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[maxcriden]

• We don't know if Sakurai's even involved with the port (assuming that the port is happening).
• Tying back into my eSports mention, Nintendo likely wants to replace the Wii U in the competitive community as soon as possible. Hard to do that if they release the Switch version too close to EVO, forcing them to stay on the Wii U. Of course, if that "Nintendo's pushing for eSports" rumor isn't true, disregard this bulletpoint entirely.
• As mentioned earlier, Smash 4 is still Nintendo's biggest Amiibo-seller. And while yes, there are other Amiibo-compatible games in the Switch's library (MK8, Splatoon, BotW), Smash 4 is still the biggest one of the lot that supports Amiibos (namely due to its large cast).

I agree with you, Neoxon. If Nintendo can get Smash ready day one, that will unequivocally be to their significant advantage. It can only benefit them to have Smash and its amiibo available. Also from the eSports perspective as you mentioned as a possibility. Also, it's just a big seller. Though, OTOH, if we forget amiibo, on Wii U alone MK8 and Splatoon are the bigger titles, so if Nintendo has other amiibo plans or wants to make a separate splash for Smash and amiibo or doesn't want three Wii U ports/all three of those major titles at launch, perhaps then Smash wouldn't be as likely to be at launch as one or both of MK and Splatoon. (And then Splatoon also is getting bigger in eSports I believe, though certainly not to the Smash level.)

Though, Smash's combined sales on 3DS and Wii U do push it past Splatoon (though it's still been the combined 22M sales of MK7/8). Edit: it was helpfully pointed out to me below that I have the #s wrong here, Smash actually did better than Splatoon on Wii U alone. So, there are various arguments then to be made for Splatoon being launched ahead of Smash or the other way around -- is it better to launch the biggest of the three (MK) and least big but still hugely popular (Splatoon) together to give Smash plenty of breathing room for its own launch? Or bigger to lead with the heaviest hitter or two? Or launch each of the three individually, with only one of them at launch? Maybe Nintendo would feel it's likelier to get people to buy more amiibos alongside Smash specifically not on launch day when they're also buying new HW vs. alongside a separate Smash release when they're maybe only buying the game otherwise?

Additionally, I wonder if we will see Mario Kart amiibo at launch, especially if Smash does not make launch. They surely want to get people to buy a lot of amiibos when they go to the store to buy Switch. Smash are the most popular amiibo though so no question those would be the ideal bet, and I wonder if there is realistically shelf space for both. Maybe just a limited line of MK amiibo, then. I wonder how often we will see amiibos packed-in with retail titles, also. I imagine quite a bit on the larger titles.

 

[KingSnake]

Is it bad I'm scared they might frontload launch a bit too much, and I won't have time to play all the games I want to? I mean, Zelda alone feels like it'll be a huge time investment, and I don't have the free time I used to.

I'm hoping the launch is a bit lighter than normal and Nintendo instead spreads out their releases evenly throughout the year. I don't want to see a three or four month drought right after release day.

I don't understand why this has to be either/or. Wii U hasn't got any relevant game since more than a year. 3ds gets a lot of ports/cheap spin-off. For first time in history all the big development teams from Nintendo plus Retro and Monolith Soft are focused on one platform since more than a year. I don't understand how under these conditions Nintendo couldn't have both a strong launch and enough releases for the rest of the year. If they can't do that then what does this say about the Switch support for the rest of its life?

 

[OrbitalBeard]

I don't understand why this has to be either/or. Wii U hasn't got any relevant game since more than a year. 3ds gets a lot of ports/cheap spin-off. For first time in history all the big development teams from Nintendo plus Retro and Monolith Soft are focused on one platform. I don't understand how under these conditions Nintendo couldn't have both a strong launch and enough releases for the rest of the year. If they can't do that then what does this say about the Switch support for the rest of its life?

Well, I think a light launch lineup would probably still include three or four Nintendo-published titles (at least one being an "enhanced" Wii U remaster), plus a handful of third party releases.

