Topic: Where does Nintendo go after Switch?

@ThanosReXXX Well, it is effectively a USB to AC and HDMI adapter. They could've made the dock like the GamePad stand, but exposing a screen like that at all times isn't the greatest idea. It offers at least some form of protection.

@Octane And that is also why I said that there is probably more to the dock than we might think, otherwise Nintendo would indeed just have made some sort of plastic clip like I showed in that picture.

And that still doesn't keep the GamePad completely upright, and tests have shown that the Switch gets VERY hot when connected to the TV, so having it completely upright is the best thing for maximum heat dissipation.

And the dock does indeed protect the screen and it also switches the screen off, so it would actually be quite useless to have it exposed.

I once argued in another thread that the form factor of the dock could also be a method of future-proofing it, so that future iterations could have that same form factor yet contain more technology, since right now, there is ample room in the dock to put in more stuff. So dock 2.0 might be a dock with a built in SCD or something like that, to lend even more power to the Switch. Just a theory of course, but certainly an interesting one to discuss or think about...

@ThanosReXXX But having it completely exposed would be the best for cooling. Anyway, I think it's mostly to look neat, and it also happens to protect the screen.

I think that for future iterations, it makes more sense to upgrade the Switch itself and not the dock. We'll see, but I rather see a Switch "Pro" than a Dock "Pro".

I'd agree with all comments about the Switch becoming more iterative rather than Nintendo coming out with another new 'unique' concept. I think they can turn the Switch into a product line that continually improves on the hybrid approach. I have high hopes for the console.

For the record, I'm a lapsed Nintendo gamer in that I had a NES, GB, SNES, N64, GC, Wii and DS. The Wii U and the 3ds were the first consoles I didn't buy. Part of it was I had gone on a bit of a gaming hiatus when the Wii U launched but also because I was one of those consumers that didn't really 'get' the Wii U. I both loved and loathed the Wii - it had some great games, I liked a lot of the motion control games but it also seemed like a very 'un-nintendo' console. It seemed to have a lot of shovel ware type games and accessories but I felt it wasn't really for me in the way I had loved the GC. I still go back to it occasionally and would never sell but it didn't excite me. With the Wii U, I just didn't understand what it was for and though I regret missing out on some great games and an under appreciated console now, to me, the Switch is back to a Nintendo feeling console. It doesn't feel like a gimmick, it is clear what it is supposed to be and how it is to be used. I think it is honestly great to play and hits a similar niche as the Wii without its core being a little too gimmicky.

Agreed. Also very nice that the motion controls aren't shoved down our throat for pretty much every single game, and that they actually work well this time with games like ARMS, and in games like Splatoon 2 with the gyro, rather than the Wii's waggle controls. Some games like Wii Sports kinda-sorta pulled it off, but barely.

I've missed just sitting down and playing a game with a regular controller on a Nintendo console a lot, rather than having stuff like the Wiimote and under-utilized Gamepad. Motion controls/gyro work well when actually utilized in a way that's meaningful, but that didn't happen all that often on the last 2 systems, maybe with the exception of the Wii U's gyro in certain games.

The Switch as a whole just provides new ways to play games that actually aren't very gimmicky and don't suck, which I really enjoy.

@KirbyTheVampire I think you have nailed it with the motion controls - I found on the Wii that even the best motion controls (those actually incorporated into the game) got tiresome after continued play. It didn't lend well to long gaming sessions, as amazing as the tech was at the time. With the Switch, they aren't the focus but complimentary and I can just play the game and anything that uses it is a bonus.

@Octane The screen isn't the part that is generating the most heat, so having that exposed will do next to nothing to dissipate that. The upright position in the dock is to accommodate for optimal use of the heat vents on top of the Switch, which allows the then full speed running fans to blow the hot air straight upwards instead of at an angle.

If you'd position it diagonally, then it might damage one side of the heat vents over time, because they could deform because of the heat. That doesn't necessarily have to happen, but it is a precautionary measure to make sure that it never does in the first place.

