I know the Switch has been out for just a little over a month, but it's still interesting to wonder what Nintendo's future consoles will be like.
If you look at Nintendo's home consoles, there has never been any stagnancy in innovation; each console introduced something new and exciting that innovated gameplay in some way. Likewise with Nintendo's handhelds as well.
But where does Nintendo go after Switch? The Switch is the perfect realization of Nintendo's efforts since it first revealed the NES and later the GameBoy. It would be incredibly silly to leave that hybrid concept behind and chase after another concept; on the other hand, if Nintendo doesn't let go of the hybrid concept, they will eventually fall into a rut like Microsoft and Sony, releasing the same console over and over again but just with better graphics and processing (and maybe better battery life).
So what do you guys think? What systems do you think Nintendo will release after Switch? Will Nintendo consoles from this point on be iterative, or will they have innovations in gameplay like previous Nintendo consoles?
Hopefully they just improve on the switch. Better battery life, better screen, maybe even a future where the dock is able to provide an actual boost in graphical capabilities rather than only overclocking. I think they can improve alot for their next gen hybrid.
Unless of course the switch ends up being a failure in the long run, then they'll start from scratch
It's interesting to me that all of the Switch's processing power is packed in to the central tablet - makes me wonder if Nintendo are already planning to release an upgraded replacement for it in the future..?
It could work - if all of the existing Switch peripherals (Joy-Con, Dock etc.) were compatible with the 'Switch 2', we wouldn't have the added expense of having to replace everything (the Joy-Con's, Pro Controller etc seem pretty 'future proof' with all the tech crammed in to them!) ..but the overall experience could be upgraded to match the latest in portable technology ..I'd be down for that - so long as they give me enough time to re-fill my wallet!
I think they'll stick with the hybrid concept in one form or another. Versatility is a very attractive aspect in technology, and I really can't see them going back to traditional consoles unless they come up with some crazy idea that isn't possible with a hybrid device for whatever reason.
Nintendo was iterative from NES through GCN, and was iterative from Gameboy through 3DS, and arguably right into Switch (what's a Switch if not another GameBoy iteration that lets you replace your home console too?)
Nintendo hasn't mattered much in home consoles since the N64, they've been an also-ran in that space and have been highly experimental in that space such as the Wii and WiiU (arguably WiiU was a Wii iteration.) But I think the off the rails concept systems have been a result of a failure to compete with Sony. Just as Sega failed to compete with Sony. And now Microsoft is failing to compete with Sony.
But Nintendo's real bread and butter has been handhelds since the 80's, and those have been fairly iterative. But their iterations aren't just faster processing but hardware additions (dual screen, touch screen, 3D screen, etc.
nVidia said something about at least a 10 year partnership, so I think a Switch iteration is inevitable. But I think it's too early to predict what they'll do next. I don't think they're going to go as "concept" as Wii/WiiU because that was an attempt to find a new market when their old one was clearly usurped and not returning. With Switch they're playing on their home turf, so no need to seek to far outside the base instead of solidifying it. And i don't think whatever new tech that can be made into a toy exists to us yet, just as nobody could have predicted the 3D screen on 3DS too long before it was announced. Some innovation in inputs or displays, maybe something with VR or AR will be added. But I think whatever new hardware element will work WITH the core set we see on Switch now (like the touch screen/dual screens worked with the Game Boy core concept) rather than trying to reinvent the wheel like they did with Wii.
Hopefully they will release a system - be it in a portable or a home format - that is on a relatively even keel in terms of specifications (with the others), so that Nintendo consoles are not just for Nintendo developed software, a selection of indie games and the occasional smattering of 'halfway house' third party ports.
It would be great if Nintendo were able to offer the best of all worlds!
I'm expecting the Switch brand to be iterated and expanded upon. I think Nintendo has matured their hardware design to a point that they can just focus on graphics and making the platform easy for devs to code for (which they are already doing) I just hope Switch 2 is BC.
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I hope they stop 'innovating' and just make a Nintendo Switch 2. They finally found a good working plan why start again to miss the point? The PlayStation 4 sells without innovating anything. SNES same. PlayStation Portable same. Xbox 360 same. An 'innovation' costed the Xbox an entire console generation (Kinect included in the base console raising the price making it unpleasant).
1. Games.
2. Marketing.
3. Price (both console and games).
4-5. Power. (US)
4-5. Portability. (JP)
That's what sells. The Nintendo Switch is the perfect all-rounder. They need to pursue this route and stop with gimmicks like the GamePad.
