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StarTopic Future Nintendo Hardware & Technology Speculation & Discussion |ST| (New Staff Post, Please read)

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Kevin said:
I was referring to the dock being delayed and not the Steam Deck and who knows, new hardware could still come. I'm just personally no longer expecting it or getting excited for it.
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The dock, as far as I can remember well before the device even launched last year like around July or August, there was a mention of it by Linus and he even mentioned that it will not be there at launch and it will be there later according to Valve. So it wasn’t intended to launch with the system.
Serif said:
Is it not the case that fewer developers have Drake devkits than the number of developers with original Switch devkits back in 2015/16, thus fewer opportunities for leaks?

It must be, since most developers targeting the Switch platform could just use the current devkits. It'd just be a few third parties (at least 11, from that report) who are making Drake exclusive games (and by that, I mean PS/Xbox/PC games that can't be ported to current Switch).

I'm assuming the devkits aren't final hardware either, so unlike last time there's nothing interesting to leak about the form factor, which would basically be unchanged from the current Switch.
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I think it’s important to realize, was it 11 developers studios or 11 publishers? If it was 11 developer studios, that’s 11 out of how many studios worldwide? And if we narrow it down to Nintendo’s most likely partners, removing Zynga, who are the most likely studios that would have the kits that are outside of Nintendo that are also close partners to Nintendo and a worldwide presence?
 
ReddDreadtheLead said:
The dock, as far as I can remember well before the device even launched last year like around July or August, there was a mention of it by Linus and he even mentioned that it will not be there at launch and it will be there later according to Valve. So it wasn’t intended to launch with the system.

I think it’s important to realize, was it 11 developers studios or 11 publishers? If it was 11 developer studios, that’s 11 out of how many studios worldwide? And if we narrow it down to Nintendo’s most likely partners, removing Zynga, who are the most likely studios that would have the kits that are outside of Nintendo that are also close partners to Nintendo and a worldwide presence?
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It's a new delay. As reported by outlets like IGN and others.

www.ign.com

Valve Delays the Steam Deck’s Docking Station - IGN

In a new blog post, Valve announced that it has delayed the Steam Deck's official docking station due to several factors, including a parts shortage.
www.ign.com www.ign.com

Either way if companies are struggling even with small products, it doesn't bode well for Nintendo launching millions of new system hardware units in 2023. That being said it's just my opinion and ultimately I would love to be wrong. I don't know Nintendo's plans and I'm just ultimately guessing.
 
Kevin said:
I'm just ultimately guessing.
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Everyone's guessing at this point, including those who pretend to have info (and sometimes do, but clearly not on this).
And that makes me guess that the machine ain't for tomorrow. And that we'll see at least another revolution around the sun before solid info starts appearing.
 
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ReddDreadtheLead said:
I think it’s important to realize, was it 11 developers studios or 11 publishers? If it was 11 developer studios, that’s 11 out of how many studios worldwide? And if we narrow it down to Nintendo’s most likely partners, removing Zynga, who are the most likely studios that would have the kits that are outside of Nintendo that are also close partners to Nintendo and a worldwide presence?
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The Bloomberg report said a mix of large publishers and small studios. I'm thinking Capcom must be one. I expect ports of Resident Evil 2/3/4 remake to Drake. Square Enix too?
Bosintang said:
We specifically know that this game is developed for the next switch?
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Employees at 11 game companies said their teams were in possession of Nintendo’s 4K development kit for the Switch. The companies span the globe, ranging from large publishers to small studios and include at least one that has never made a console game before, Zynga Inc., according to the employees, who asked not to be identified because they weren’t authorized to discuss their projects publicly.
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I'm guessing Star Wars Hunters would be their first console game then, since this report was in September and SW Hunters released for mobile on November and has a 2022 Switch release date. However, I don't know if that means Star Wars Hunter is the specific game they are developing for the next Switch. They may be working on another title.
 
