then they are rubbish analysts since the (empty or otherwise) rumours would have the same effect of rising shares.

If you read the article it's not. Their source is "people familiar with the matter" which, frankly, is about all you can ever get before an official announcement. The comment about the share price isn't really anything more than proof that people are willing to put money on the line for it. Presumably because people with money have their own "people familiar with the matter" who are relaying to them the good news of "decent supply for a Switch revision coming soon".

Basically, Bloomberg's source is saying the announcement is imminent. Which in itself is a pretty good indication because if it's not then they'll have egg on their face. Then separately people with money are agreeing with Bloomberg's assessment because, at this point, the Switch Pro is a secret to everybody

@skywake yes - your points are all fair. I was trying to make the point that it should be taken with a grain of salt but didn’t use the best reason why.

If this is true then surely there needs to be a flagship game released same time (or shorty after) to encourage people to get it - otherwise the only reason I need a new switch right now is I wouldn’t mind slightly better battery life (as I have the original switch). Zelda would be the obvious choice if ready but could it be something else we have not yet heard about?

@BongoBongo actually most likely this version would have worst battery life than the current model and more in line with OG as the form factor should not change drastically therefore no bigger battery and the power consumption should increase as well

@Balta666 Not necessarily. If the chip goes through another die shrink (like the 2019 silent revision), it's quite possible it'll have better battery life on comparable games and settings. Plus, the rumors of it having a less energy using screen would also help.

@link3710 not necessarily but also not unlikely

I guess we'll find out soon enough the specifics of the hardware change. But given the change in the landscape since 2017 there are a few very, very likely things. Things I've gone into a bit on other threads already.

OLED is heavily rumoured which, if they go this route, would suggest HDR being part of the picture. There also suggestions of "4K output" on the dock which is basically marketing speak for HDMI 2.0 which also means HDR. So HDR, if I was a gambler I'd put some money on this being a large part of the appeal

Ontop of this we've seen a dramatic drop in the cost of NAND Flash and a dramatic increase in speed. So it wouldn't be much of a stretch for there to be more than 32GB of faster internal storage. Less exciting but something of note, faster load times would definitely be a nice plus.

Others have pointed out a die shrink so lower power consumption. But this could also mean better thermals, higher clocks and higher performance particularly in portable mode. There's also DLSS which basically didn't exist in 2017 but is now pretty mature. This could also give a bit more performance headroom and reduce power consumption.

As for games.... Breath of the Wild 2, Bayonetta 3 and Metroid Prime 4 don't have dates. We've basically seen nothing from these games. Now I think Metroid Prime 4 is not that game but Breath of the Wild 2 definitely could be. Bayonetta 3 could also push the hardware. If HDR is really the push? You don't even need a powerhouse game. Some game set in space would probably work to push the idea of deep blacks and bright highlights. And it just happens that there's also a 2D Metroid rumoured in this latest batch of leaks.

Just saying.

@Slowdive does anyone wish Sonic would just go away? Even as a Sega fan boy from the 80's I think he needs to go. But unfortunately Sega will let their awesome catalog of games just sit there and keep releasing sonic games.

@Joe-b Sonic wasn't around in the 80s ;p

@jump I would say this new president is less keen on the direct format as Twitter and YouTube campaigns work well (but it may be that covid still impacts a lot and it is just that directs are hard to do atm)

@Joe-b 3d Sonic gameplay can go away but I would buy any new 2d classic ones happily

@Joe-b We've hardly been overloaded with Sonic games recently. The last main-series Sonic game was almost 4 years ago...

Unless you count Sonic 1 and 2 re-releases. Those are definitely overdone.

Well stupid people got butthurt at the Direct earlier this year because they hate 90% of good games, so I can't imagine how a much lighter Direct would've been received.

@kkslider5552000 It’s more that people had higher expectations. I wouldn’t call something like skyward sword hd a “good game”.

I agree with much of the complaints of how the remake is being sold, but it will still be an excellent game that was surrounded by constant interesting and high quality games. Like even the one that was an actual bad part of the Direct, the EA dodgeball game thing, is apparently really good!

Still no info on when nintendo is doing their direct huh?

@Slowdive gotcha. Didn't an insider mention nintendo would reveal their plans for e3 this week?

@NintendoByNature The insider buzz is that Nintendo will announce the revised switch hardware before E3, so other companies at E3 can reveal their games that are coming to the Switch. E3 is June 12-15. We've got two weeks until then.

Which... makes me think. If this is true, will one or more of these new games from other companies look like they need more power than the current switch has? I mean, if the new games didn't look suspicious, then Nintendo wouldn't have to announce the revised hardware before E3.