Nintendo’s Switch successor is already in third-party devs’ hands, report claims

I mean, this is rumor #1324534 in regards to the supposed Switch Pro / Switch 2?

I'll believe it when I see it. And with that I mean, once it's on my desk. Way too many rumors, way too many "leaks", nothing ever came from it.

I suspect the fact it seems so soon means this “Switch 2” will simply be a (big) hardware upgraded Switch 1. With mostly the same design, same compatibility, but now some games would be “Switch 2 Only”.

It would break the “you have to buy everything again” that could push some customers in the hands of Valve and it's Steam Deck. It would actually be a smart move to be the “same as Steam” (store+dedicated hardware) but with Nintendo IP.

Future will tell, but I think it's the less risky move that could give big benefits on the long run.

I'd bet money that the next one has backwards compatibility. Afaik Nintendo has never made a handheld that didnt get at least one generation of backwards compatibility. Gameboy had several devices with backwards compatibility. Then the GBA had DS backwards compatibility for it. DS had 3ds. I suppose the 3DS didn't if you view it as its own thing rather than the upgrade to the DS. Also I'm ignoring the single game devices and the tiny pokemon thing.

I could see them at some point trying to separate handheld and console again just because handheld has been their safety market while they experiment with console. But I doubt now is the moment they do that. And I'm not sure how they do it. Maybe release the switch 2 then after a bit release a console that fits its own niche the way the Wii did (it was great for groups and feeling generally more physically interactive)? But what is that niche that a switch 2 doesn't also fill? Maybe something like the vita tv device? Budget non portable model. Or maybe a console that does a better version of the GameCube 3ds combo. It has more power and its own games, but also acts as a dock that can play switch and switch 2 games if you dock one in it. I dunno.

That being said, Nintendo has no debt and a ton of cash on hand. They can fuck around and not find out for like 30 years.
- Thanks for buying the Switch and a huge amount of games, you will not like our next move, but we have a bunch of new games of your favorite ips to shut your fuck up. Kiss.
Omg I'd rather them just release a new console. It pissed me off that there were certain games I couldn't play on my 3ds because I didn't have the shitty little joy stick.

It fucks over both customers. People without the new one can't play the few exclusives, but then they release only a small handful of exclusives as to not ruin their sales, which fucks over the people that bought the 3ds with the joystick.

Lose-lose.
- While not having the extra joystick may have been an additional reason, the primary reason normal 3DS couldn’t play New 3ds games was because the New 3ds was significantly more powerful than the original 3ds. For games that only required the extra stick and not the extra power, you could actually just get a grip with the joystick nub and play them just fine.
  
  So, they literally did release a new console, but unlike most makers, they specifically ensured backwards compatibility with multiple generations of their products.

Why is this rumor all over the media again all of a sudden? This was already reported a month ago.

As well as back in March.

I'll maybe believe a release date when it's actually announced,. Maybe. Though I already know I'm buying the Switch successor if it's backwards compatible with Switch games, so it would be nice if this article turned out to be true.

I don't seem to be able to reply to WookieMunster so I'll say here:

I don't get the hype over OLED screens, honestly. The difference isn't enough for me to care, and it'll be plugged into a TV most of the time anyway. It's only a downgrade in that one area and only if you have an OLED Switch, whereas I don't have any kind of Switch and couldn't tell you which model my husband's (the one I've played) is.
- For the people who use their Switch as a portable, An OLED is an extremely nice upgrade over an LCD screen. The response times, the color clarity, and the versatility in a wide range of lighting conditions is a great feature.
  
  But yeah, if you just play at home in the living room, who cares.
They won’t even have an OLED screen, a downgrade from the most recent switch. I won’t be so quick to buy it just so they can charge more next year for an “improved” version

Hopefully they make the next version easier to hack.

Eff that. After getting the Steam Deck I am officially done with hacking and jailbreaking all these handhelds. No more worrying about firmware versions and the security arms racing.
Its why I made sure to snag the switch early. I knew it was only gonna get harder, I'm probably gonna do the same for this next one.

What's that, only nine months away? Seems pretty soon. How long do consoles usually get hyped up before they release?

I'm guessing it'll have a Zelda TotK port, and dare I say Prime 4 as the big launch game? Probably new 3D Mario too.

Usually a consoles life time is 5-7 years

In 2024 the switch will be 7 years old

Its about time.
- I meant from hype to release, not the console life span.
I will be a little bit quite miffed if I need a whole new console for Prime 4, tbh
- I doubt they'll announce and release Prime 4 within the next 9 months. It would be a smart system seller for them.
  
  But it's Nintendo. Who knows what they'll do.
  
  Edit: that's all saying if these rumors are even true.
Typically it seems a console wants to be hyped first before the competition. I recall the next PlayStation got revealed in a court case discovery that it plans to announce 2025, so if I were Nintendo maybe June 2024 for a November 2024 release.

Here's hoping that reusing the architecture means even the new games can't escape being preserved by that bootROM level exploit!

If this all is true then it's a matter of time before stuff gets leaked.

Kinda hoping that the September direct will announce something. The Switch itself was announced in October 2016. The September Direct was focused on 3DS back then.

Nintendo have a vice on the community with law suits. I think anyone leaking legitimate content would be very brave. But I buy into the rumours that something is brewing.

I'm hoping it turns out to be a Gameboy SP with one added slot for Nintendo Switch games.

So feed us the specs!

Just give us backwards compatibility!