This page is for previous ideas/speculation/thoughts that I had on my main Nintendo AGENDA page or in past blogger posts.
These are old, moot & outdated words that I just wanted to archive in a separate page away from my main pages or blogger posts.
These are not my current ideas/speculation/thoughts and they are just placed here in an incomplete/unorganized state for archival purposes only.
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President Furukawa has already expressed that they plan to communicate properly through the transition as he admits that is a danger for them. Switch 2 will be the first platform he will launch as President...to note, Furukawa has been described as a business-focused leader and it shows. Being business focused would hopefully mean he aims to repeat and improve on the current Switch by making money doing what consumers want instead of seeing this as a personal idea/creative vision. Nothing wrong with creativity or Nintendo's own personal touches...as long as it lines up with what customers actually want!
I see what most reasonable Nintendo customers want: a better Switch with backwards compatibility, more power and more current games. Doable, if Nintendo is also being reasonable. Keep the Switch name, the brand is still fresh with people and don't create more problems by trying to be too different. Add those Nintendo touches but not at the detriment of what people want.
While I don't wanna stick to conventional revolution/evolution thinking in regards to what Nintendo would do next, I don't think they'll aim to re-invent their next hardware business...just take what they got and make it better. More power, improved parts and added features would already make it better. The real value in the current Switch isn't just the hardware or software itself...but how long it's lasted on the market. A market that has been hit by bad world events and bad macroeconomics, consumers in a bullish thrifty economy appreciate a product that lasts longer and is supported for longer. Game consoles are kind of like a committed investment and that's even more important these days in this questionable economic climate.
So before Nintendo goes all out with the next Switch they should really assure current Switch owners with more support. This should help in the transition and building brand trust, especially as they keep the Switch branding (name and backwards compatibility). I had a sort of timeline of what I thought they would do as they move into the next generation:
-confirm backwards compatibility-
✔ 2024 Investors Meeting ✔
-give it a clear name-
✔ Switch 2 ✔
-continue current Switch support-
✔ March Switch 1 Direct ✔
-Switch 2 Direct-
✔ April ✔
-Switch 2 Experience-
✔ April - June ✔
-Switch 2 Launch-
✔ June 5TH ✔
-GameBoy-to-GameBoy-Color-like transition*-
✔ already confirmed with Switch 2 versions of Switch 1 games ✔
-bring back "Nintendo Selects" budgeted games-
X should happen after Switch 2 has a strong launch** X
-lower Switch 1 price-
X possibly Holiday 2025 X
-budget "Switch Jr." console-
???***
*ie: Switch 1 games that work on the old Switch but have enhancements on Switch 2 and/or patch old Switch 1 games with improvements on Switch 2
**while it should happen, doesn't mean it will due to the current economic climates...
UPDATE: Switch 1 hardware actually had a price increase, so I doubt there will a "Nintendo Selects" line any time soon...crazy world...
***see my "SWITCH HOME" idea below
Dealing with the transition without spreading themselves too thin across both generations I'll go into what I think they'll do for the next Switch. They should make it powerful enough to run more current games from 3RD parties as that will also help in the transition since their partners could help fill in the gaps while Nintendo makes new games for the next Switch. It should also be powerful enough to give it a long lifespan even in the wake of what the competition may do. Diminishing returns comes into play here as I don't think the mass consumer believe that games look/perform that much better from PS4 to PS5. Maybe take power scaling to the next level having different performance settings for: portable, docked & unlocked/over-clocked modes.
Other than the Post-Switch 2 Direct negatives I do believe that the system is still being received well. We have to remember (as I pointed out above) the Switch 1 lived through a lot of negative industwy naysaying (from Labo, to Joy-Con drift, to no COD/Madden, to bad ports, to aging tech, to the "Switch Tax", etc.) and it didn't kill it's marketshare or mindshare.