I don't believe it would say all that much about Switch's long-term support. I personally think it would be better to receive a few Nintendo games at launch, followed by a continuous stream of first party software every couple months, instead of the traditional post-launch drought that plagues nearly every console.

There will of course be more. I just doubt there will be another big first party AAA title aside from Zelda and whatever Wii U ports/enhanced editions hit at launch.

Anything huge they'll save for May/June to have a big summer game, with the new Mario as the big holiday title.

But yeah, I'm sure we'll some some smaller games at launch that round out the lineup without taking sales away from Zelda and the ports, while also leaving bigger games to trickle out so there's not a post launch drought like the Wii and Wii U had (and pretty much all their consoles from N64 on).

Well, Wii had Wii Sports in addition to Zelda and that ended up being a pretty huge release. I don't think Nintendo is going to bank solely on Zelda. They're going to publish at least one large title at launch that is wholly exclusive to the platform.

 

[Deleted member 752119]

There absolutely will be more from Nintendo on day one. It's quite possible we'll get a new IP, as Nintendo has done so with every new-gen hardware launch since Wii.

There will of course be more. I just doubt there will be another big first party AAA title aside from Zelda and whatever Wii U ports/enhanced editions hit at launch.

Anything huge they'll save for May/June to have a big summer game, with the new Mario as the big holiday title.

But yeah, I'm sure we'll some some smaller games at launch that round out the lineup without taking sales away from Zelda and the ports, while also leaving bigger games to trickle out so there's not a post launch drought like the Wii and Wii U had (and pretty much all their consoles from N64 on).

I don't understand why this has to be either/or. Wii U hasn't got any relevant game since more than a year. 3ds gets a lot of ports/cheap spin-off. For first time in history all the big development teams from Nintendo plus Retro and Monolith Soft are focused on one platform since more than a year. I don't understand how under these conditions Nintendo couldn't have both a strong launch and enough releases for the rest of the year. If they can't do that then what does this say about the Switch support for the rest of its life?

Too many good, big budget games at once is a bad thing as some will get lost in the shuffle and not sell as well as they would have. For instance, we'll probably see that this fall with all the big FPS games coming out so close. Some (TF2 being most likely) will probably under perform as people are busy playing whichever game(s) they bought.

So you don't want droughts, but you don't want to put out a bunch of games you need to sell big to make profit out at the same time either. Especially if people are sucked into Zelda for a couple of months, and by the time they're done they pick up the current hot release and forget about the other launch titles. That's very common outside of the hardcore who buy everything regardless of whether they have time to play it. Backlogs are nonexistent outside of enthusiast on sites like these as most people just buy games to play as soon as they get home from the store (or the download finishes).

 

[jmizzal]

Nintendo fans should be happy.

We pretty much get two E3's next year!

I wanted to say as part of my predictions I believe Sonic Mania will officially be announced at January 12.

I don't expect full reveals for all the upcoming games in January because E3 is right around the corner in June. I believe 3D Mario and Retros game will be fully unveiled at E3 2017.

Yea some games will be teased like the Jan WiiU direct, and then shown off fully at E3. the main games that will be shown off fully are the launch games and games up to Spring

 

[KingSnake]

Well, I think a light launch lineup would probably still include three or four Nintendo-published titles (at least one being an "enhanced" Wii U remaster), plus a handful of third party releases.

I don't think it would see all that much about Switch's long-term support. I personally think it would be better to receive a few Nintendo games at launch, followed by a continuous stream of first party software every couple months, instead of the traditional post-launch drought that plagues nearly every console.

But this is my point. The whole excuse for the Wii U's awful line-up post Splatoon was that Nintendo teams are focused on NX's launch.

A console's launch line-up is also very important for the general perception about the console and can drive-up the sales in the first months. A console that starts on the wrong foot in sales is more difficult to be put on the right track.

