Topic: The Nintendo Switch Thread

@JaxonH I could see 1 of 2 approaches happen:

• The outcome you suggested with January 2021 reveal, Nintendo heavily relies on Smash as well as 3rd parties for Switch news over the summer/fall via Partner Showcases meanwhile there's a Zelda Direct around September which reveals the 1st party fall/holiday lineup to be ports.
• Nintendo has a big general Direct around June/July which reveals the final 2 Smash characters, the new Switch revision, BotW 2 gameplay debut and a lot of info in general for games launching after Skyward Sword HD up to Spring 2022.

In some situations an earlier reveal may benefit Nintendo more overall.

@Grumblevolcano Nintendo’s biggest concern is going to be fighting for the spotlight against the two nee consoles from Sony and Microsoft whereas with the Switch reveal and launch, they were up against old hardware that was entering the final cycle of the lifespan. So I’m curious how Nintendo will aim to market this revision/upgrade. And I’m curious how they’ll price it too.

I personally think Nintendo will launch it at the start of next year as March worked well last time and it avoids competing against Sony and Microsoft with their still hard to find shiny new toys. However, it maybe Nintendo want it out sooner if they think Switch sales could start to slow down and lose momentum. As @JaxonH said, Nintendo won’t want that to happen again. Their aim should be to keep it strong.

@FragRed I think in both approaches I mentioned the launch would be March 2022, just that in the 2nd case it being revealed like 8-9 months before launch.

@Grumblevolcano Apologies, I got a bit confused but I understand what you’re saying now. I’m not sure Nintendo would announce a new revision 8 to 9 months prior to launch, especially at a time when your current hardware is still selling incredibly strong. Feel they also won’t want to cannibalise that lucrative holiday season. I think your first suggestion is most accurate that they’ll announce it in January and get it out the door 2 months later in March.

check out the digital event focused on Monster Hunter Rise e Monster Hunter Stories 2.

Mario Golf Super Rush - June 25th
Monster Hunter Stories 2 - July 9th
Skyward Sword HD - July 16th

Summer is seeming crazy for Switch already and its still 3 months away so more could be announced.

Not really crazy for me.
I have quite a lot time to build my PS2 games on this year.
BEMANI PS2 games, here i come !

@Grumblevolcano An announcement for SMT Nocturne seems to be around the corner as well.

This year is terrible for my backlog.

@Ralizah probably should just stop buying games until you finish the ones you already have. Otherwise you’re just wasting money because the backlog keeps getting bigger and unless games cease to exist you’ll never catch up on them. But that’s my take. Enjoy spending your money however you choose.

@Grumblevolcano I'm honestly only excited for Skyward Sword at the moment but I'm very intrigued by Monster Hunter Rise, so potentially two.

I forgot Disgaea 6 was releasing in June as well.

Late June - July 2021 is looking like the new September 2019.

@sixrings lol If I did that, I'd have to skip an entire console generation.

The backlog does go down every year (slowly), so eventually it should even out.

@Ralizah i trough february/march 2021 was like septembre 2019 2.0

I think they'll say something about the New Nintendo Switch by the end of the summer and try to have it out for the holidays. A March 2022 anniversary release does inspire warm and cuddly feelings, but the siren's song of holiday sales is what motivates companies, and I do think Switch sales are gonna start to slow down in the last half of 2021 if we hear nothing about it. PS5 and Xbox shortages will start to go away, and those consoles will be positioning for very strong holiday sales. Nintendo will want to have their new hardware for that time.

@rallydefault The key thing that makes me think March 2022 is more likely than holiday 2021 is software. Nintendo learned from the Wii U that strong software lineup drives strong hardware sales and I don't think BotW 2 will be ready for holiday 2021. Also the big Pokemon game is launching early 2022, Splatoon 3 is launching in 2022, etc.

Sony and Microsoft are experiencing rough lineups. GT7's delayed to 2022, God of War sequel is likely 2022, Horizon Forbidden West is probably the big holiday game but is also launching on PS4. Meanwhile Xbox has very little outside of Halo Infinite which is crossgen and PC. Even the rumoured Bethesda event for Thursday is supposedly just going to announce existing games for Game Pass.

So I think Zelda ports, the Pokemon remakes, a few other surprises and 3rd party support would be enough for Nintendo keeping up for August - December. I could see them announcing the new Switch in June/July for release in March 2022 though for the 3rd party side (the rumours suggest there's exclusives to the new model and those will almost certainly be 3rd party multiplats that can't run on the base Switch).

@Grumblevolcano
Yea, I agree, that's the big question: Is Nintendo really trying to get BotW2 for holiday 2021 or are they gonna just do 2022.

If the other consoles aren't going to have any blockbusters this holiday, maybe Nintendo will be more content to just let 2022 roll around and they won't experience much slip in Switch sales.

Do we know of any big releases for Switch in 2021 after Skyward Sword HD and the Pokemon remakes in the summer? (I think Pokemon was the summer, right?)

Edit: Looked it up, "late" 2021. So I guess that could be the big holiday title if nothing else?

That Monster Hunter showcase was fire

New demo this Thursday should be just enough to hold me over. Only two more Fridays of living in a world where Monster Hunter Rise doesn't exist!

@rallydefault, No More Heroes III in August, and as far as I know they never mentioned summer in relation to the Pokemon remakes, so they'll likely be holiday games (probably November).

@Grumblevolcano I get your logic here but I think there is a flaw.

Software does sell consoles and it seems like Nintendo might have a stronger 2022 line up than 2021. But - and it’s a big but - the games that will sell a “Switch Pro” are MK8DX and Smash - stuff that’s already out.

Also you have to think about the optics to customers - weeks after millions have just bought a shiny new toy “suckers there’s a new, better, one out next month!”. It’s not good PR - or good for building a user base for a console revision that might have exclusive games one day. Get millions on board ASAP.

I still think it’s possible that they’ll do a slightly soft launch of a 3.0. It’ll be more visible than the 2.0 revision (literally if they go with a different screen) and a bigger deal but I don't think they need any showcase software to sell that. In which case Christmas 2021 is a good time to launch.

@StuTwo
That is a very good point - you wouldn't want people buying up Switches over the holidays to only then drop a "better" one just a couple months later. That would certainly tick me off. And if you'd head that off by announcing the New Nintendo Switch a couple months early, then you're gonna willfully repress your own hardware sales for the holiday season, which is totally bonkers for any company to do. I really think they're gonna try to get it out for the holiday, even if some of the games that will really use it won't be coming until a couple months later. Really, I think Nintendo is pushing to try and have BotW2 for the holiday, but we'll see.

@RR529
Gotcha. There could also be stuff we don't know about yet, I suppose.

the amazing potencial a game of the WarioWare franchise could have on Switch if it release on Nintendo hybrid console.

https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2021/03/video_warioware_cou...