It remains to be seen if the negative press (mainly on price) will really hurt the Switch 2...I don't think we'll get a real gauge of whether the real consumer (post launch window/holiday) wants Switch 2 until early 2026...and by then it should have sold millions to early adopters and holiday shoppers which can only be good for it's marketshare/mindshare and continued support from publishers & consumers alike.
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This is a copy/paste from my Nintendo AGENDA page (future speculation section):
Most of the above in this speculation was written before the full unveiling during the April 2ND Switch 2 Direct. It's naive how everyone believed the prior March 27TH Direct was the last hurrah for Switch 1 (it's not) and that the following Direct would answer all our questions on Switch 2 (it didn't, and never does). There's still tons of questions due to the American reciprocal tariff situation which was also unveiled on the same day. Due to all that, a lot of the above speculation may be moot/outdated at the time of me writing this current speculation...on top of that, this current speculation may mean nothing in the near future depending on how the "trade wars" unfold.
Before I talk about my post-Switch 2 Direct speculation I have to say Nintendo is making mistakes. Not just the mistakes everyone is regurgitating about on pricing the hardware/software but also mistakes that may have led to arrogance on said pricing and other problems along the way. I have my own theory that speaks to a business problem that goes beyond Nintendo, video games or whatever else I've talked about on this page:
-you can't think endless growth-
Thinking endless growth in business is very dangerous and I've seen (and even been a part of) many companies who lived by the idea of endless growth. "We're doing great now, things will always be great, let's keep growing and expanding" sounds nice when things are going good, but what about when the rainy days come?...the rainy days will come! Instead of continuing cautiously, compact and nimble, you hire too many people, build too many stores, buy too much stuff and then you're too big to move when you have to weather a storm of change which usually means you drown in it.
Back to Nintendo, they can afford failures and taking risks 'cos they have tons of cash stockpiled and no debt. Even if Switch 2 ends up being another Wii U, they could handle it as a company, but they've made "endless growth" moves in hiring way too many people during the prosperous Switch era thinking they'll need them in the future when that actually is a liability if (and when) there's less money coming in. Growing staff in making bigger budget games and business plans is part of it, but what if they're just hiring more 'cos they think they need more people to handle the growth they've had during their most profitable generation...okay...but what are these people doing? What happens to those people if (and when) Switch 2 isn't as profitable? What if they're just DEI West-coast blue-hairs that are already plaguing so much of Western culture/business? They are liabilities that are the first to get laid off when times are tough which would make NOA just like the rest of the soulless games industwy when it happens. These are the same hard-left people who will blame reciprocal tariffs and if this mindset is the norm at NOA then they could use that as an excuse to raise prices and blame Trump! Trump isn't the underlying problem, it's an easy excuse ignoring the deeper problems in the company.
Bad news, doom'n'gloom all around if they have to lay people off (which they didn't even do in the abysmal Wii U generation) which sets Nintendo back in the "Nintendo is doomed" mindshare of a still young, fickle entertainment industry. This will give the industwy media an excuse to fall back on the idea that Nintendo should make games on competition platforms, PC's & phones (which is what these crybabies really want). If all of the above coupled with poor Switch 2 sales/profits then that can eat into their cash reserves which means unhappy investors will sell out and Saudi Arabia (or some other giant conglomerate) come in to take more of Nintendo, making them even more of a soulless company like the rest of the industwy.
The above is a worst case scenario that we wouldn't be talking about after watching the awesome Switch 2 Direct...except post-Switch 2 Direct showed us an old arrogant Nintendo making mistakes again. The Switch 2 is on the pulse of what gamers want, but the high price (which still may go up) shows Nintendo isn't reading the room on what consumers (in a questionable economy) want. Poor communication post-Switch 2 Direct made it worse, which led to bad press and even fake news about the new platform. They knew people wouldn't like the price situation which is why they didn't announce the prices in the Switch 2 Direct. They knew the tariffs were gonna be a factor, but even with all their hundreds of new hires; probably working in NOA retailing, marketing and PR, they still waited way too long to address it! They knew this, but didn't respond properly or timely which is still leading to misinformation with the common man about Switch 2. Why? The same reason for thinking endless growth and too big to fail, same reason they haven't lowered the price of Switch 1 hardware/software and pricing Switch 2 the way they did: Arrogance!
