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

I'd not place too much weight in Nintendo's investor Q&A transcripts since the answers therein are always so ambiguous in terms of word choices.
Regarding delaying BotW2 for new hardware, we saw this with BotW. For a first party release, marleting planning is a non-issue.
Dry period is even less an issue now given what have already been revealed in the last Direct. Unlike previous home consoles, 3rd party publishers have got their gears ready.
I mean what Furukawa has said has proven to show a system coming or not. I’ll listen to him over anyone else. He actually works at Nintendo unlike everyone else
I don't mean he would lie, but at the same time he would be so noncommittal to the point that even if we take his words, we can't know what he implies.
 
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I mean if the hardware isn’t ready it’s not ready. BotW 2 will release. They can have 3D Mario of Prime 4 to release with new hardware
 
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I'd not place too much weight in Nintendo's investor Q&A transcripts since the answers therein are always so ambiguous in terms of word choices.
Regarding delaying BotW2 for new hardware, we saw this with BotW. For a first party release, marleting planning is a non-issue.
I mean what Furukawa has said has proven to show a system coming or not. I’ll listen to him over anyone else. He actually works at Nintendo unlike everyone else
 
I'd not place too much weight in Nintendo's investor Q&A transcripts since the answers therein are always so ambiguous in terms of word choices.
Regarding delaying BotW2 for new hardware, we saw this with BotW. For a first party release, marleting planning is a non-issue.
Dry period is even less an issue now given what have already been revealed in the last Direct. Unlike previous home consoles, 3rd party publishers have got their gears ready.
However, I do think that Shuntaro Furukawa's answer to question #4 in the Q&A does potentially give a glimpse of how Nintendo approaches the next hardware.

The emphasis on maintaining and expanding on the ~100 million annual playing users does seem to strongly imply that Nintendo's positioning the next hardware as an iterative successor in the sense that developers are free to release exclusive games, but the cross-gen period lasts much longer than expected for a "true" successor.
 
If the hardware wasn't ready until 2024 - no. But we've only been hearing late 2022 or early 2023 from Bloomberg's last report + what Nate's heard.

So yes, I would 100% delay BotW2 to release 3-6 months later if it's aligned with new hardware. There's literally no better title in the pipeline to sell a premium piece of hardware than BotW2, and the game itself would benefit from being previewed / reviewed under more favorable conditions.
Expect the next 3D Mario
 
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I just hope something leak that shows more tangible proof that a more powerful Switch exists, im just pessimistic that Nintendo is going to run this current Switch into the ground for dreadfully the next 5 years, they need to finally end a generation on a high note
I can understand having some pessimism, but 5 years is a bit extreme.
Just too much of a stretch for me to believe that it'll take 5 years from this job posting to see the fruit of its labor, unless that listing was made at the start of the development of new hardware. (googling around tells me that PS4 and PS5 had 5 years of development each)
...and we've been hearing about new hardware being worked on before now, so that's out the window.
 
Jeff Grubb / Mike Minotti latest Last of the Nintendogs (live now) is following up on the recent Direct, and has them speculating once again that the window for a "Pro" has passed, and that a proper successor may just arrive in 2024.

@NateDrake , can we expect a similar discussion on your end soon? Have you heard anything on the subject more recently, and if so, are you in a position to share?

Why would the window for a mid gen upgrade have “passed”? Why would they think this?

They can release an upgrade model this year or next and it would still function perfectly fine as a power upgrade to lengthen the Switch lifespan another ~3-4 years or so.
 
Why would the window for a mid gen upgrade have “passed”? Why would they think this?

They can release an upgrade model this year or next and it would still function perfectly fine as a power upgrade to lengthen the Switch lifespan another ~3-4 years or so.
Yeah I don't quite get this thinking that it's somehow too late for an enhanced model. Especially since the pandemic seems to have artificially extended the Switch's life already.
 
I'd not place too much weight in Nintendo's investor Q&A transcripts since the answers therein are always so ambiguous in terms of word choices.
Regarding delaying BotW2 for new hardware, we saw this with BotW. For a first party release, marleting planning is a non-issue.
Dry period is even less an issue now given what have already been revealed in the last Direct. Unlike previous home consoles, 3rd party publishers have got their gears ready.
I just think that delaying BOTW2 when you don’t need it to sell Dane, when they did need it for Switch, is silly. The notion of “saving” software is silly especially with all the stuff that is coming out now. Why didn’t they delay Splatoon, Xenoblade, Mario Strikers, etc. And yes marketing planning is important to a degree especially if you are planning around certain titles. Dry periods can exist if you are “saving” titles as well since 1st party still is what drives Nintendo machines. If all you have to market and sell throughout the year are Pikmin GO tier releases then that is going to be trouble.
 