 

[N.Grim]

I agree with you, Neoxon. If Nintendo can get Smash ready day one, that will unequivocally be to their significant advantage. It can only benefit them to have Smash and its amiibo available. Also from the eSports perspective as you mentioned as a possibility. Also, it's just a big seller. Though, OTOH, if we forget amiibo, on Wii U alone MK8 and Splatoon are the bigger titles, so if Nintendo has other amiibo plans or wants to make a separate splash for Smash and amiibo or doesn't want three Wii U ports/all three of those major titles at launch, perhaps then Smash wouldn't be as likely to be at launch as one or both of MK and Splatoon. (And then Splatoon also is getting bigger in eSports I believe, though certainly not to the Smash level.)

Though, Smash's combined sales on 3DS and Wii U do push it past Splatoon (though it's still been the combined 22M sales of MK7/8).

I think Smash has sold more than Splatoon even if we consider only the Wii U version

 

[OrbitalBeard]

But this is my point. The whole excuse for the Wii U's awful line-up post Splatoon was that Nintendo teams are focused on NX's launch.

A console's launch line-up is also very important for the general perception about the console and can drive-up the sales in the first months. A console that starts on the wrong foot in sales is more difficult to be put on the right track.

You can have a great launch perception with three or four first party releases. Any more than that and you start risking exposure for certain titles and cannibalization.

Zelda + Wii U remaster + 1 or 2 Switch exclusives seems like a pretty solid first party launch lineup. After that, start rolling out new releases on a regular basis every month or two until the fall, when you have a second launch of sorts with three or four huge releases, like 3D Mario.

 

[maxcriden]

Nintendo's talk about the Switch not "replacing" the 3DS is basically marketing for, "please buy stuff this November!"

I agree with everything you wrote in this post. I do think additionally though that the talk about Switch not replacing 3DS is also in part to save face if Switch fails so they can reasonably say they planned all along for a new DS to come out.

Is it bad I'm scared they might frontload launch a bit too much, and I won't have time to play all the games I want to? I mean, Zelda alone feels like it'll be a huge time investment, and I don't have the free time I used to.

Zelda alone will be a big time investment as you said. I doubt my wife and I will have the free time to beat it within three months of release, so I feel your pain. And then there's Yooka-Laylee, slated for the same month, and I really want to play that also. So, I guess I would just say as you get busier just value very much the gaming time you do get because in my experience it can be very limited sometimes. I could really use an extra couple free hours every day....

I have no problem with one Wii U remaster at launch. Any more though and I think it could hurt early perception of the system a bit.

I have a similar concern. I do think they can ameliorate any such effect by having at least one other non-port title at launch, which seems hopefully to be a given; plus, it's still unclear if MK or Splatoon will be ports. For me MK will be not a port if it has at least...8? 12? new courses, and Splatoon will be not a port if it has at least 8 new maps, a significant new mechanic and a complete new SP mode. With Smash I wouldn't really know what the criteria for a port vs. sequel would be since I don't play the game and am not as familiar with it. I could see two of those three games at launch. I would be really surprised to see all three.

I doubt they well--unless you didn't have a Wii U anyway. They need Zelda to sell, so I'm guessing it will mostly just be that, plus some combo of Mario Kart/Splatoon/Smash ports/enhanced editions/maybe sequel (but I doubt it) for Splatoon.

I hear ya. On the bright side, Zelda and major Nintendo titles tend to be evergreen sellers and not necessarily front-loaded, so (a) Zelda hopefully will steal the show no matter what, as its E3 showing hopefully indicates and (b) its success won't be contingent on launch sales alone, so I do think it will be the crown jewel of the launch but as others said at least one non-port as well, possibly including one new IP (or Mario Sports Mix, though, I'm really not convinced that has the widespread appeal of a Wii Sports or a Mario Kart). I agree with you that it's entirely possible that none of the MK, Splatoon and Smash games will be sequels. Incidentally, I believe there was an Emily Rogers rumor several months ago pointing to several Wii U ports for Switch; that seems to further indicate these would be likelier to be ports/enhanced editions than sequels.

