Nintendo’s Next Console Will Reportedly Be Portable Like Switch, Targeting Second Half 2024 Release

Nintendo’s next console will reportedly be portable like the Switch and is targeting a release in the second half of 2024, according to a new report today from VideoGamesChronicle. 

VGC cites “multiple people with knowledge of Nintendo’s next-gen console plans” that reveal Nintendo’s Switch successor is aiming for a release in the second half of next year, to ensure there’s plenty of stock at launch. Nintendo wants to avoid the stock shortages that plagued the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S release for months (and years for some). 

The publication reports that two of its sources suggest the next-generation console will use LCD screens, like those seen on the launch versions of the Switch, rather than the OLED screens used in the Switch OLED models. The use of LCD reduces costs, VGC writes, in light of the likely need for significantly more storage than what’s in the Switch, which will increase costs. 

VGC’s sources also suggest Nintendo’s next console will be playable on the go, similar to the Switch’s console-handheld hybrid nature. Its sources also say the console will continue using physical cartridges like the Switch, although it’s unclear if this console will be backwards compatible with the Switch.

In February of last year, Nintendo said the Switch was in the middle of its lifecycle, meaning that while a new Nintendo console might launch next year, the company might not necessarily abandon the Switch any time soon. However, if Nintendo continues support of the Switch alongside a next-gen console, it’s unclear how that will work as, presumably, this new console will be a good bit more powerful than the Switch. 

Regardless of how Nintendo approaches Switch support following the release of a new console and backwards compatibility, the Super Mario Bros. maker likely wants to convert the Switch’s massive install base into its following product. 

[Source: VideoGamesChronicle]

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