It seems obvious that the next generation of consoles is already in the minds of major manufacturers and video game companies. If the PS5, XBox Series X and Nintendo Switch still have a bright future ahead of them, it’s important to start seeing what’s to come in the near future regarding our favorite home consoles, especially from nintendo who could we surprise earlier provided that.
Nintendo: a new console quickly?
In recent days there have been rumors that Nintendo’s next console is coming soon. Many of these rumors have suggested that this console will be a direct successor to the Nintendo Switch, but knowing Nintendo, you know the Japanese giant isn’t that predictable. What we’ll call « Nintendo Switch 2 » (NS2) might as well end up being an even lighter or more powerful version of the current Switch, in order to reinvigorate sales of this very popular home console. For the moment, there is obviously no release date or official information on this subject, but many clues allow to establish a release window concerning this one.
Information comes from analyst Piers Harding-Rolls, working for the company Ampere Analysis which regularly releases information tickets concerning the field of hardware, but also video games, and their studies are serious. According to him and his company, Nintendo may be planning a console release date for 2024possibly towards the end of the year as has become the custom, in order to take advantage of the Christmas holidays, but above all to try to reach a record never equaled since… the Playstation 2 :
Ampère is currently planning to release a next-generation Nintendo device in 2024. By the end of this year, the Switch is expected to have sold 146 million units, which means it still has the potential to become the most popular console. sold of all time by the end of its lifespan, surpassing the PS2 and its 158 million units.
SWITCH: soon the best-selling console in the world?
Even if the new console doesn’t come out in 2024, it should at least be announced. This would be doubly interesting for Nintendo, since it would give an impetus around its new console in addition to boosting the purchase of new Nintendo Switch, provided that the price drops as soon as the new console is released. As a reminder, Nintendo has always more or less respected a six-year schedule for its most recent consoles. Sometimes less in case of failure like the Wii U or semi failure like the GameCubesometimes more, like the output gap between the Nintendo 64 and the GameCube, 8 years. The GameCube was released in 2001, the Wii in 2006, the Wii U in 2012, and the Switch in 2017.
A new console in 2024 would respect this time gap specific to console manufacturers, while leaving comfortable Switch-like leeway to overtake the PS2 and become the best-selling console in the world. Also, Nintendo could repeat the same move as when the Switch was released, i.e. restrict the release of highly anticipated games, randomly, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2, to make it available exclusively on this new console. Or offer a simultaneous release on the Switch and its successor, as was the case for the first part of Breath of the Wild. The first version of the game was a huge selling point for the Switch when it was released, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see it again in the future. The game is expected for 2023 after a final postponement, and already promises a lot.