Kevin said:
It's a new delay. As reported by outlets like IGN and others.

www.ign.com

Valve Delays the Steam Deck’s Docking Station - IGN

In a new blog post, Valve announced that it has delayed the Steam Deck's official docking station due to several factors, including a parts shortage.
www.ign.com www.ign.com

Either way if companies are struggling even with small products, it doesn't bode well for Nintendo launching millions of new system hardware units in 2023. That being said it's just my opinion and ultimately I would love to be wrong. I don't know Nintendo's plans and I'm just ultimately guessing.
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Nintendo operate at a much higher economy of scale than Valve though, what Nintendo will sell in one quarter like Jul-Sept (their weaker quarter) is what valve will sell in like +6 years if ever
 
Serif said:
The Bloomberg report said a mix of large publishers and small studios. I'm thinking Capcom must be one. I expect ports of Resident Evil 2/3/4 remake to Drake. Square Enix too?



I'm guessing Star Wars Hunters would be their first console game then, since this report was in September and SW Hunters released for mobile on November and has a 2022 Switch release date. However, I don't know if that means Star Wars Hunter is the specific game they are developing for the next Switch. They may be working on another title.
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Ok so just guesswork and conjecture based on the same "source" claiming that development kits are ubiquitous enough for 11 developers (11!!) to have them, some since 2020, while being miraculously tight lipped. I'm gonna press X for doubt on this one.
 
Bosintang said:
Ok so just guesswork and conjecture based on the same "source" claiming that development kits are ubiquitous enough for 11 developers (11!!) to have them, some since 2020, while being miraculously tight lipped. I'm gonna press X for doubt on this one.
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You're acting like 11 is a large number of developers, and that it's surprising that they can be tight lipped?

How many PS5 devkits do you think were out in the year before it released? And how many games worked on with those devkits leaked?


By the way Zynga is only working on one console game at the moment, Star Wars Hunters, so yes we know that's the game.
 
Bosintang said:
Ok so just guesswork and conjecture based on the same "source" claiming that development kits are ubiquitous enough for 11 developers (11!!) to have them, some since 2020, while being miraculously tight lipped. I'm gonna press X for doubt on this one.
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Do you happen to know what the 11 dev studios and publishers are? Excluding Zynga.
 
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Skittzo said:
By the way Zynga is only working on one console game at the moment, Star Wars Hunters, so yes we know that's the game.
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Hah, that's fun to know while watching the gameplay trailer. It says 'mobile gameplay footage' but it's very clean and 60 fps so I'm going to pretend I'm watching Drake gameplay. Still targeted for 2022, too.
 
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There are definitely more than 11 devs/studios with dev kits. Just because Mochizuki stated there were 11, it doesn't mean he talked to every single dev out there. He only talked with those he had sources with. And let's say for the sake of argument that there were only 11 devs with Drake kits at the time. That number has surely increased by now as we approach launch next year.
 
Skittzo said:
You're acting like 11 is a large number of developers, and that it's surprising that they can be tight lipped?

How many PS5 devkits do you think were out in the year before it released? And how many games worked on with those devkits leaked?


By the way Zynga is only working on one console game at the moment, Star Wars Hunters, so yes we know that's the game.
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So there's no separate credible leak linking that game to a potential next switch. Just conjecture based on the firm belief that they indeed have a dev kit. Got it 👍
 
Bosintang said:
So there's no separate credible leak linking that game to a potential next switch. Just conjecture based on the firm belief that they indeed have a dev kit. Got it 👍
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Nobody claimed that they're making any game specifically for the next Switch. In fact Mochizuki specifically said these 11 are making games for the current Switch but they have devkits for a 4k Switch too.

There is no reason to believe the game in question is not Star Wars Hunters, I'm unsure why this is even a point of contention.
 
davec00ke said:
Xbox One X outright flopped and the PS4 Pro sales were fairly weak, thats why you are not getting PRO consoles.
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I don't know the sales figures of these two consoles but

Xbone X did sell one year later than PS4 Pro and it's more expensive. For consumers and devs though, it's been worth it hardware and support wise, and worthy of being called a pro console.

Kevin said:
I think a lot of the reasons to dismiss a PS5 Pro and Xbox Series XX also applies to why I've been so skeptical in a Switch Pro or Switch 4K within the next year. Digital Foundry brings up a lot of valid points here and I mean Steam Deck litterally had to delay the Steam Deck stand because they couldn't even get the parts for that.