I love Nintendo and to be honest I don't think $449 for Switch 2 is too bad, but I think $79 for Mario Kart World rubs people the wrong way. I'm talking real people, not just people ready with pitchforks on YouTube (as they always are) quick to jump to conclusions that Nintendo is evil, greedy, killing physical media and murdering your parents. Real people see past the BS headlines and know things are just going up in price...but they also see that Nintendo arrogance with said pricing and dodgy communication post-Switch 2 Direct. A lot of these real people will be turned off by this and if Nintendo doesn't get their finger back on the pulse of these people to see they're not happy with it, their arrogance will continue at the detriment of Switch 2.
Best case scenario: Nintendo isn't affected much by tariffs as Japan, Vietnam and other countries where Switch 2 is made are quick to work with the USA. As the reciprocal tariffs were announced last week, Vietnam was the first to drop their tariffs on USA imports to 0% and come to the negotiation table for a better trade deal (which was the point of the reciprocal tariffs). As I write this (4.9.2025), President Trump announced a 90 day pause on implementing the full reciprocal tariffs on countries who are willing to work out a better deal. This gives Nintendo time to re-open USA pre-orders for Switch 2 and allow for a healthy Switch 2 launch. Along this way Nintendo should hopefully see that Switch 2 pricing (especially $79 for Mario Kart World) is seen as a negative and lose the arrogance when they do the April 17TH Mario Kart World Direct...although that's probably already pre-recorded.
Prices probably won't go down for anything, but if the arrogance continues at the company level they could announce a price increase due to tariffs, blame Trump (without saying so) then announce $20 paid DLC at the Mario Kart World Direct...learning nothing! If they "read the room" they would communicate plans better (use the Nintendo Today app), eat any tariff costs that could come (they can afford it), say the first 2yrs of Mario Kart World DLC is free in it's Direct and throw in the Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour for free to NSO members/early adopters!
This section within future speculation is divided with dashes as I assess just the post-Switch 2 Direct/tariff/old arrogance situation separate from the rest of the Switch 2 speculation.
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Just putting it in a regular post here to back up how I was feeling at the time and to wipe it from my main Nintendo AGENDA page. It's been over a month since that all went down and while I still have valid concerns I think it's calmed down with the more reasonable people.
I've backed up a lot of commentary/opinions in blog posts when it's come to Switch 2 'cos I don't wanna clutter up my main Nintendo AGENDA page, yet I don't just want to erase all I wrote in those moments in time...maybe in part to have something to call back to after things play out more and also to see how off I may be when I have a knee-jerk reaction to things that matter less a month later.
While I (and many others) still have valid concerns on how Nintendo handled things Post-Switch 2 Direct, much of the dust has settled and most people fall into 2 categories:
<gonna buy it anyways> or <shit on Nintendo>
and while I'm a Nintendo fanboy and am still gonna buy it it anyways, I'd be a total shill if I didn't point out concerns I have for the company's future going into this next generation. Those concerns are:
-hiring too many people (and, for what?)-
-worry that many of these new hires are NOA DEI identity politics box-checking-
-NOA doubling-down on DEI, bunch of anti-American & anti-Trumpers-
-potentially blaming tariffs (Trump) for higher prices as an easy excuse-
-piss-poor communication, especially Post-Switch 2 Direct-
-NCL devs chasing the clout of the industwy-
-arrogantly over-valuing their output-
-pricing themselves out of the lower-end (budget) market-
-leaving themselves vulnerable to lower-end disruption-
All that said, besides those picking two extreme sides, things have calmed down for most reasonable people when it comes to Nintendo/Switch 2...I'm now leaving this discussion to talk about more constructive speculation to continue with less reactionary thoughts/speculation back on my main Nintendo AGENDA page...
