Been thinking about it recently, and I honestly feel that the Switch is probably the perfect console form factor. Obviously, physical specifications can be improved (faster processor, more battery life), but in terms of the form factor itself, it’s so balanced in the way you can play it on a big screen and handheld
I don’t think Nintendo would ever move away from this model, but thinking ahead (even after a potential Switch 2), how could Nintendo evolve beyond this type of form factor? Or is this perhaps the peak of this type of design and we’re just getting improved specs/minor ergonomic changes from here on out (which I’d be totally fine with)?
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The handheld/console hybrid has been Nintendo’s dream for a long time. They even merged their handheld and console development teams a few years back, so I can’t see them abandoning the formula.
The only way I can see iterating on the Switch design is by dropping the dock in favor of a tv dongle to connect and stream wirelessly. This could allow for asymmetrical gameplay much like the WiiU (and would open the door to WiiU ports).
Wireless dock is a great idea.
I hadn’t considered a wireless dock, but that would actually be amazing. Either allowing the Switch to connect to a screen alone, or act like the Wii U gamepad. I’d even go a step further in that case and suggest that they remove the joycon element and focus more on an ergonomic all-in-one gamepad. Basically the Wii U but with the ability to play fully handheld if you want.
Battery would be an issue of you mainly play on TV. I liked the WiiU but hated that I needed to separately wire the gamepad on longer sessions
The WiiU was a huge failure, why try again?
The Nintendo Switch sold 3.25 million units last quarter, bringing the console’s total sales to over 114.33 million. In terms of lifetime sales, the Wii U sold 13.54 million units and the standard Wii hit a total of 101.6 million consoles sold.
Aka, ~100 million customers bought something else that generation.
There are a ton of reasons why the Wii U failed. But I’m suggesting something closer to the Switch. Basically a beefier Switch lite with an option to remotely dock. It would do exactly what the Switch currently does but in a more convenient way. What makes you think that would fail?
My main gripe and reason to not purchase would be the lack of removable components. And a fatter switch without removable components sounds like a WiiU without the optical drive or offloaded processor unit.
I think the sales numbers of Switch units for 2022 are compelling. It demonstrates how others feel about an integrated device from Nintendo.
2.6 million lites sold vs 15.3 million joycon enabled switches (6.1 standard, 9.2 oled)
(Also the dock is great for charging)
The Switch, with its ability to play on a screen or a handheld, is exactly what I’ve been wanting for 20+ years.
Nintendo has nailed it. In future iterations I’d like to see improved specs and ergonomic changes as you and other posters have mentioned. That’s about it.
A direction they could go is VR. I have a Quest 2 and I really enjoy it. It’s possible Nintendo could enter that space. But they don’t have any need to and I don’t want to see them to.
Yeah let’s hold off on the next console Nintendo. I just got a switch OLED so let me enjoy it please.
No it’s not, I really don’t like the flimsy joycon slide locking mechanism. Every time I played handheld mode I have to wiggle or take it out then in again to get past the controller check.
I wish they have a non-lite version that can also dock and play games like ring fit with extra pair of joycons. Basically steam deck ish but from Nintendo.
Given the universal issues with stick drift these days, I would be extremely frustrated if a $300+ console came with a set of irreplaceable controllers.
Welp make them easy to repair then? Wouldn’t that make more sense? Cause stick have actual wear/tear issue that aligns with manufacturer QA threshold, there is no vender can test and provide 100% guaranteed life span.
idk why you’re getting downvoted, it’s true. The joycon are awful and the slide locking mechanism is super fragile. I have to slide and unslide my joycon a lot while playing in bed.
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I’ve never had this much trouble from a Nintendo console. Don’t get me wrong I love the switch, but the controllers are broken. I know Nintendo fixes them for free but doesn’t change the fact they are super broken. Playing TOTK with drift is garbage.
True, the Joy-Cons do have the notorious drift issue, but that’s not really a form factor issue. Improvements in form factor can help fix the issue, most importantly an increase in size to fit all the components in comfortably, but the source of the issue wasn’t the form factor of the Joy-Cons.