Yeah I don't quite get this thinking that it's somehow too late for an enhanced model. Especially since the pandemic seems to have artificially extended the Switch's life already.
I think people are comparing an upgraded model to the Xbox and Playstation when they should be comparing it to the Switch. Nintendo does keep the competition in mind, but they still make systems as they compare to their previous first
 
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I just think that delaying BOTW2 when you don’t need it to sell Dane, when they did need it for Switch, is silly. The notion of “saving” software is silly especially with all the stuff that is coming out now. Why didn’t they delay Splatoon, Xenoblade, Mario Strikers, etc. And yes marketing planning is important to a degree especially if you are planning around certain titles. Dry periods can exist if you are “saving” titles as well since 1st party still is what drives Nintendo machines. If all you have to market and sell throughout the year are Pikmin GO tier releases then that is going to be trouble.
Again, this is just saying Delaying it a Quarter at absolute most.

Exactly what they did with BOTW1.

Now, if Dane is pushed out of March 2023, then BOTW2 likely will be decoupled from it out of nessecity.

But if Dane is still in the 2H 2022/March 2023 window, BOTW2 most assuredly would be coupled with it unless we are getting the next game from the Odyssey team in that window as well and they launch that in March
 
Okay, if Bloomberg and Nate are wrong with the hardware slipping into late 2023?

You’ll what delay it a year still? Go into E3 again and tell people, “please understand we’re delaying BOTW2 till next year”.

Drop the straw man - nobody in here is arguing Breath of the Wild 2 should be delayed until end of 2023 or 2024. It's always been about dates ranging from late 2022 to early 2023. If we're talking about an end of 2023 or 2024 hardware launch, then the entire discussion changes.

And somebody can correct me, but the impression I get is that hardware is not the kind of thing that slips a year all that easily.

[...] Torpedo any marketing plans that have BOTW2 as your holiday title. What would you replace it with?

Over the generation we've run the gamut on what constitutes a coveted Nintendo 'holiday title'. Just last year we had the release of an unambitious Pokemon remake in November, and October saw Metroid Dread, an excellent title, but also one which which we expect might cap out around 3-5 million sales.

2022 already has Xenoblade 3 lined up for September. Beyond this we have an undated Bayonetta 3 and Mario and Rabbids 2. We've indication that a new Fire Emblem and Metroid Prime 1 remaster may also find their way to market this year as well.

Breath of the Wild 2 is an important game - but it's not going to make or break 2022.

I don’t see any reason to delay BOTW2 if the software is ready and the hardware isn’t. Otherwise there is literally zero reason to release all the games this year instead of “saving it” to sell a premium device.

It's all a balancing act. They absolutely want outstanding new content to showcase new hardware - every hardware launch does. They also need to maintain momentum throughout the year. I'm repeating myself here but Breath of the Wild 2 is without question the most important piece of software in Nintendo's pipeline; The original has sold nearly 26 million copies now. If the two launches are tracking close to each other, how does it not make sense to have it come day and date with new hardware to elevate both products? This is not hard to reason out.
 
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If presenting a scenario if Nate & Bloomberg are wrong and you would have to delay BOTW2 for a year is a straw man; then you do you.

I think it silly to delay even for a quarter beyond extenuating circumstances. I don’t think hardware not being ready fits into that criteria if the software is ready to launch. If that is the case then games like Splatoon should also be delayed for the reasons given as to why BOTW2 should be launched for the Dane. Just hope they don’t overwork the team again forcing a launch like BOTW1. But whatever we’ll see soon if this is their strategy.
 
If presenting a scenario if Nate & Bloomberg are wrong and you would have to delay BOTW2 for a year is a straw man; then you do you.

I think it silly to delay even for a quarter beyond extenuating circumstances. I don’t think hardware not being ready fits into that criteria if the software is ready to launch. If that is the case then games like Splatoon should also be delayed for the reasons given as to why BOTW2 should be launched for the Dane. Just hope they don’t overwork the team again forcing a launch like BOTW1. But whatever we’ll see soon if this is their strategy.
Splatoon doesn't have an over 100% attach rate.

You know what did?

BOTW.

When talking about the significance of BOTW2 as a launch title that has to be very much considered
 
Splatoon doesn't have an over 100% attach rate.

You know what did?

BOTW.