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Here's a third post in a row here on my Blogger since a lot of what I'll say here will be moot in a few months and would thusly be deleted from the future speculation section of my main Nintendo AGENDA page.
This will be about the timing of Switch 2 pricing & release thoughts I have in this moment in time after the first-look trailer. I have a timeline on my main Nintendo AGENDA page discussing an order of events of the transition from Switch 1 to Switch 2, but I'm putting this here since it's very relevant to the Switch 2 price & release. Here's the timeline:
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-confirm backwards compatibility::CHECK (2024)-
-give it a clear name::CHECK (JANUARY)-
-continue current Switch support::*rumored* Switch 1 Direct (FEBRUARY)-
-bring back "Nintendo Selects" budgeted games::??? (MARCH)-
-lower current Switch price::??? (MARCH)-
-Switch 2 Direct::(APRIL)-
-Switch 2 Experience::(APRIL to JUNE)-
-Switch 2 Launch::(JUNE?)
-GameBoy-to-GameBoy-Color-like transition*::???-
-patch certain Switch 1 games with improvements on Switch 2::???-
-budget "Switch Jr." console**::???-
*ie: Switch 1 games that work on the old Switch but have enhancements on Switch 2
**see my "SWITCH HOME" idea below (on the main Nintendo AGENDA page)
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So if Switch (according to leaks & rumors) has been ready for a while, why wait so long to roll it out? Besides getting everything ready and the marketing ramp-up there's a possibility that they wanna pad the timing (well after 2024 holidays) of a potential budgeting of Switch 1 games & hardware:
$50 - $60 select games to $30 - $40
Switch OLED to $300
Switch Lite to $150
Switch to $250
This leaves more ($100 difference) padding for a base Switch 2 at $400.
I say potential, though...since Nintendo may be aiming for a higher Switch 2 launch price leaving less room for lowering Switch 1 game & hardware prices. And with $100 of padding between generations, a base Switch 2 may start at $450...which could be a problem?
Either way if the rumored Switch 1 Direct in February is true then they plan to transition Switch 1 out strong is higher...even higher if they couple new games with a lower software & hardware prices, though!
My above timeline was to reflect that Nintendo should continue to support Switch 1 going into Switch 2 so as to instill brand confidence by giving the original Switch a strong send-off.
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The following is what I had on my "Future Speculation" section of my Nintendo AGENDA page. I'm putting it all here as a "moment in time" archive of ideas/speculation I had for Nintendo's next system. A lot of this is now moot since Nintendo has started to officially reveal more about the system. Check my Nintendo AGENDA page for more up-to-date speculation.
The other sections in my Nintendo Philosophy pointed out where Nintendo has done things right in "The Switch Effect" but also the dangers that came before then...namely Nintendo spreading itself too thin. The main advantage of the Switch is that it combined home & portable hardware & software...but the danger in that is transitioning to what's next...in the past they could lean on an established home console when launching a new portable console and vice versa...not anymore!
All eggs in one basket arguments aside, I do think Nintendo has more strength outside of video games today (through entertainment media, licensed products, etc.) than in the past so the risk is lessened. Spreading themselves too thin can happen if they lose balance in supporting the current Switch with the next Switch. You don't wanna brickwall the current Switch nor do you wanna use it as a safety net too much. You wanna carry over Switch support/success to the next Switch but you have to communicate that it IS the next Switch whilst not abandoning the current Switch too soon. Nintendo will be competing with themselves just as much as their outside competition, but if balanced properly that can actually be a profitable venture. Continuing the current Switch alongside the next Switch gives Nintendo two revenue streams and consumers more options by having low-end and high-end systems. It's gotta be made clear that while they are a family of similar hardware, they are also separate generations so there has to be good communication to convince customers to "swim upstream" and upgrade. The danger is if not enough of the market moves to the next Switch quick enough to convince outside publishers to go where the marketshare is...but I don't think that will be too much of a problem to convince buyers and publishers since there is a big generational leap between the two systems.