@NEStalgia Although my preferred avatar probably suggests otherwise, I'm going to try and bring some balance back into the universe, because even though I like reading your posts most of the time (like about 9.5 out of 10 times, lol) I do not completely agree with the things you've said here, even though I do respect your views and in general, I always find it interesting to see, read or hear how people feel or think about things that we have a common interest in, so I'd like to add my two cents to your musings...
So, strap yourself in and let's get on with it:
First off: arguably (or not even, maybe more like factually) practically EVERYTHING is iterative, even life, so I don't think that just counts for Nintendo. More in line with the topic: the current models Xbox & Playstation are also iterative of their predecessors, and so are Sony's handhelds. No exceptions there.
And it may be true that Nintendo hasn't mattered much in the home console arena, but only partially so, and in my opinion also only partially because of the competition. It is my strong believe that they've actually been more defeated by themselves, much more so than by any competitor. The road or roads they've chosen so far, have led them more and more to a secluded area that almost belies the industry or the race that they're in. But if you sell cars, no matter how strange the design or mechanics behind them, you're still in the car business and you have to account for the competition, and the core audience, and Nintendo seems to keep forgoing that fact.
Not forgetting mind you, but either simply ignoring or more likely, underestimating. And as such, they are more defeated by themselves or their still somewhat skewed view of the world/gaming audience at large. It's like they're this big, sluggish old giant that can't adapt fast enough to the ever faster evolving world that it's living in, and so it fervently clings to what it knows and values, which, unlike those of other Japanese company Sony, are still very much grounded in ancient Asian morals and traditions. Sony is far, FAR more westernized than them, also largely due to the other international businesses they're in, such as the music and movie industry.
Nintendo always likes to see themselves as not in competition: "let the others do what they will, we are going to go our own way, regardless of the outcome". It's part of their ever continuing quest, or so it seems, to keep offering us new ways to play and enjoy games. A high risk venture with wildly varying results, as history has now shown us, but potentially also a very rewarding one, if the concept hits home with the target audience.
Wii U was more of a marriage of the Wii and the DS than a pure iteration of the Wii. Many people only ever saw it as a "HD Wii" but that is wrong as far as I am concerned. I always felt that was more due to the marketing failure that should have made clear what the Wii U was to the general audience. I don't think that the Wii and Wii U were an OR situation, but more of an AND situation, especially the Wii U. The execution of both plans/strategies has certainly played out differently than probably even they themselves could have foreseen, but the Wii was meant to gather MORE gamers, not specifically targeting an entirely new group because they had to move the goal posts or something like that. They hoped to keep all the GameCube players, and open up the world of gaming to a broader audience besides that, and they certainly made that happen in the beginning.
But after the whole "real" bowling and tennis craze died down for all but the most fervent non-gamer girls, soccer moms and grand parents, the Wii sadly disappeared into the cupboard or the attic/basement, to gather a considerable amount of dust and hardly ever to be taken out again, or to be sold off during the next garage sale...
The Wii U was both an attempt to regain the hardcore gamers that had left during the Wii days, as well as Nintendo trying (and arguably maybe too soon) to make an amalgam of all that has come before, both home console and handheld, because the Wii U was factually nothing more than a giant, detached Nintendo DS, with the GamePad obviously being the lower screen, and the TV being the upper screen, but both marketing and hardware-wise, the device failed to catch fire with the general audience.
People still questioning how to use that GamePad with their Wii almost 5 years after it launched without understanding that it is an entirely different console are a clear testament to that. I myself even had such a baffling and to me totally incomprehensible experience with a good friend of mine: he came over to visit, and at some point, I told him I had a new console, and handed him the GamePad. He proceeded to play Mario Kart 8 on it, and he enjoyed it very much, and after a few courses and discussing the verdict on the GamePad (which he was quite positive about), I switched the TV (which had been displaying a regular TV program until that point) to the extension port that the Wii U was connected to, in order to display the game on TV and let him play some more, but he didn't get that he was playing a real console that was connected to my TV, even after I had handed him a Pro Controller to try that out.
He thought that either the GamePad was streaming to the TV, or that it was somehow connected to the Wii, which all of a sudden magically possessed the capability to display HD content. After having laughed a bit at his (to me) ridiculous assumptions, I explained what was actually the case, and after that he finally got it, but the fact that I had to do that, really hit home with me, and up until that point, even though I've read so many articles about it, I never really understood how people can misinterpret that in such a stupendous way, but they did, and they do, strange as it may be. And most of it is Nintendo's own fault...