When talking about the significance of BOTW2 as a launch title that has to be very much considered

The > 100% attach rate at launch was so silly. What an exciting week that was for Nintendo fans
 
The > 100% attach rate at launch was so silly. What an exciting week that was for Nintendo fans
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I'm sure they could use a relatively cheap one for their handhelds, but software emulation has historically not been a huge issue for those.

The Linux part is weird, because it suggests something relatively standalone so there won't be a Switch around to drive it.
Isn't the Switch OS Linux based though?

I still think it's wild that they'd have such a device and choose to release Breath of the Wild 2 before it. It just doesn't make sense - the year is clearly stacked already, far more than many prior years.

I think Nate has pretty much always taken the stance on BoTW2 not being completely indicative of when new hardware will be released.
Neither BoTW2 or new hardware needs the other right now to sell at a high rate...
Yeah I don't quite get this thinking that it's somehow too late for an enhanced model. Especially since the pandemic seems to have artificially extended the Switch's life already.
I agree If anything the pandemic has afforded Nintendo a little extra room in a window of when they can release new hardware.
For certain whatever roadmap they have in place behind the scene definitely isn't going to be modified heavily as it would put them that far behind in getting into a manufacturing schedule.
 
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Weird thing I noticed in the Nintendo Switch Sports beta license page. This doesn't mean the game is using it, but it does fairly definitively indicate that EPD's engine supports it now.

Yeah, I can think of a few reasons Nintendo might be looking into this (DLSS support on Dane isn't going to help at all on Switch 1), but it is kind of random.
These posts are probably relevant to this thread.
 
2022021523131200_s.jpg


Weird thing I noticed in the Nintendo Switch Sports beta license page. This doesn't mean the game is using it, but it does fairly definitively indicate that EPD's engine supports it now.
These posts are probably relevant to this thread.
And unfortunately, considering the Tegra X2 doesn't have DP4a instructions support, the Nintendo Switch most definitely doesn't have DP4a instructions support. So the DP4a variant of Intel XeSS is not really feasible for the Nintendo Switch.
 
And unfortunately, considering the Tegra X2 doesn't have DP4a instructions support, the Nintendo Switch most definitely doesn't have DP4a instructions support. So the DP4a variant of Intel XeSS is not really feasible for the Nintendo Switch.
Yeah, I did suspect that Nintendo first party at least would move to using DLSS for Dane and FSR/NIS for OG games, at least to try to keep IQ more consistent

If they can use FSR to lock their games at 1080p for the most part they very much should go do it even if FSR at <1080p IRs is not as good as NIS.

Although then again FSR is open source so Nintendo could've customized it.

But the main thing is 9 times out of 10, 540p upscaled via FSR looks better than 540p native is the best example I can make
 
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Although then again FSR is open source so Nintendo could've customized it.
I don't know how much improvements can come from Nintendo customising FSR since FSR is primarily a spatial upsampling technology in comparison to DLSS, which is primarily a temporal upsampling technology.
 
I don't know how much improvements can come from Nintendo customising FSR since FSR is primarily a spatial upsampling technology in comparison to DLSS, which is primarily a temporal upsampling technology.
Fair, but they could customize things like how the upscaler interprets inner-surface detail, the strength of the sharpening filter.etc

Having a console-level instance of the upscaler does allow the developers to optimize around it and what the final output target is versus DLSS, FSR, and NIS on PC.

It's a thing that applies to all 3, it's just we've been mainly talking about it in relation to DLSS, but similar rules apply for FSR/NIS
 
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Adding FSR support to the EPD engine definitely reads as an attempt to wring a bit more blood out of the stone that is TX1, but the question is why. The obvious answer would be to keep games with Dane as the lead platform looking a bit better on Switch, but I suppose there's an outside chance EPD might just have some very ambitious projects in the pipe.

It's probably the cross-gen thing, though. Making a Switch 1-only game that would require that to look vaguely presentable seems pretty out of character for EPD.
 
Yeah just did some reading up on Switch OS and apparently it's based on FreeBSD(similar to the PS4) which many people thought was as based on Linux at first. Even though technically both FreeBSD and Linux have roots in Unix
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The Switch OS uses code from the FreeBSD kernel, but not the kernel itself. Like I said, it appears to be an in-house design by Nintendo, and is not especially unix-like.
 
The Switch OS uses code from the FreeBSD kernel, but not the kernel itself. Like I said, it appears to be an in-house design by Nintendo, and is not especially unix-like.
I agree with what you are saying (we are probably saying similar things) but the reason that disclaimer of information even exists there is because Nintendo basing Switch OS off of FreeBSD kernel, they still give credit to the original source of that code.
 