President Furukawa has already expressed that they plan to communicate properly through the transition as he admits that is a danger for them. The next Switch will be the first platform he will launch as President...to note, Furukawa has been described as a business-focused leader and it shows. Being business focused would hopefully mean he aims to repeat and improve on the current Switch by making money doing what consumers want instead of seeing this as a personal idea/creative vision. Nothing wrong with creativity or Nintendo's own personal touches...as long as it lines up with what customers actually want!
I see what most reasonable Nintendo customers want: a better Switch with backwards compatibility, more power and more current games. Doable, if Nintendo is also being reasonable. Keep the Switch name, the brand is still fresh with people and don't create more problems by trying to be too different. Add those Nintendo touches but not at the detriment of what people want.
While I don't wanna stick to conventional revolution/evolution thinking in regards to what Nintendo would do next, I don't think they'll aim to re-invent their next hardware business...just take what they got and make it better. More power, improved parts and added features would already make it better. The real value in the current Switch isn't just the hardware or software itself...but how long it's lasted on the market. A market that has been hit by bad world events and bad macroeconomics, consumers in a bullish thrifty economy appreciate a product that lasts longer and is supported for longer. Game consoles are kind of like a committed investment and that's even more important these days in this questionable economic climate.
So before Nintendo goes all out with the next Switch they should really assure current Switch owners with more support. This should help in the transition and building brand trust, especially if they keep the Switch name and Switch BC. Beyond that they should, in this order:
-communicate clearly (and soon) that current Switch software will work (maybe even with improvements) on the next Switch*-
-give the name of the console (which should include Switch branding) to assure it'll continue the established 8yrs of quality the current Switch has given us**-
-bring back their budget "Nintendo Selects" line for Switch's older software-
-continue to support the current Switch with smaller titles well after the next Switch launches since those titles will also work on it-
-have a GameBoy to GameBoy Color-like "cross-gen" transition having new software that works on the old Switch but has improvements on the new Switch-
-go back through some of the old Switch hit software and offer patches to make them look/run better on the next Switch-
-maybe even introduce a Switch Home mini console? (without a screen, battery or dock they could make it a super budget console)***-
*UPDATE: CHECK, Nintendo has confirmed Switch software will be playable on the next system. This has to mean both digital eshop software and physical game cards.
**UPDATE: All rumors & leaks point to the next system being named "Switch 2" so there's that!
***SWITCH HOME
Such a stand-alone console could be the "junior" to the Switch (like the NES top loader, SNES mini, Wii mini, etc.) but would Nintendo see the Switch Lite as their budget console already? Maybe something like this could be saved for the next Switch a few years in to provide a budget option?
Dealing with the transition without spreading themselves too thin across both generations I'll go into what I think they'll do for the next Switch. They should make it powerful enough to run more current games from 3RD parties as that will also help in the transition since their partners could help fill in the gaps while Nintendo makes new games for the next Switch. It should also be powerful enough to give it a long lifespan even in the wake of what the competition may do. Diminishing returns comes into play here as I don't think the mass consumer believe that games look/perform that much better from PS4 to PS5. Maybe take power scaling to the next level having different performance settings for: portable, docked & unlocked/over-clocked modes.
The system should have more storage, but even better would be that the next Switch physical software cards would have a much higher capacity so you won't have to use as much of the built-in memory or download too much. We now know through leaks that the Switch 2 will have a micro SD slot that takes micro SD Express cards which will not only grow to higher capacity but will also have speeds comparable to SSD's. I would think that they made the same important advancements in their Switch 2 game cards since more current games will require more space & speed, but we'll have to see if that's the case.
A lot of things have already leaked and the reveal could literally be this week! I've revised this future speculation section just today, January 15TH 2025. I will write more here once we get that first official look at the Switch 2.
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