Let's hope they are going to do much better with the Switch. And although early signs are certainly hopeful, I'll refrain from passing a final judgement until after the first year, when E3 has come and gone, and more of the bigger titles have been released. If by then they've still been able to keep the momentum going, then it'll be fair to say that they're on to something again...
Speaking of the Switch: I also don't think that is an iteration of the Game Boy either. The Switch seems more like the ultimate culmination of the seed that Iwata-san planted and nurtured for over 10 years and that has been put into this world to lay out the new road map that Nintendo must adhere to, in order to keep surviving in today's gaming industry. We agree on that point, because future devices will more than likely share either that OS or at the very least the architecture, both software and hardware-wise. That was also Iwata-san's idea, of letting Nintendo devices have a uniform environment much like Apple or Android.
And to an extent, they may not have mattered in the home console race, but where they HAVE mattered though, and still do, is in quality, innovation and fun, something that cannot always be found on the other two consoles. It is there, no doubt about it, so I'm not discounting the others, but especially in the fun department, Nintendo is still something very, very special.
That once famous Nintendo Difference is still there, albeit somewhat more demure than it used to be, but once a title or an IP hits home with gamers or the general audience, it does so in such a distinct manner, that it is still something to behold and it is a quality that only Nintendo has.
I honestly haven't experienced that in a single title that I can think of in any other console, although I own quite a few and have certainly enjoyed playing games on all of them.
I always say that for me personally, only Nintendo is able to make my face split into a stupid, almost childlike ear-to-ear grin when I'm sat on my couch, playing one of their latest games or start up one of their new consoles for the first time. And once a game takes flight, that smile turns into a cackle, and feelings of unadulterated fun, enjoyment of the highest level that only this still very traditionally Japanese company is capable of bringing to the table.
The first time I started up my Wii U last December (yep, I was that late to the party) I almost spent an entire evening playing Mario Kart 8 on the GamePad alone, never understanding one single bit of negativity that is always flung onto the internet about how bad the ergonomics are or how horrible the quality of that screen is, some even being as ridiculous as saying that the screen is so blurry that it seems to be covered in Vaseline.
To me, it seems quite sharp and the graphics look good to me, especially for a screen that's only 480p, and even though I have a smart phone with a full HD screen, and a big, full HD plasma TV, it still looks perfectly fine to me, and by now, I've already played more games on the GamePad, some even to completion, than on the TV. (admittedly also because I have my regular programs that I need to watch or listen to, so time to play games between work and that is quite sparse, except for in the weekends, but still... )
If I had to come up with ANYTHING negative about it, then the first thing that comes to mind is the lack of analog triggers. Never understood that decision, and not having them in the Switch seems like a HUGE oversight to me too, but since I don't have one yet, I can't really judge that yet.
And where Nintendo is going from here? Well, in any case, they will probably continue to go down this new road, with their new architecture and their merged departments, to ultimately completely fine-tune what they set out to do with that strategy. And by that time, we'll be visiting and enjoying Nintendo rides in amusement parks, all while playing the latest in Nintendo hardware and software, for many, many years to come.
I'm almost 47 now (just a few more weeks to go) and I expect Nintendo to still be there in some shape or form, long after I have retired to enjoy my golden years somewhere on this globe...
Well, that's about it. More like two dollars than two cents, though...
I reckon I've possibly scared away half the crowd that wanted to respond to you with this once again ginormous wall of text, but hey, at least I got that off my chest.
The people left that WILL be reading both our text walls will probably belong to our very own fan base or at the very least to the people that can stomach those two guys that most of the time just can't seem to make short comments, even if their lives depended on it...
Well first of all, I do think that Switch is the new standard for Nintendo. It's more efficient for them to have a singular device than two devices. So whatever they're doing next will probably build on what the Switch is doing.
Now as for what that is, if we don't get VR this gen, that will certainly show up next gen. But I doubt that will be all, because Nintendo generally doesn't like to play follow the leader. They could try some of the other patents we've seen, like the Scroll Wheel. Ultimately though, I'm not sure there's much to really innovate after this gen. Short of pushing for full motion controls in VR there's really not much potential for evolution in the industry at the current level of technology.
I think the next step for the Switch is to basically improve the core concept (better CPU/GPU/resolution/battery life etc.), but include a detachable second screen, so it can essentially be turned into a DS/Wii U-style console on the fly for dual-screen gameplay, and it will only be used for games that actually require such functionality (as opposed to being imposed on developers as they were with the DS/3DS/Wii U regardless of whether the style of gameplay required it). Such a console can also ensure that the entirety of Nintendo's catalogue can be played on a single console, which is a very exciting proposition indeed.