So if Nintendo does release the next generation of Switch in 2024, about how powerful can it be and will backwards compatibly be able to be easily implemented?
It will likely still be Orin NX or whatever chip The Switch 2 will use. Maybe a smaller node for better battery and higher clocks (5nm?). Most likely the same battery as the switch 2 model with the same clock speeds.
Yeah I don't quite get this thinking that it's somehow too late for an enhanced model. Especially since the pandemic seems to have artificially extended the Switch's life already.
What enhanced model do you think we will get? Definitely not a 7nm TX1.

If we are getting the Orin NX, then it's not going to be a "pro upgrade." This won't be like the xbone to xbone x. The architecture is completely different in all fronts. Brand new GPU, CPU (A78s), new tools features such as DLSS. We are getting a CPU that could be 10x faster than the current switch, and 4x faster GPU on paper without DLSS. With DLSS we are talking about a generations worth of performance. And RAM and bandwidth? 8-12GB Ram with up to 4x as much bandwidth.

How Nintendo markets it is another story, but as an iterative successor is one way.
 
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It will likely still be Orion NX or whatever chip The Switch 2 will use. Maybe a smaller node for better battery and higher clocks. Maybe.

If we are getting the Orion NX, then it's not going to be a "pro upgrade." This won't be like the xbone to xbone x. The architecture is completely different. Brand new GPU, CPU (A78s), new tools features such as DLSS. We are getting a CPU that could be 10x faster than the current switch, and 4x faster GPU on paper without DLSS. With DLSS we are talking about a generations worth of performance. And RAM and bandwidth? 8-12GB Ram with up to 4x as much bandwidth.

How Nintendo markets it is another story, but as an iterative successor is one way.
Sort of off topic, but you consistently write “orion”. The correct name is “Orin”.
 
It surprises me that Switch sports of all games, is the one to debut fsr on switch.
It's not immediately clear that it's enabled. That's probably something that will require actually getting into gameplay to see. It's quite probable that it's just the first game to ship since support was added to the engine (especially because this is a beta).
 
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Drop the straw man - nobody in here is arguing Breath of the Wild 2 should be delayed until end of 2023 or 2024. It's always been about dates ranging from late 2022 to early 2023. If we're talking about an end of 2023 or 2024 hardware launch, then the entire discussion changes.

And somebody can correct me, but the impression I get is that hardware is not the kind of thing that slips a year all that easily.



Over the generation we've run the gamut on what constitutes a coveted Nintendo 'holiday title'. Just last year we had the release of an unambitious Pokemon remake in November, and October saw Metroid Dread, an excellent title, but also one which which we expect might cap out around 3-5 million sales.

2022 already has Xenoblade 3 lined up for September. Beyond this we have an undated Bayonetta 3 and Mario and Rabbids 2. We've indication that a new Fire Emblem and Metroid Prime 1 remaster may also find their way to market this year as well.

Breath of the Wild 2 is an important game - but it's not going to make or break 2022.



It's all a balancing act. They absolutely want outstanding new content to showcase new hardware - every hardware launch does. They also need to maintain momentum throughout the year. I'm repeating myself here but Breath of the Wild 2 is without question the most important piece of software in Nintendo's pipeline; The original has sold nearly 26 million copies now. If the two launches are tracking close to each other, how does it not make sense to have it come day and date with new hardware to elevate both products? This is not hard to reason out.
While I agree with your reasoning, Emily wrote a Tweet around E3 2022 in which she mentioned that Zelda and the Revision were no longer coupled. She may have been thinking of OLED, I'm not sure, but it seems relevant to the discussion.

EDIT: receipts. https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...Qjjh6BAgaEAE&usg=AOvVaw0IVMGNSUHYurleY7EBt-KV
 
I am confused, Why would Nintendo use an AMD program when they have a deal with Nvidia???
FSR is an hardware agnostic solution that doesn't require tensor cores to improve image quality, while surprising it makes perfect sense for mobile hardware like nintendo switch aside from in house solutions. (and it's open source)
 
I just think that delaying BOTW2 when you don’t need it to sell Dane, when they did need it for Switch, is silly.
I’m hesitant to agree but also can’t really disagree. The device was going to sell even if Nintendo put no new system seller on it because it always, like every launch of any console, always sells to the core crowd before reaching the hands of the casual crowd.

That said, tying BOTW 2 to the hardware isn’t to help the game do better, it’s tying the hardware to BOTW 2 to help the hardwrae get perceived better even by the wider public. The core crowd whether ignorant or frothing at the mouth were gonna buy it because they are part of the core crowd who are enthusiasts, this is just the way with consoles spanning since the PS2 days or earlier. Hell even phones and GPUs go through this.