There absolutely will be more from Nintendo on day one. It's quite possible we'll get a new IP, as Nintendo has done so with every new-gen hardware launch since Wii.

Except 3DS But I agree with you.

I don't understand why this has to be either/or. Wii U hasn't got any relevant game since more than a year. 3ds gets a lot of ports/cheap spin-off. For first time in history all the big development teams from Nintendo plus Retro and Monolith Soft are focused on one platform. I don't understand how under these conditions Nintendo couldn't have both a strong launch and enough releases for the rest of the year. If they can't do that then what does this say about the Switch support for the rest of its life?

I completely agree. We need a strong launch and several paced releases thereafter.

 

[Deleted member 752119]

But this is my point. The whole excuse for the Wii U's awful line-up post Splatoon was that Nintendo teams are focused on NX's launch.

A console's launch line-up is also very important for the general perception about the console and can drive-up the sales in the first months. A console that starts on the wrong foot in sales is more difficult to be put on the right track.

To add to my above post about not wanting to sabotage sales of big budget games by putting to many out at once...

It's also the case that launch units sell well period. The PS4 and Xbox 1 had pretty shitty launch lineups and still sold out. Even the Wii U sold well at launch. It was the post launch drought that hurt the Wii U, and to some extent the X1. Sony did a good job of having steady releases post launch with stuff like Infamous and Bloodborne etc. coming out a few months later.

Nintendo has a huge boon in having a hugely hyped Zelda game there day one, on top of a bunch of diehard fans who'll buy up the launch units themselves. They can easily bolster the lineup with the Wii U ports that both make it easier for Wii U owners still playing those games to move on, and appeal to the legions of gamers and lapsed Nintendo fans who never got a Wii U.

The real key will be what games they can put out in April-September leading up to the holiday game season that they also need to be strong (and have Mario to headline).

So if the other big games they probably have ready or close to ready like Pikmin 4, Retro's new IP would be smart to start putting out one a month a so from April on to keep sales going. Along with all the smaller titles they hopefully have coming out as well.

 

[maxcriden]

I think Smash has sold more than Splatoon even if we consider only the Wii U version

Oh, I can't read. You're totally right. They are close, but I misread this list previously XD Sorry! Thanks for the correction.

3DS software (Jul-Sep 2016)

Pokémon Omega Ruby / Alpha Sapphire - 0,94m / 13,18m (+135,00%)
Pokémon X / Y - 0,66m / 15,64m (+135,71%)
Mario Kart 7 - 0,38m / 13,94m (+26,67%)
Animal Crossing: New Leaf - 0,22m / 10,34m (+100,00%)
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D - 0,22m / 4,52m (-15,38%)
New Super Mario Bros. 2 - 0,21m / 10,60m (+50,00%)
Tomodachi Life - 0,21m / 5,30m (+90,91%)
Super Mario 3D Land - 0,17m / 10,98m (+112,50%)
Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon - 0,15m / 5,03m (+150,00%)
Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS - 0,12m / 8,35m (+9,09%)


Wii U software (Jul-Sep 2016)

Mario Kart 8 - 0,30m / 8,00m (+50,00%)
Super Mario 3D World - 0,18m / 5,19m (-5,26%)
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD - 0,16m / 1,98m (+60,00%)
Splatoon - 0,14m / 4,57m (-6,67%)
Mario Party 10 - 0,13m / 1,94m (+160,00%)
New Super Mario Bros. U - 0,11m / 5,45m (-26,67%)
New Super Luigi U - 0,10m / 2,74m (-33,33%)
Super Smash Bros. for Wii U - 0,09m / 4,99m (-10,00%)
Super Mario Maker - 0,08m / 3,73m (-38,46%)
Nintendo Land - 0,03m / 5,13m (+0,00%)

 

[OrbitalBeard]

Except 3DS But I agree with you.

Steel Diver.

 

[KingSnake]

You can have a great launch perception with three or four first party releases. Any more than that and you start risking exposure for certain titles and cannibalization.