Personally I'll be really surprised if we get a 4K Switch within the next year or so.
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I disagree. For one, Nintendo needs a successor sooner than later. It will be 6 years in March and Switch's hardware age and bottlenecks are really showing, notably for 1st party games that are 720p docked and really pushing the system, but are hampered especially by lack of bandwidth and CPU (the latter notably for 3rd party last gen ports). Hell, the fact that we got higher GPU profiles for acceptable gameplay for handheld mode was also a very early indicator.

MS/Sony don't need a pro console for this current generation anytime soon. MS and Sony might get 20 and 25 million sales by the end of the year, but sales are growing slow due to the chip shortage and PS4/xbone will still be supported for a few more years to come because of it.

What's really pushing overall x series sales though is the S model. And it might be due to being cheaper and more available due to less components.

So worst case scenario, the switch successor/Drake will have comparable yields to x series s. Maybe even more.
 
Bosintang said:
Crazy how those 11 developers have had development kits since last year, some since 2020, and absolutely NOTHING has leaked regarding those games and the only solid evidence we have of a new machine is from a hack, which confirms that Nintendo and Nvidia are indeed working on a new system (no shit).
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turns out people value their jobs
 
Serif said:
The Bloomberg report said a mix of large publishers and small studios. I'm thinking Capcom must be one. I expect ports of Resident Evil 2/3/4 remake to Drake. Square Enix too?



I'm guessing Star Wars Hunters would be their first console game then, since this report was in September and SW Hunters released for mobile on November and has a 2022 Switch release date. However, I don't know if that means Star Wars Hunter is the specific game they are developing for the next Switch. They may be working on another title.
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star wars hunters has not yet come out on mobile. It is with the same date of 2022 as the switch version.

https://www.swhunters.com/
 
ReddDreadtheLead said:
And crazy how devs had the OG switch devkits since 2015 and yet you didn’t get a leak until late 2016 3 months before the switch launched.

When it was using an off the shelf part.

Funny how having devkits doesn’t mean you’ll get automatic leaks immediately.

Devs are chatty but they aren’t stupid enough to risk their jobs and getting black listed if they know it’s not safe for them to do so.

It’s almost like they have a mouth to feed!
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Well Zynga must be sweating then because they got ousted as 1 of 11 devs.
 
Vanillalite said:
I don’t think it’s a 1:1 story though as the parts Nintendo needs will be different than the bigger beefier console chips in the X and 5.
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Kevin said:
I think a lot of the reasons to dismiss a PS5 Pro and Xbox Series XX also applies to why I've been so skeptical in a Switch Pro or Switch 4K within the next year.
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Inflation + chip shortage absolutely applies to Nintendo, however, all the other reasons don't. Nintendo can get cost savings/power bump because the X1 is ancient, relative to the current state of the art. Nintendo does have a reason to release a refresh because they're not in a cross gen period. Nintendo doesn't support 4k resolution yet. Nintendo does have strong market presence with Switch, so they need to start selling new hardware to existing customers.
Bosintang said:
Ok so just guesswork and conjecture based on the same "source" claiming that development kits are ubiquitous enough for 11 developers (11!!) to have them, some since 2020, while being miraculously tight lipped.
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First, the reason we say "11 developers" is because famously, they weren't tight lipped about it. They talked to at least 3 press sources. Which caused such a huge reaction that Nintendo and Zynga made official statements, which they rarely do. Indicating that, assuming all three press sources weren't lying, things were about to come down hard on the leakers.

I know for a fact that at least 2 semi-regular posters in this thread have access to NDA'd material for in-dev Switch games. We'd eat up everything they said, and they're not using their real name in thread - yet they don't do it! Probably because keeping their damn mouth shut is key to being able to eat dinner every night. With Nintendo on high alert (as demonstrated by their public statements on the matter) you're not going to get a bunch of tasty leaks.

Switch/Wii U/Wii U devkits shipped to devs all ~2 years prior to hardware release. If Nintendo were planning to release a Switch 2 in 2024, then devkits would be shipping around now and to a lot more than 11 developers. If 1) devs can't keep their mouth shut, and 2) Nintendo plans on no pro revision, just a classic 7 year console generation, then I guess we'll know any minute now?

Or, possibly, one of these 2 things isn't true.