I will say, Nintendo does not need a holiday to sell this product due to the ongoing shortages, it was going to sell out whether May, November, March, April, June, etc. if they choose to do a special time period it’s for traditional reasons that weren’t going to help them in the current other than have completely sold out hardware.

But in the occasion that it does slip, why are you seeing from early 2023 to late 2023/early 2024 as a believable scenario. If we are going to entertain the idea that it is supposed to release early 23, but slips as you said during these times, you aren’t going to really get a fluid method to work with this. The slipping would be more complicated than software. Software can slip and it’s more manageable, hardware isn’t quite as manageable.
 
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While I agree with your reasoning, Emily wrote a Tweet around E3 2022 in which she mentioned that Zelda and the Revision were no longer coupled. She may have been thinking of OLED, I'm not sure, but it seems relevant to the discussion.

EDIT: receipts. https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...Qjjh6BAgaEAE&usg=AOvVaw0IVMGNSUHYurleY7EBt-KV
I’m aware of the tweet, but the context around this was that the hardware was coming well before Zelda. She was saying it didn’t need Zelda ready at launch in order to succeed overall.

Zelda releasing before the device is an entirely different discussion.
 
And somebody can correct me, but the impression I get is that hardware is not the kind of thing that slips a year all that easily.
It can slip, but the conditions for slipping are more extreme. These days if it slips though, it’s not for a year. It’s longer than that until the issue resolves.
 
I am confused, Why would Nintendo use an AMD program when they have a deal with Nvidia???
Because it's open source, so it doesn't cost them anything, and it's general purpose enough it will run on the current Switch without any special hardware acceleration like DLSS requires. They'll likely stick primarily to Nvidia's algorithm on hardware that actually supports it.
 
Because it's open source, so it doesn't cost them anything, and it's general purpose enough it will run on the current Switch without any special hardware acceleration like DLSS requires. They'll likely stick primarily to Nvidia's algorithm on hardware that actually supports it.
Honestly, I'd be very interested in knowing how much additional performance you can squeeze out of the current Switch by using FSR. Maybe we'd actually get musou games with stable framerates...
 
While I agree with your reasoning, Emily wrote a Tweet around E3 2022 in which she mentioned that Zelda and the Revision were no longer coupled. She may have been thinking of OLED, I'm not sure, but it seems relevant to the discussion.

EDIT: receipts. https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...Qjjh6BAgaEAE&usg=AOvVaw0IVMGNSUHYurleY7EBt-KV
Yes, highly probable it's related to the oled/4k switch confusion.
Which makes me think that she never talked about sw4k herself except confirming bloomberg report pre e3.
Find it surprising she has no info on it.
 
I’m hesitant to agree but also can’t really disagree. The device was going to sell even if Nintendo put no new system seller on it because it always, like every launch of any console, always sells to the core crowd before reaching the hands of the casual crowd.

That said, tying BOTW 2 to the hardware isn’t to help the game do better, it’s tying the hardware to BOTW 2 to help the hardwrae get perceived better even by the wider public. The core crowd whether ignorant or frothing at the mouth were gonna buy it because they are part of the core crowd who are enthusiasts, this is just the way with consoles spanning since the PS2 days or earlier. Hell even phones and GPUs go through this.


I will say, Nintendo does not need a holiday to sell this product due to the ongoing shortages, it was going to sell out whether May, November, March, April, June, etc. if they choose to do a special time period it’s for traditional reasons that weren’t going to help them in the current other than have completely sold out hardware.

But in the occasion that it does slip, why are you seeing from early 2023 to late 2023/early 2024 as a believable scenario. If we are going to entertain the idea that it is supposed to release early 23, but slips as you said during these times, you aren’t going to really get a fluid method to work with this. The slipping would be more complicated than software. Software can slip and it’s more manageable, hardware isn’t quite as manageable.
Who said anything about hardware slipping? If the hardware slipped then it would be longer then the timeframe I’ve mentioned. However, I’m talking about a scenario where the hardware was just flat out planned for late 2023-early 2024 instead of late 2022-early 2023.

You may as well release the game now then do the same thing Sony & Xbox are doing with upgrades while making a separate port later down the line so as to not overburden the team again. The Dane will be perceived better anyway even without BOTW2 especially if a new MK happens to be on the system relatively soon.
 
Honestly, I'd be very interested in knowing how much additional performance you can squeeze out of the current Switch by using FSR. Maybe we'd actually get musou games with stable framerates...
Warriors games are a cpu issue. FSR ain't gonna help here
 
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