Zelda + Wii U remaster + 1 or 2 Switch exclusives seems like a pretty solid first party launch lineup. After that, start rolling out new releases on a regular basis every month or two until the fall, when you have a second launch of sorts with three or four huge releases, like 3D Mario.

Zelda + Wii U remaster + 2 Switch exclusives should be enough, yes. I think that Wii U games (Zelda + remasters) must not outnumber the exclusives to maintain the perception about it being a fresh new system. Also the next release (April) should be something new. May can be another remaster.

 

[OrbitalBeard]

Zelda + Wii U remaster + 2 Switch exclusives should be enough, yes. I think that Wii U games (Zelda + remasters) must not outnumber the exclusives to maintain the perception about it being a fresh new system. Also the next release (April) should be something new. May can be another remaster.

I can get behind this and I completely agree the system needs a couple first party Switch exclusives on day one.

 

[maxcriden]

Well, I think a light launch lineup would probably still include three or four Nintendo-published titles (at least one being an "enhanced" Wii U remaster), plus a handful of third party releases.

FWIW, I don't think what you're describing would necessarily be a particularly light launch. It would be on the stronger side of recent Nintendo SW launch line-ups. Edit: saw your and KingSnake's posts above, I see we're all on the same page now.

Steel Diver.

Forgot that one. But it was only in NA!

 

[jmizzal]

Damn dude, it would take over 2 hours to get through all those games. Try cutting 20-25 games off that list.

Lol all games wont be shown off, maybe in a montage trailer those are just want I expect to be announced for Switch

That's a good list. But I don't think they show Hyrule Warriors 2, since they want the focus on Zelda.

I don't think Mario maker comes to Switch until 2018. They will want focus on new Mario game.

I don't think Switch will be able to run watchdogs 2. I would bet on either For Honor, south Park, or RS6 as their serious game for Switch.

Have you seen Watch_Dogs 2? It looks graphically less impressive then Watch_Dogs on PC, and WiiU ran Watch_Dogs pretty good

 

[Skittzo0413]

I agree with everything you wrote in this post. I do think additionally though that the talk about Switch not replacing 3DS is also in part to save face if Switch fails so they can reasonably say they planned all along for a new DS to come out.

I kinda doubt that... If the Switch fails a new DS product will probably not help Nintendo, they'd need some sort of drastic measure. Such as going all-in on mobile. Ugh I do not want that to happen.

Zelda alone will be a big time investment as you said. I doubt my wife and I will have the free time to beat it within three months of release, so I feel your pain. And then there's Yooka-Laylee, slated for the same month, and I really want to play that also. So, I guess I would just say as you get busier just value very much the gaming time you do get because in my experience it can be very limited sometimes. I could really use an extra couple free hours every day....

The best part of the Switch for me is the ability to play BotW (and similar games) in bed. My wife likes to go to sleep early so if I can play Zelda in bed I get a lot of play time out of that.

But too many games to play will be the best problem we can have with the Switch.

 

[OrbitalBeard]

FWIW, I don't think what you're describing would necessarily be a particularly light launch. It would be on the stronger side of recent Nintendo SW launch line-ups.

From a first party perspective, that's true. I'm honestly not expecting a huge third party launch lineup though, so overall, I'd say it'd be a bit lighter than normal.

(I could be totally wrong about third parties though. Maybe a bunch will show up at release)

Forgot that one. But it was only in NA!

Interesting! I had no idea.

 

[KingSnake]

To add to my above post about not wanting to sabotage sales of big budget games by putting to many out at once...

It's also the case that launch units sell well period. The PS4 and Xbox 1 had pretty shitty launch lineups and still sold out. Even the Wii U sold well at launch. It was the post launch drought that hurt the Wii U, and to some extent the X1. Sony did a good job of having steady releases post launch with stuff like Infamous and Bloodborne etc. coming out a few months later.

