Everything We Know About Nintendo Switch
Nintendo has officially announced the Nintendo Switch.
UPDATE (07/12): Sources claim Nintendo will include GameCube titles via it's Virtual Console service for Switch, with support for it already tested.
UPDATE (28/10): Sources report on the Switch screen size, the use of 'capacitive multi-touch' and IR-sensor in the JoyCon controller.
UPDATE (27/10): Nintendo is live streaming an event January 12th, 2017 to fully reveal the Nintendo Switch, from hardware to launch titles.
Fresh information is pouring from Nintendo and as they have officially named their latest console, and we will continue to keep a record of up-to-date information as it reveals.
Release Date
March 2017
What Will It Cost?
This is much trickier to nail down as there's no official pricing range being hinted at by Nintendo but they have always sought to keep the sales price reasonable, though this has been doable thanks to having less powerful (and expensive) tech unlike rivals Xbox and PlayStation.
The best point of reference in price is the oops-we-leaked Tesco store listing for the then named Nintendo NX, which cited £349.99 for UK consumers. It can be a little difficult converting that into dollars and such given recent Pound Sterling turbulence. It's likely to translate into around USD $450.
Nintendo has used the strategy to keep their hardware pricing low to reap the rewards in greater software sales. The Nintendo Wii launched at £179.99 / $250 - a sweet spot for 'family gaming'.
What's Under The Hood?
According to sources, the Nintendo Switch employs a 6.2" screen that supports up to 720p in resolution. It also features a capacitive multi-touch, whereas the former 3DS and Wii U used resistive touchscreens that need pressure to detect input from the user, and are less precise. What this means is that the Switch screen can detect multiple fingers all at once.
When the Switch is docked you can't access the screen as it's now feeding into a connected television, but the right JoyCon controller hides an IR-sensor that could communicate with the dock and allow for a very basic level of touchscreen replication on the larger TV screen - possibly.
GPU manufacturer Nvidia has confirmed a "custom Tegra processor" drives the power of the Nintendo Switch.
"The Nintendo Switch’s gaming experience is also supported by fully custom software, including a revamped physics engine, new libraries, advanced game tools and libraries. NVIDIA additionally created new gaming APIs to fully harness this performance. The newest API, NVN, was built specifically to bring lightweight, fast gaming to the masses."
Nintendo has opted to leverage Nvidia's expertise in delivering a powerful mobile gaming platform, with the handheld Switch juiced up with Tegra architecture specifically designed to fit Nintendo's unique approach to this hybrid console.
Two Halves Make The Switch
Nintendo has an ambitious vision for the Switch and they have finally revealed exactly what that is. Essentially the controller - named the Joy-Con - for the new console slides off and on both a wireless controller base and a separate handheld screen, which is stored and recharged in the dock unit.
To play in a more traditional setting in the living room you have both the controller slides attached to the wireless controller unit and just power on the dock that's hooked up to a TV and play as normal. It's the next bit that gets very interesting and makes the Nintendo Switch truly unique.
At any time you can slide the controller sections off the wireless controller unit, remove the screen from the dock unit and slide the controller sections onto the handheld portion and the game will 'switch' over seamlessly.
It's A Dock, Not A Base
"The Nintendo Switch Dock has been created so that it is extremely easy to seamlessly switch from playing games on a TV to transition into a portable mode," Nintendo has explained. It means that Dock is one big fancy HDMI connector and battery charger, basically.
"The dock is not the main console unit of Nintendo Switch. The main unit of Nintendo Switch is the unit that has the LCD screen, which the two Joy-Con controllers can be attached to and detached from. The main function of the Nintendo Switch Dock is to provide an output to the TV, as well as charging and providing power to the system."
Third-Party Power-up
Just because us public Internet peasants didn't know the inner workings of the Nintendo Switch doesn't mean the third-party clubhouses like Ubisoft, Square Enix, Activision, SEGA and others haven't been jumping aboard the new hardware.
There are some major games in the works by these studios and that includes Pokémon Company which has pledged an all-new Pokémon game for the Nintendo Switch because they're impressed by what they see. Nintendo for their part are working on a new Mario and will be bringing the open world Zelda: Breath of the Wild out, presumably as a launch title.
Virtual Console
Sources are reporting that Nintendo intends to include some of their past glories from the Nintendo GameCube era by offering the classics via its Virtual Console service. Apparently they've already got Super Mario Sunshine, Luigi's Mansion and Super Smash Bros. Melee prepped and ready.
Former consoles and the Nintendo 3DS also supported the Virtual Console service for downloaded titles and the tradition continues with Switch. It's unclear what other former platforms will be offered through Nintendo Switch but an 'upgrade' option is likely so previously bought titles can work without having to buy again.
NESception might be a thing as Animal Crossing is now being tested, according to those sources, which includes a dozen NES classics built into it so theoretically you could be playing an emulated NES classic through a GameCube emulated Animal Crossing on your new fancy Nintendo Switch.
Nintendo are also testing the Wii U's GameCube controller adaptor but it's 50/50 whether they will offer that support.
Wii U Mistakes
Nintendo made a mess with the Nintendo Wii U which was something of an upgrade on the original but did nothing to stand out from its predecessor and the company has admitted they just didn't do enough to state clearly what the difference was.
"We have to do a better job helping people to understand its uniqueness and what that means for the game playing experience," Nintendo America boss Reggie Fils-Aime told Eurogamer, speaking of the Nintendo NX.
It needs to avoid another Wii U or even a 3DS where they became stuck in the shadows of the success stories that are the Wii and DS. Nintendo has always appealed to the more casual or family-orientated gamer, but they seemed to overlook that these demographics don't pay as much attention to detail and the differences were lost in translation and so there was no stampede like Nintendo hoped for.
We'll keep an eye on any big Nintendo Switch developments as we head toward March 2017.