@Rudy_Manchego Yeah, that's true. Even games that are very motion control focused like ARMS don't actually force you to use motion controls, which is cool. Not sure if that will continue to the same degree, but I'll enjoy it while it lasts, lol.

Companies always look for savings even a few cents per unit, so if the dock was not the size and shape it is on purpose I would be surprised

I think the Switch has marked the end of Nintendos Home Console especially after the Wii U & the Switch obviously being a Handheld, i think thay'll stick with the Handheld thats connects to the TV aka the Switch. Because it obviously does a lot better than there Home Consoles, i doubt Nintendo will want to risk another Home Console for it to only to trun out like the Wii U did. Especially when there Handhelds do so well as evident by the Switch, wether it'll be a Switch two we'll have to wait & see i guess.

Also the dock doesn't benefit the Switch itself in any shape or form, the dock just like the Switch & Joycons has been pulled apart. All it does is provide an output to the TV, as well as charging & providing power to the system.

Lol, The standard console cycle is over.

Two year tech update cycle with back compatibility.

Switch with Tegra X2 upgrade is the next move.

@liveswired That's assuming Tegra X2 is designed for gaming, as it's only currently available for use in cars.

@NEStalgia wow, that was a long and intriguing post. I'm a lifetime Nintendo fan who was never convinced by the Wii U but bought into the concept of Switch from the start.

I doubt Nintendo will ever go back to the power race in consoles - they tried with the GameCube and were almost beaten with the OG Xbox, and were left in the dust by the PS2. They'll keep trying to emulate the Wii formula, something different that attracts both regular gamers and casuals.

I think they've been trying something new each gen because whatever they had before didn't draw in the consumers they wanted.

After they emerged from the 8-16 bit era, 3D gaming game along and yes, they did try to accommodate that with the Joystick. But that was more of a reaction to a natural evolution than it was an unnatural pro active innovation.

N64 didn't do too hot, so they changed strategies and tried a power console with GameCube. That did even worse, and sold so poorly they decided to shake it up with something revolutionary. Like a Hail Mary.... and it worked. Wii was a huge success. But they didn't know how to keep customers. They drew them in, and then failed to sell them long term. Too much shovelware drowning out the gems, and the sub-HD graphics were an eyesore in an emerging HD market.

Wii fizzled out so abruptly, in fact, that they had to cobble together Wii U in (what I believe) was an unprepared effort to simply get something onto market, and quickly. And of course, it sold horribly. Their 2 Wii consoles are such a unique anomaly. The first was their greatest ever... the second their worst ever.

But notice their handheld lines. They tend to run with a concept once it's proven successful. In fact, there's only ever been one major revision since the dawn of the gameboy. Sure, they went full color when technology allowed, and added a backlight as technology allowed, and even added a clamshell design to GBA once they realized it made the device more pocket friendly and protected... but generally speaking, the addition of the 2nd screen has been the only real change in the last 30 years. Perhaps you could toss in glasses-free 3D, which was a nice innovation, but it was more of a luxury side technology to be enjoyed at your leisure. We don't see the same shakeups in their handhelds because their handhelds are popular, and if it ain't broke don't fix it.

I believe Nintendo may have finally, finally found something that works for them, and can continue to work long term (unlike the Wii). They've been very careful about curating digital content on Switch, and that's key to making long term customers. When shovelware drowns out the gems, 90% of consumers play crap games and quickly grow bored, move on, and won't give Nintendo another glance for at least a decade. It's imperative they don't make that same mistake with Switch. Now, it may also be underpowered relative to the power consoles of the day like Wii was, but at least it's in the HD era where it doesn't stick out like a sore thumb anymore. Most people are generally content with the visual fidelity found post-7th gen. I'd say PS3/360 level would be pushing it, but Switch being an improvement over Wii U (Minecraft world size 13 times bigger, 720p Wii U games running in 1080p, and the true power of the system yet to be showcased) which was already an improvement over the HD twins, I'd say it's just scraped by on what most deem acceptable in the current era.