Wii U sold well because of holidays. And it sold well for one month. Then it was dead. You don't want that for Switch. You don't want people to wait for October or November to buy a Switch. You need a lot of people to buy it in March and April and May and so on. Not launching during holidays means additional challenges.

And if you understand why people are buying PS4 and Xbone, you will realise that both had a great launch line-up. Hint: most of the 1st party games sold like shit until now.

 

[maxcriden]

Damn dude, it would take over 2 hours to get through all those games. Try cutting 20-25 games off that list.

Lol all games wont be shown off, maybe in a montage trailer those are just want I expect to be announced for Switch

FWIW, I don't think it would necessarily take two hours to get through that list. You only need 1-5 mins each for those third party games and then the first party ones you said would mostly or entirely fit in a regular length Direct. Granted I don't think there will necessarily be all of those announced, but there could be that many first party games at least shown, and then depending how many third party games they have to show they might show a long list indeed. Just my two cents though.

 

[Peltz]

Do you guys think we'll finally hear about Retro's project on January 12th?

 

[WhiteWaterM00se]

I always thought that with Switch, Nintendo would launch with only one Wii U port and mix in the others as time goes on.

Mario kart made sense to me, because it is an esports game if they want it to be. If they added a battle mode or team death match mode. Wow, that could catch on like wildfire.

Mario kart also means you have a "racing" genre at launch so to speak, and a Mario something is at launch.

I think it would be wise for Nintendo to adopt a bi weekly mindset for Switch releases.

If they have enough third party support going forward, stagger releases so at least one thing is coming out every two weeks. Even if it is smaller third party releases.

Edit: after launch of course.

 

[LordKano]

Do you guys think we'll finally hear about Retro's project on January 12th?

It would be worrying if we didn't.

 

[Deleted member 752119]

Wii U sold well because of holidays. And it sold well for one month. Then it was dead. You don't want that for Switch. You don't want people to wait for October or November to buy a Switch. You need a lot of people to buy it in March and April and May and so on. Not launching during holidays means additional challenges.

I agree. I just think it's more important to have a stable slate of releases from launch forward than to have more than 3-5 first party games day one. More than that will get cannibalized by Zelda and any kind of drought will kill momentum as the market will just think it's going to be typical Nintendo with long stretches between major first party releases.

Maybe you're right and they have a ton of games queued up. I'm skeptical as Nintendo, and I guess Japanese developers, tend to have notoriously slow and lengthy development cycles so they probably have less ready to go in terms of major AAA experiences vs niche B tier projects that many would think given the drought on Wii U the past year. I guess they just have smaller teams and/or lesser workaholic/crunch culture than western devs.

 

[TheDinoman]

Do you guys think we'll finally hear about Retro's project on January 12th?

Would hope so, but as we discussed a few pages ago, Nintendo could hold it back just to have something at E3.

At the very least I hope we can get a teaser for the January presentation, then they could do a big blowout at E3.

 

[jmizzal]

MG Rising, Borderlands, and RE 5 are all Nvidia Shield games. Makes sense they could all show up at some point.

I was wondering why people were saying Rising, that makes since, I think MGSV definite could come also

 

[MomoQca]

Do you guys think we'll finally hear about Retro's project on January 12th?

Potentially. They're one of the more likely candidates to show something pretty soon. They have a better chance of showing something more than Intelligent System, Monolith Soft, and Game Freak, IMO.

 

[WhiteWaterM00se]

I haven't seen anyone mention Yooka Laylee, when it's that scheduled for release?

 

[jwj442]

It's also the case that launch units sell well period. The PS4 and Xbox 1 had pretty shitty launch lineups and still sold out. Even the Wii U sold well at launch. It was the post launch drought that hurt the Wii U, and to some extent the X1. Sony did a good job of having steady releases post launch with stuff like Infamous and Bloodborne etc. coming out a few months later.