Though yeah, I would look at primarily making the Joy-Cons, or at least the grip they come with, bigger to actually account for the hands of a person above the age of 8. We know, Nintendo, you mainly think of video games as children’s toys, but you may want to look at gamer demographics, even on your own consoles, again. They don’t need to make them too much bigger, but at least big enough to not cramp a person’s fingers trying to use a single Joy-Con turned on its side.
Completely agree with the size issue
This is why you should support Right to Repair!
At our shop, I replaced the sticks in quite a few sets of joycons, and they’re also not difficult to replace yourself.
IIRC we sources replacements from iFixit, but we also sourced a lot of parts from MobileDefenders and MobileSentrix.
I picked up some hall effect joysticks replacements and they are lovely. Would highly recommend them to anyone to elimite drift once and for all
I picked up some hall effect joysticks replacements and they are lovely. Would highly recommend them to anyone to elimite drift once and for all
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Steam Deck and ROG Ally are both dockable, but don’t have removable controllers. I feel like they should go that route, and provide something that’s Pro Controller-ish in the box. Will that make it more expensive? Sure, but both of those other consoles are much more expensive, depending on the configuration.
I like this approach. I bought a gaming laptop after Stadia died because I wanted the powerful portability. What I found, however, was that it really wasn’t that portable. I ended up snagging the ROG Ally and been growing my Steam library and really enjoying the experience. I have 2 Xbox controllers and an Xbox wireless dongle that I used with my gaming laptop, and just tried the “docked” experience this morning playing Kingdom Hearts and it worked great. I’m a bit fan of this form factor.
Thicker first party joy cons suitable for adult hands. Hall effect. DLSS 4k upscaling in the dock.
I don’t think they should reinvent the wheel this time around. I’d say, upgrade the tech, upgrade the ergonomics and make a dock that actually improves the graphics when connected to a tv.
I dunno. Is that enough?
Something like a mix of the Switch and Wii U where the console can wirelessly connect to the tv in some way but the problem is that might require both the handheld and the dock to be a console so that’ll make it the price of two consoles.
The odd idea would be a Nintendo TV specifically built for this console so that the tv is a dock so the console and wired controls are connected to the tv and it can connect wirelessly to the console for a Wii U like experience
It’ll probably involve some form of AR/VR.
I dont think nintendo wants to r&d and develop a vr library. Valve is in the most prime spot for it, with its upcoming likely vr headset, and they may push “portable vr” down the line when a steam deck 2 starts to have enough horsepower for most typical vr games that isnt like eve(wear steam deck in a backpack). They already have the existing library.
I just hope they add more features in the software, like the notes app that the 3ds had would be awesome and a browser etc
I don’t think it will happen in the near future, but something similar to a Chromecast could eventually become a new form factor. Think something like the current Switch, but it would be split into 3 parts: the Joycons, the tablet screen and the tablet processor unit (the Chromecast-like thing). By default they all come attached to each other (but not hanging like Chromecast, more like an cartridge-like thing that is inserted into the tablet), but you can detach them all, leave the screen at your home and bring only the processor and Joycons with you, then connect the processor to your phone or some other screen to play it.
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So the thing with handheld is, there’s only so much power you can put into it before it becomes too hot to hold and/or the cooling mechanism becomes very loud.
For me, provided you want to keep the same form factor, the solution is to put extra hardware in the dock, to boost the power when you don’t need to worry as much about console temperature or noise. You could also make the console a bit thicker for more hardware space, look at things like the Steam Deck for example.
That said, I think the ideal solution would be a 3 model system, with a handheld, a switchable, and a docked models.
The 3ds but with modern performance and higher resolution. single screen docked mode handling similar to wiiu games. swappable controllers but secure and not wobbly. Hall effect sticks stock. Also all consoles should add back paddles that aren’t just face remaps but actual unique buttons recognized in game.
Nintendo likes to come out of left field with some weird shit sometimes. Unfortunately they’re also usually not on par with current consoles even when released. They like to play it safe in respect to specifications while coming up with wild ideas. I do kinda like that they don’t try to go hardcore on the latest and greatest as it does make for a more stable platform that people know how to work with.