How such a concept could be executed? I'll leave that to Nintendo's engineers and R&D teams, but it does feel like the next logical step, unless they have some other wild plan in mind. I would hate to see a Nintendo that makes no attempt to innovate, even just a little, from one console generation to the next.
@ThanosReXXX : Very well said. I agree with pretty much all of your sentiments, and your observations are spot-on.
If you look at it a particular way Nintendo has effectively had 7 groups of consoles:
NES -> SNES
GB -> GBC -> GBA
VB
N64
GC -> Wii -> Wii U
DS -> DSi -> 3DS
Switch
So if I was to guess what happens next I'd guess that in 10 years that end section will look like this:
GC -> Wii -> Wii U
DS -> DSi -> 3DS
Switch -> Switch 2 -> Switch 3
Specifically, in 10 years I reckon you'll be able to play your BotW cartridge on the Switch 3. And it won't be because of backwards compatibility in the sense that it existed for Wii U and 3DS. It'll be more than that. The lines between these revisions will be blurred. When your current as of 2017 copy of BotW into your 2025 Switch 3? It'll run at 4K/60fps on your TV.
Basically "Switch" for Nintendo will be what "iPhone" is for Apple.
Its about the games, always has been, always will be.
All those different consoles and their innovative and whacky features, were always about opening up mew possibilities for gameplay and design.
Although honestly, I think cooling off and just working with what they have for a while would do nintendo a world of good.
Both the wii's motion controls and the wii u's ansychronus technology spectacularly failed to deliver on the potential of its technology (we literally had only two actual full size games on wii that actually tried to scratch the surface of what wii's motion controllers could do, and a giant pile of waggle garbage for everything else).
And even just with a normal controller, nintendo seriously needs to just stop and think about the possibilities of what can be done.
We are literally just arriving at a point where we have the power and the technology to actually do the things the super ambitious games of the 3rd and 4th generation simulated and approximated with abstract solutions.... And the 5 ogliarchs of AAAAAAA western gaming are doing everything in their power to ignore that.
Nintendo scratched the surface with breath of the wild, and people went nuts. They should really take a long hard look at the response they got for what they did....
Because the most exciting thing about breath of the wild, is that thete is a LOT of room for improvement and building on that foundation, and its not just with zelda.
I think, upgrades on the dock. then upgrades on the tablet. I think if they do it right...they could do upgraded hardware stuff and still keep old things usable. the idea of more storage and maybe other add ons for the dock would rule.
Hopefully they just improve on the switch. Better battery life, better screen, maybe even a future where the dock is able to provide an actual boost in graphical capabilities rather than only overclocking.
Realistically I think that better battery life and screen are going to be super easy things for Nintendo to do. Though I'm not sure how much better the screen can actually get without also revising the SoC. A Switch XL? A Switch Mini? Switch Pro? Those ideas could work and would be easy. Making the screen a 1080p display would be a tougher ask and for not a huge gain.
In terms of the dock I think that they could improve it but I don't think it'll ever do much more than what it does now. But what they could do is release versions with better I/O. The Switch is currently outputting a Display Port Signal (1.2? 1.3?) which is then converted to HDMI 1.4. Because Display Port is a higher spec signal than HDMI 1.4 I don't see any reason why an improved dock couldn't exist at one point. Maybe with stuff like HDR and Variable Refresh support, stuff that HDMI has that wasn't supported with HDMI 1.4.
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I expect Nintendo to follow the same business model as Apple. The Switch lends itself to hardware revision for the tablet and hopefully everything else will still work, joy cons, dock etc. I can see a Switch mini and I can also see a more powerful Switch possibly in around two years time which would probably would also have a VR capability and hopefully with more onboard storage. I'd also expect software from the original switch to run on the new powerful machine.
What if Nintendo released a premium switch slim with a smaller, but very hi res screen for VR and built a vive-like base station function into the dock and joycons. head tracking gyro or something built into the unit. this version would be lighter and super sleek looking. It would also include all the usual functions of a smartphone and and app store. A tiny HDMI wireless receiver slides out of a slot in the back to display on any tv with HDMI input.
I do wonder why they didnt build the quite small electronic components in the dock, into the unit itself so you didn't need a dock, just a cable. Wouldn't that have been a great selling point? Take in anywhere and also display on any TV. I know, battery life. It could have a separate power input, just bring a charger.
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