Nintendo has a huge boon in having a hugely hyped Zelda game there day one, on top of a bunch of diehard fans who'll buy up the launch units themselves. They can easily bolster the lineup with the Wii U ports that both make it easier for Wii U owners still playing those games to move on, and appeal to the legions of gamers and lapsed Nintendo fans who never got a Wii U.

The real key will be what games they can put out in April-September leading up to the holiday game season that they also need to be strong (and have Mario to headline).

For all the Wii U's problems, its post-launch drought was the real death sentence. As initially planned, the early months were going to be pretty good. But with Pikmin 3, Wonderful 101, and even Game and Wario delayed significantly and virtual console coming late, there was no chance at building any real momentum. Then add in the Rayman Legends fiasco, and by then the system's fate was basically sealed. By the time major games finally started coming everyone was thinking about the XBone and PS4 and Nintendo had blown their year head start. If these games had gotten out on time or close to it, it wouldn't have made the system a true success, but it wouldn't have completely fallen off.

Part of it might have been that they needed an emergency software injection to save the 3DS and Wii U ended up being sacrificed with the shifted developer resources.

 

[TheDinoman]

I haven't seen anyone mention Yooka Laylee, when it's that scheduled for release?

Q1 2017

It should be noted that Playtonic is currently working on the Wii U and PC versions of the games in-house. We'll probably see a Switch release down the line.

 

[jmizzal]

Does anyone thinks it is possible, Nintendo announces their own GE Force Now streaming service?

I hope so, I loved using onlive, and PSnow was cool from what I used for a month.

Charge a sub fee and give a month free trial, Nintendo and Nvida will make a lot money off it.

That will also add more games for people and games is what you want on your system, would def help with 3rd party games even if they are some older games, they can add games over time like PSnow. I think they can will eventually add 1st party games too.

 

[Waji]

Potentially. They're one of the more likely candidates to show something pretty soon. They have a better chance of showing something more than Intelligent System, Monolith Soft, and Game Freak, IMO.

Did Soraya Saga retweeted Retro ?
Joking, I see what you meen.

 

[Astral Dog]

We are going to see the Switch 3GB announced on stage :O

 

[WhiteWaterM00se]

Q1 2017

It should be noted that Playtonic is currently working on the Wii U and PC versions of the games in-house. We'll probably see a Switch release down the line.

Do we really believe it is so coming to Wii U?!

 

[Servbot24]

FWIW, I don't think it would necessarily take two hours to get through that list. You only need 1-5 mins each for those third party games and then the first party ones you said would mostly or entirely fit in a regular length Direct. Granted I don't think there will necessarily be all of those announced, but there could be that many first party games at least shown, and then depending how many third party games they have to show they might show a long list indeed. Just my two cents though.

Although it's mathematically possible, I think we've all seen enough press conferences at this point to know that we'll get between 2 and 5 notable new game announcements.

 

[Neoxon]

Do we really believe it is so coming to Wii U?!

Playtonic is working on the Wii U version themselves, so yeah. That doesn't mean that Playtonic won't do a Switch version, but I'm not sure if they'll scrap the Wii U version after putting in so much work on it.

 

[TheDinoman]

Do we really believe it is so coming to Wii U?!

Um, yeah.

A huge portion of their backers for the kickstarter opted for Wii U. That's why they're personally handling the Wii U version in-house alongside the PC version. They're obviously wanting to appeal to the Nintendo fans who have nostalgia for old N64 Rare games like Banjo...which is why they'll probably release it on Switch at some point.

 

[jmizzal]

Battlefront, Overwatch, Destiny, For Honor, South Park, Batman Return to Arkham imo

Battlefront not unrealistic, if EA is gonna port a none sports game it would be something like Battlefront a old game and prob put the DLC in it.

EA abandoned the WiiU but they still had Mass Effect, Madden, Need for Speed and Fifa the first 3 months.

Overwatch is up in the air but it makes sense, Destiny is possible but I expect Destiny 2.

For Honor and South Park def not unrealistic, Ubisoft is prob gonna put out all its games on Switch, samething they did with WiiU.