What's weird about this moment in time isn't how little we know it's how much. The silence isn't unusual, is just exists in stark contrast to all the drops from last year, which were confirmed in surprising detail by the Nvidia hack. Had Nvidia never been hacked this thread would be full of the same folks saying "how did you ever believe @kopite7kimi in the first place, that plans changed bullshit is just an excuse." "Nintendo would never build a high powered DLSS based device, that's not like them".
Bosintang said:
Crazy how those 11 developers have had development kits since last year, some since 2020, and absolutely NOTHING has leaked regarding those games
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Crazy how? Do you care to list all the games that were leaked as in dev for Switch from third parties back in 2016?

Bosintang said:
and the only solid evidence we have of a new machine is from a hack, which confirms that Nintendo and Nvidia are indeed working on a new system (no shit).
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It confirms the damn part number which puts it in the group of SoCs that Nvidia put publicly into production in March. This thread theorized that, in order to meet the feature set and the timeline suggested by the various press reports last year, Nintendo/Nvidia had to be using Orin, a modified GA10B. Hack comes out, it's a modified GA10B. That is a no shit moment.

I'm fully prepared to believe that Nintendo scraps or delays the project due to record inflation + chip shortage making the device unprofitable. But the idea that that there are no sources here, and that the hack confirms nothing is actively ludicrous.
 
oldpuck said:
I'm fully prepared to believe that Nintendo scraps or delays the project due to record inflation + chip shortage making the device unprofitable.
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Delays by a matter of a few months, maybe. Scraps, not a chance. Whatever they might hypothetically think the downside is to launching under the circumstances, delaying the hardware that they're already developed/paid this much for, and that third parties are already readying games for, would be much worse.
 
There is zero chance Nintendo scraps this considering then the next device won’t be coming out till like 2030. Also they are probably going to lose more money doing that then releasing the device for small margins.
 
I don't understand why anybody is humoring scrapping or dramatic shifts in launch dates for Nintendo. Sony and Microsoft released their hardware on schedule, which was almost entirely supported by cross-generation content, despite not having outstanding supply. Why is Nintendo in any sort of unique position here?

Nothing's changed since last year, and that points to within the next 12 months. Hopefully within the next 6. Nintendo isn't operating in a silo here as well - third parties are expecting it, and forking out money to produce content for it.

Kevin said:
Either way if companies are struggling even with small products, it doesn't bode well for Nintendo launching millions of new system hardware units in 2023. That being said it's just my opinion and ultimately I would love to be wrong. I don't know Nintendo's plans and I'm just ultimately guessing.
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As another poster has mentioned, they don't benefit from economies of scale like Nintendo does. But on top of this - the dock is a completely inessential product; You can dock a Steam Deck using a cable. They'll release it when it's sufficiently profitable I'm sure, but I'd guess they could postpone it's release indefinitely without making any waves.
 
karmitt said:
I don't understand why anybody is humoring scrapping or dramatic shifts in launch dates for Nintendo. Sony and Microsoft released their hardware on schedule, which was almost entirely supported by cross-generation content, despite not having outstanding supply. Why is Nintendo in any sort of unique position here?

Nothing's changed since last year, and that points to within the next 12 months. Hopefully within the next 6. Nintendo isn't operating in a silo here as well - third parties are expecting it, and forking out money to produce content for it.



As another poster has mentioned, they don't benefit from economies of scale like Nintendo does. But on top of this - the dock is a completely inessential product; You can dock a Steam Deck using a cable. They'll release it when it's sufficiently profitable I'm sure, but I'd guess they could postpone it's release indefinitely without making any waves.
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Everyone i think is preparing for the Nintendo factor of doing something strange.

But we have new management that has largely no track record outside of saying they will keep Nintendo's culture the same. That however doesn't extend to hardware launch windows, timings and design. I think unless they prove us otherwise, I want to go in neutral and not necessarily expect them to do a Nintendo thing, but just be a normal tech company that will release an upgrade.

At the end of the day, Switch is just starting year 6. PS4 didn't get a successor until late 2020, 7 years after release. So even if covid delayed PS5 launch, we still have a good 18+ month window for the Switch 2 to be late.
 
If MS and Sony are not going to release a "pro" model in the near future, it wouldn't be due their incapability to produce them but because there isn't enough business justification for it—not meeting demands, few exclusive games, pushing subscription/online, etc. For Nintendo, the business situation is rather different.