I believe the next console from Nintendo will follow trend with what we see elsewhere in the industry, and even Nintendo themselves (New 3DS, PS4 Pro, Scorpio). I believe the traditional console generation has come to an end. It's too difficult building a library from scratch every few years, particularly for Nintendo who usually opts for 5 year cycles, which tbh is part of the reason Wii U failed to begin with. Most people had just purchased a Wii a few years prior, and Nintendo just cuts all support and moves on... way, way too quickly. Only now are people finally ready to buy a new Nintendo console. Only now are people turning heads and saying oh, so how is Switch compared to Wii? That's where PS and Xbox nailed it. They kept their systems alive 8 years until people were actually ready to buy new hardware.

So ya, I expect a Switch Pro or Switch 2 or whatever catchy name they wanna call it... I expect it to be the exact same system, only revised and more powerful but still compatible with all existing Switch games. Times are changing, and we see this across the board. It's the PC upgrade approach, only the platform manufacturers will do the upgrading at set intervals every few years.

@FragRed Well considering X1 was used in cars, NVIDIA specialise in graphics and X2 isn't out yet. Tegra X2 will be used in gaming.

In 2-3 years we will see an upgraded Switch with an X2 inside - unless Switch fails and Nintendo have to go software only. Or Nintendo fall out with NVIDIA, get greedy, drop support for industry standards and put 3rd party developers off again!

Its hard to answer as gaming technological advancements move fast but we'll still be playing Switch for another five years I think. Nobody could have predicted Switch five years ago.

@NEStalgia Well, loving the Wii U screen is probably a bit much, but I am liking it a lot, and it's probably the combination of me not being annoyed by the so-called horrible screen quality of it, and the convenience of being able to use it for Off TV Play. And I've got a screen protector on it, so no scratching issues either...

But architecturally, it was too weak, and too late to the party to be any kind of serious competitor to the others. Some will probably say that was also due to Nintendo deciding to release it mid-gen, making it easier for the others to come up with something better, but those devices were already well over a few years in development, so I don't think that had too much influence.

As for the whole tablet thing: people can make of it what they want, and in the end the general audience decided what it became, but Nintendo itself never intended for it to be a tablet. The retro fit, if any, was that Miyamoto adapted his story to the audience because they kept referring to it as a tablet controller, a label I seriously hate with a passion, because it isn't.

The concept/idea and development of the GamePad started LONG before tablets were ever even a thing in the first place, so that is clue number one. If you start from that consideration, then it is very easy to continue along that line and understand that the GamePad truly IS a giant DS touch screen, and NOTHING else. The whole idea was also very well documented in one of those "Iwata Asks" sessions, and in none of it, is there even an inkling of something that can be interpreted as it being something that should have become the Switch.

That idea only surfaced after the slow halting of the Wii U's initial moderate success, and the backlash from developers and gamers alike. That also sped up the merging of the two divisions into one, because they found out they couldn't support both the Wii U and the 3DS at the same time, so clearly all of that has taken place well after the launch of the Wii U.

Of course there will always be some ideas either mentioned or tried that haven't made the final design, the 3D capabilities in the GameCube still being one of the better examples of that, but some small ideas left on the cutting room floor due to component cost or manufacturing issues does not an entirely new console make...

But ultimately, a lot of all those goings-on will forever remain unknown to us, because it is not necessary or important for Nintendo to release that info to the public, so what really went on behind those walls, we'll more than likely never know...

IF the Switch is a success (as its still too early to say) the most sensible route for Nintendo to take is to consolidate the Switch brand. Don't introduce any fancy additional gimmicks, or SKUs that remove the hybrid aspect of the device. I think short-term they should consider releasing an iterative model in 2-3 years time that looks to improve on all aspects of the device but retain the same accessories for both the original Switch and new Switch model. So the next Switch can increase screen size by making the bezels smaller, perhaps attempt to make games 1080p in both handheld and docked mode, and also improve battery life. I'm not saying all of that is achievable given you're basically saying increase the power and battery, but my point is that the device should be a comparable upgrade that you see with mobile devices year on year. This should achieve a PS4/PS4 Pro type situ where games work on both devices, but you might see improved performance.