Nintendo struck gold with the Nintendo Switch. The unique blend of home console and handheld allowed the company to dominate the industry despite having the weakest console on the market.
Nintendo has enjoyed over six years of success with the console, and recent rumors have pointed to the next console finally arriving in 2024. This upcoming console is expected to include more RAM than the Xbox Series S and offer performance on par with the PS4.
However, Nintendo’s current console still has some life left in it. During a recent interview, the company confirmed it would support the Nintendo Switch beyond 2024.
Why it matters: This support will help Nintendo and its customers transition to the next console and ensure existing owners are not immediately left behind.
New interview with Nintendo's Furukawa: https://t.co/peEaiztL2W
Nothing spectacular, but he says:
– Until the end of the current fiscal (end of March 2024), Nintendo will focus on the current Switch business
– They will support the current Switch in the fiscal after that, too— Dr. Serkan Toto (@serkantoto) October 3, 2023
As reported by Nikkei, Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa recently spoke about the future of the company and its console business.
While the next Nintendo console is almost certainly gearing up for release in 2024, current Nintendo Switch owners will not be left behind. He stated that the current hardware would be supported for the next fiscal year.
Therefore, Nintendo Switch owners can expect games and updates for the console till March 2025. Similar to the other console manufacturers, this will likely be Nintendo’s cross-generation period before it moves development to the upcoming console.
Previously, Nintendo quickly dropped support of the Wii U since the console performed poorly in the market. However, the big launch title for the Nintendo Switch, Zelda: Breath of the Wild, was also released on the Wii U.
Therefore, a similar scenario could be repeated, though the Nintendo Switch 2 is expected to deliver a major leap in technical specifications compared to its predecessor.
Reports claim that the Nintendo Switch 2 can handle older games at 4K and has already been shown running Zelda: Breath of the Wild at 60FPS. Others have pointed to ray tracing support and a potential version of Matrix UE5 being demoed to developers behind closed doors.
The Nintendo Switch is on the verge of possibly becoming the most-sold console of all time. With nearly 130 million units sold since the last report, it is the only console that has the potential to challenge the PS2’s record as the best-selling console to date.
Therefore, an additional year of support till March 2025 could help Nintendo push for more sales, possibly taking the Nintendo Switch to new heights by 2025.
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