Let's not forget that despite the pandemic upheaval, Nintendo was able to released the OLED Switch and two Game & Watch models; Nvidia is about to introduce the next series of GPUs too. Manufacturing and logistics are a challenge right now but not insurmountable, particularly not at Nintendo or Nvidia's scale.
 
Dekuman said:
At the end of the day, Switch is just starting year 6. PS4 didn't get a successor until late 2020, 7 years after release. So even if covid delayed PS5 launch, we still have a good 18+ month window for the Switch 2 to be late.
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I hear what you're saying about PS4 to PS5, but once again, this device has never once been described as a standard successor by any reporting or leaks that I recall. I feel like people are refusing to let that detail stick because they can't reconcile it with the potential difference in capabilities seen in the NVN2 leak. Either that or they are refusing to buy into the idea that we'll be dealing with games developed for the 2017 hardware for a great deal longer.

Bloomberg reported on it as a device meant for playing Switch games in 4K. Imran said last year "Expect this thing to be primarily for FPS boosts and resolutions, not a Switch 2. Think more Pro than Super." Nate said he'd heard it was a revision, but that it could eventually replace the current models, and countless times he's been asked for updates only to reply that he's got nothing new to report and his position (on the device/timelines) remains unchanged.

Edit: I doubt it'll be terribly long before we get something either officially or unofficial on the subject. If we make it all the way until the end of this year without any news at all, then I'll be surprised for sure. I'm hoping this thread doesn't devolve into 'xyz was 𝕨𝕣𝕠𝕟𝕘' posts
 
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karmitt said:
I hear what you're saying about PS4 to PS5, but once again, this device has never once been described as a standard successor by any reporting or leaks that I recall. I feel like people are refusing to let that detail stick because they can't reconcile it with the potential difference in capabilities seen in the NVN2 leak. Either that or they are refusing to buy into the idea that we'll be dealing with games developed for the 2017 hardware for a great deal longer.

Bloomberg reported on it as a device meant for playing Switch games in 4K. Imran said last year "Expect this thing to be primarily for FPS boosts and resolutions, not a Switch 2. Think more Pro than Super." Nate said he'd heard it was a revision, but that it could eventually replace the current models, and countless times he's been asked for updates only to reply that he's got nothing new to report and his position (on the device/timelines) remains unchanged.
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Imran is a dubious source for anything to do with new Switch hardware. He seems to have been pretty convinced that a "Switch Pro" was releasing in 2021 and that it would be used to run Mario + Rabbids 2 for example, as he said it looked too good to be on the base Switch. The take you quoted about performance is especially suspect for multiple reasons which I won't get into because I don't want to argue successor vs. revision.

Regarding your and Dekuman's posts as a whole, I don't know what the eternal revision/successor debate has to do with the release timeframe anyway, and I don't know what comparisons to other consoles have to do with it either. Maybe these would be necessary topics of speculation if we had no other info, but we have plenty -- rumors/leaks from third parties with devkits, and rough dates for when Nvidia began development on their end of the equation -- and those already establish a timeframe without any need to argue about console life cycles or revision and successor branding. It's coming soon, and if that contradicts your idea of what a revision or successor or console life cycle is like, well, adjust your priors instead of trying to fit everything into them.
 
LiC said:
Imran is a dubious source for anything to do with new Switch hardware. He seems to have been pretty convinced that a "Switch Pro" was releasing in 2021
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Got some links to back this up? I recall posts specifically saying the opposite - and I can probably find them.

He didn't comment a whole lot on the subject beyond what I said. He mentioned he knew of dev kits floating around in early 2021 and was expecting something to leak soon. When Bloomberg dropped their conflated "Switch Pro in is coming in 2021" piece, his response on Era was "ready to be surprised." The implication there being that he was not expecting it to drop so soon.

None of what he said was contrary to anything Nate or Bloomberg has reported since. I don't see why he specifically is a 'dubious source'. He's been pretty great reporting on plenty of other things, most recently details around RE4 Remake.

LiC said:
and that it would be used to run Mario + Rabbids 2 for example, as he said it looked too good to be on the base Switch.
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He wasn't the only one to make the joking comment about Mario & Rabbids around E3 (Jason Schreier did as well), because at that time most of us were kind of accepting that the Switch Pro was coming that year. Nintendo hadn't dropped the OLED news yet.
 
