This Old Neon Forum

Slurmee wrote:

Jordan wrote:Nintendo portables in the last two generations did phenomenally well.

Hasn't every Nintendo handheld bar sold well?

To be honest, the 3DS didn't sell as well as previous ones, though I suspect that has to do with the market. Mobile gaming as a major factor didn't really exist in previous portable generations, especially before the DS. Also the 3DS is not dead and it still has some time to live up to its predecessors. Even with all these qualifications, I think it sold well overall. It probably sold at least as well as the PS4 if not better.

So if the Switch does as well as the 3DS, things should be fine.

Is anyone hoping Nintendo releases a stand alone handheld device alongside the Switch?

I've seen this thrown around a lot, hearing people say they still want a separate handheld device or that Switch will remain as just a home console. I've always thought of this being a consolidation of their two markets into one. I want to be able to play all of Nintendo's stuff on one device, wherever I want. I also just think it would be a better move as they could crank games out much faster on one device, and could use the power of Pokemon (maybe Monster Hunter) to really push units. I actually think they need Pokemon and a high game turn out if they are to convince consumers and third parties that this is a device worth having.

With a second handheld, I feel like the concept of the Switch is weakened. I could see them releasing a smaller more portable Switch that shares the same library, but I don't see a reason to keep those markets separated, especially when consoles and handhelds have been catching up to each other and starting to offer very similar experiences.

Is anyone hoping Nintendo releases a stand alone handheld device alongside the Switch?

That would be a disaster.

The entire marketing appeal of this product is that it unifies two of Nintendo's platforms into one. If they released a separate portable device, they'd be cannibalizing their own product.

If they want to release upgrades to the Switch periodically which improve upon the design or other aspects, that's fine. All that really matters is that the game library and functionality is roughly the same.

Jordan wrote:The entire marketing appeal of this product is that it unifies two of Nintendo's platforms into one. If they released a separate portable device, they'd be cannibalizing their own product.

That's true, and I agree, but I wonder if by doing this they're also risking flushing out a lot of the appeal of the DS/3DS. People love those little portables. I'm going to be a lot less inclined to carry around a powerful Nintendo tablet with a couple controller peripherals than I would be a compact, folding handheld device. Ultimately, the plethora of Nintendo portable software will keep it afloat, but it's still an interesting gambit.

Jordan wrote:

Is anyone hoping Nintendo releases a stand alone handheld device alongside the Switch?

That would be a disaster.

The entire marketing appeal of this product is that it unifies two of Nintendo's platforms into one. If they released a separate portable device, they'd be cannibalizing their own product.

If they want to release upgrades to the Switch periodically which improve upon the design or other aspects, that's fine. All that really matters is that the game library and functionality is roughly the same.

That's what I'm thinking as well.

There are some sacrifices making Switch the handheld replacement along with the console replacement. From cost (system and games likely to be console level), portability, the type of games. Though I will say, after seeing it on Jimmy Fallon is does look a lot smaller than I thought.

I still think they could put handheld-esc experiences on Switch if priced accordingly. Like the Etrian Odyssey series could continue with everything it's doing but just in HD. Picross and the like could still work. For the most part, handheld gaming and console gaming are becoming increasingly similar so it's not a huge jump.

If they were to release another handheld, it would need to share like 90% of the Switch's content. For the sake of not making competing markets, but it also just wouldn't make sense as I can't see them releasing a handheld in a few years that is less powerful than Switch. I imagine the exclusive content would be more touch screen specific mini games. Releasing a Mini Switch down the line might be better. Maybe a unit that is more compact and doesn't have replaceable controllers.

Kong Wen wrote:

Jordan wrote:The entire marketing appeal of this product is that it unifies two of Nintendo's platforms into one. If they released a separate portable device, they'd be cannibalizing their own product.

That's true, and I agree, but I wonder if by doing this they're also risking flushing out a lot of the appeal of the DS/3DS. People love those little portables. I'm going to be a lot less inclined to carry around a powerful Nintendo tablet with a couple controller peripherals than I would be a compact, folding handheld device. Ultimately, the plethora of Nintendo portable software will keep it afloat, but it's still an interesting gambit.

It's also a gambit in terms of hardware sales. With the Wii and DS, Nintendo sold 200+ million units combined. But, with 3DS and Wii U, it's around 75 million combined, with 60+ from 3DS alone. Even if they pick up their home console game, I don't really see a dedicated handheld doing better than the 3DS based on where the market is going. So actually, I'm not sure how much more profitable it would even be to have two separate devices.

The big thing would be converting 3DS owners to Switch.

Has anyone found an image of the carts compared to the 3DS carts in size?

Not sure how they would do it, but playing 3DS carts on the switch would be cool.

Kreegs wrote:Has anyone found an image of the carts compared to the 3DS carts in size?

Not sure how they would do it, but playing 3DS carts on the switch would be cool.

I think they said it's not backwards compatible with 3DS or Wii U. Based on the little video it looks like carts are a similar size, but it would be tough playing 3DS games with one screen.

The Switch announcement will be at the following times

12th Jan 2017
8pm PST
9pm MST
10pm CST
11pm EST

13th Jan 2017
4am UK
5am Europe
1pm Japan
3pm AEDT Sydney/Melbourne

Slurmee wrote:The Switch announcement will be at the following times

12th Jan 2017
8pm PST
9pm MST
10pm CST
11pm EST

13th Jan 2017
4am UK
5am Europe
1pm Japan
3pm AEDT Sydney/Melbourne

Im excited! Just need to know when/how to pre-order! Let's keep each other posted on the best preorder deals!