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karmitt said:
Got some links to back this up? I recall posts specifically saying the opposite - and I can probably find them.

He didn't comment a whole lot on the subject beyond what I said. He mentioned he knew of dev kits floating around in early 2021 and was expecting something to leak soon. When Bloomberg dropped their conflated "Switch Pro in is coming in 2021" piece, his response on Era was "ready to be surprised." The implication there being that he was not expecting it.

None of what he said was contrary to anything Nate or Bloomberg has reported since. I don't see why he specifically is a 'dubious source'.



He wasn't the only one to make the joking comment about Mario & Rabbids around E3 (Jason Schreier did as well), because at that time most of us were kind of accepting that the Switch Pro was coming that year. Nintendo hadn't dropped the OLED news yet.
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Maybe I'm misremembering the 2021 part but I stand by everything else. He was not joking about Mario + Rabbids 2, and neither was Schreier. They were both nodding along with Switch Pro rumors at the time and totally whiffed with those M+R2 posts.
 
LiC said:
Maybe I'm misremembering the 2021 part but I stand by everything else. He was not joking about Mario + Rabbids 2, and neither was Schreier. They were both nodding along with Switch Pro rumors at the time and totally whiffed with those M+R2 posts.
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You are misremembering.

And not everything a person says is a leak or a hint. It's wild that this has to be stated. They were saying what others were thinking - this game looks incredibly good, and Switch games don't often look this good. Couple that with the expectation that we'll be seeing the revision shortly after E3, and journalists were abuzz with "Pro" commentary.

Maybe they did genuinely believe they were seeing Switch Pro footage, but it wasn't a 'whiffed' leak. In that case they just missed the mark. It's like Digital Foundry recently saying in a video that the Breath of the Wild 2 footage from the delay video looked better than Switch. They had to come back and explain themselves when tons of articles spawned from their passing comment.
 
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karmitt said:
I don't understand why anybody is humoring scrapping or dramatic shifts in launch dates for Nintendo.
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I’m not expecting any shifts. I am putting a line between “we know what Nintendo will do tomorrow” and “we feel confident about Nintendo’s plans so fat”

The data so far tells a pretty compelling story about plans for a fall to spring launch for an Orin derived Switch revision. I think you have to be pretty perverse to not believe that.

Nvidia has updated the Orin roadmap since we last heard any info about release timing - most recently to get chips out faster - but nonetheless I’m not as confident in the release schedule as I am in the existence of the device. And I think if you’re going to aggressively shut someone down with the list of things you know, then you have to be careful to not say that you know things that you’re actually just 85% confident in.
 
oldpuck said:
but nonetheless I’m not as confident in the release schedule as I am in the existence of the device. And I think if you’re going to aggressively shut someone down with the list of things you know, then you have to be careful to not say that you know things that you’re actually just 85% confident in.
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I get this, and I'll be careful about wording. Technically people know very little with 100% certainty in here.

I just find it kind of hard to enjoy the thread when there's regular posts popping in solely to decry a release date anytime soon. Most of us are operating on the same evidence that's been floating around since at least last year. Things point towards something soon do they not? But what we don't have is any evidence to the contrary other than gut feeling / 'but the chip shortage', and those posts are just getting tiring.

I frequently duck in and out of here. Maybe I should give it a break. Perhaps we'll have this all sorted by sometime in July.

Edit: @oldpuck I’m questioning my sanity here. My post wasn’t about yours, but I’m seeing how it could have been seen that way. Now I’m trying to track down why I even got on this tangent :|
 
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karmitt said:
I hear what you're saying about PS4 to PS5, but once again, this device has never once been described as a standard successor by any reporting or leaks that I recall. I feel like people are refusing to let that detail stick because they can't reconcile it with the potential difference in capabilities seen in the NVN2 leak. Either that or they are refusing to buy into the idea that we'll be dealing with games developed for the 2017 hardware for a great deal longer.

Bloomberg reported on it as a device meant for playing Switch games in 4K. Imran said last year "Expect this thing to be primarily for FPS boosts and resolutions, not a Switch 2. Think more Pro than Super." Nate said he'd heard it was a revision, but that it could eventually replace the current models, and countless times he's been asked for updates only to reply that he's got nothing new to report and his position (on the device/timelines) remains unchanged.

Edit: I doubt it'll be terribly long before we get something either officially or unofficial on the subject. If we make it all the way until the end of this year without any news at all, then I'll be surprised for sure. I'm hoping this thread doesn't devolve into 'xyz was 𝕨𝕣𝕠𝕟𝕘' posts
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My last paragraph you quoted made me sound more bearish. My general message is Switch 2 probably won't fit any previous patterns because management and even the internal hardware teams are largely new with minimal track record., and there's still the chip shortage factor and Nintendo potentially balancing a bigger launch vs. an earlier one.

I'm mostly just taking wait and see and my default position is they will behave like a normal tech company trying to launch their next product. Rather than assume the worst because its Nintendo
 
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Please keep in mind these kinds of posts don't tend to lead to good faith discussion, as they're more a jab focused at the user, as opposed to a response to the points they've made. Added reasoning for your feelings would also help. - Donnie, Aurc, mazi
oldpuck said:
.

I'm fully prepared to believe that Nintendo scraps or delays the project due to record inflation + chip shortage making the device unprofitable.
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Like clockwork. The tanks of copium are already filled.
 
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Dekuman said:
Nintendo has largely avoided this issue by launching their hardware leading in Christmas, Switch was an exception on a dead Wii U and they had telegraphed well in advance it was coming. So I was just trying to figure out how they would manage messaging if they stick to a March launch. I feel they will and should give warning going into Christmas if that is their plan.

With a successful Switch, I think they need to manage this well. Don't piss off existing customers or new customers while appeasing people rearing to upgrade.
I know the March timeline is popular but the more I think about it, they may just opt to launch later in 2023 like summer (August for a callback to SNES launch?) or later and give the OLED upgraders a full 2 years and avoid having mixed messaging going into Holidays 2022.

I personally want this thing out sooner, but from a planning perspective later in 2023 seems to make the most sense. That of course doesn't stop leaks from happening later this year, they just won't confirm anything until they formally announce it next year for release later that year.
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Plenty of things changed from time when they had telegraphed well in advance when in new hardware in coming, before consoles were announcing 1-2 years before launch, Switch was announced 5 months before launch, even Sony and MS changed their approach.
Also, huge difference is that before when Nintendo was announcing/launching their next hardware, their current hardware was already in huge decline in sales, by time of launch of new hardware, previous hardware was already dead, while here is difference that Switch is still selling great and most likely Nintendo will keep selling current Switch units for quite time in every case.
Also, most likely this isnt clear cut of next gen launch, where they releasing next gen hardware and than they stop supporting last gen, this something between, this technically wild be next gen hardware but Nintendo will treat partially like next gen and partially like next gen, I mean we here all agree that Nintendo will keep supporting all hardware for quite time.

So I dont see why current or this year Switch customers would be pissed when Nintendo releasing more expansive hardware, while in same time they will still receiving their games,
I could see they being pissed if they releasing stronger/better hardware for same price point of current models.

I dont saying launch will be in March exactly, I just don't expecting announcement this year and then launch next year, at least at this point where Switch is still selling like crazy.
 
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^there is that botw 2 release next spring though. So there's a huge chance that once that releases, switch 2 will as well alongside it(it will definitely be a system seller with enhanced performance.. guaranteed 4k I bet). Although March isn't guaranteed for it.
 
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mariodk18 said:
Do you all expect BOTW2 to be the only enhanced game from Nintendo at Drake’s launch? How do you expect them to roll out updates to older games?
Click to expand...
yes
only of games that are still relevant sales-wise. getting a patch that increases the frame rate and /or resolution if it detects a Drake unit is the most likely solution
 
ILikeFeet said:
yes
only of games that are still relevant sales-wise. getting a patch that increases the frame rate and /or resolution if it detects a Drake unit is the most likely solution
Click to expand...

Really hard to say just how far Nintendo will go with patching improvements. You could argue that they might see a worthwhile rise in sales just by making a small event out of 4K patches for earlier releases. I know if it hypothetically hit in 2022 and supported BotW1, I’d buy another copy (lent my other copy indefinitely).
 
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