Batman Return to Arkham makes sense too, WiiU had Arkham City and Arkham Orgins

Its seems like a lot of people posting on we can expect to come to Switch didnt either have a WiiU or dont even know what 3rd party games were on the system

 

[Father_Brain]

It was live-streamed, with English voiceover.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNi6ZbMKh_w

Here's the video of the conference, for those interested.

I stand corrected on that point. Still, it's far from a perfect comparison - that event was announced only a few hours in advance, IIRC, and it was aimed at investors much more so than consumers or gaming press.

It's not impossible or anything, but striking the right balance between Japan-centric and Western-centric content is going to be an interesting challenge. I also wonder if the event will be in English despite the location, simply because of its global significance.

 

[takriel]

Do you guys think we'll finally hear about Retro's project on January 12th?

It's fucking Donkey Kong!

 

[Anth0ny]

nintendo should help playtonic out with yooka laylee promotion. get that switch port done as soon as possible, even market it as the lead console for the game.

then, playtonic, like platinum before them, becomes a close knit third party with nintendo, creating exclusive 3d platformers for the console, including donkey kong 64 2

 

[TheDinoman]

nintendo should help playtonic out with yooka laylee promotion. get that switch port done as soon as possible, even market it as the lead console for the game.

then, playtonic, like platinum before them, becomes a close knit third party with nintendo, creating exclusive 3d platformers for the console, including donkey kong 64 2

I always did thought it'd be interesting if Playtonic could take the reigns of DKC from Retro. A lot of their team consists of many former Rare employees that worked on the original trilogy, with key people like Chris Sutherland and Steve Mayles.

It'd be kinda like seeing Capcom let Hideki Kamiya and Platinum Games work on a new Devil May Cry.

 

[Mr Swine]

Think Nintendo will release Remastered 3DS games like Luigis Mansion 2 or other 3DS games on Switch?

 

[Jurassic Munson]

All I want is a partnership with Valve so that I can play my Steam games on the Switch as well. If I could go from Zelda to Blood Bowl 2 on a mobile device then that would be a dream come true.

I know I won't get that, but I am going to daydream until I am told no.

 

[Reki]

nintendo should help playtonic out with yooka laylee promotion. get that switch port done as soon as possible, even market it as the lead console for the game.

then, playtonic, like platinum before them, becomes a close knit third party with nintendo, creating exclusive 3d platformers for the console, including donkey kong 64 2

What you suggest would be amazing, but Playtonic themselves denied that they were working on a Switch port last month. I still believe a port will happen, but I'm not so sure it will be there for lauch.

 

[Father_Brain]

It's fucking Donkey Kong!

For all the jokes, DKC:TF really is a good encapsulation of some of the worst tendencies of Iwata-era NCL, namely short-term risk aversion at the expense of long-term strategy. Yes, DKCR sold very well on Wii, and thus on paper I'm sure a sequel looked like a much safer bet than, say, a new Western-oriented IP (let alone Metroid Prime 4), but it did absolutely nothing to broaden Wii U's appeal beyond the Mario audience, and any number of Nintendo's Japanese partner studios could have made more or less the same game.

It's obviously too early to evaluate the whole of Switch's first-party lineup, but there are already some encouraging signs in this regard, at least (Splatoon's success, BotW's drastic reinvention of the Zelda franchise, 3D Mario Switch appearing to step back from the bland NSMB-inspired gameplay and aesthetics of recent entries).

 

[Peterc]

We are going to see the Switch 3GB announced on stage :O

Hey i see that you love the switch and hate 4k, can i ask why?

Spoiler

Was checking your last 5 posts

Personally, 4k is good but i would agree with you that it wouldn't bring much different to gaming at the moment. Also, lots of developers wouldn't make enough use of it because it's to much work to make a game for that many multiplatforms.

So the switch is a good alternative and a beast as handheld device(what it actually is) to keep development cost cheap.

 

[Glass Rebel]

Its seems like a lot of people posting on we can expect to come to Switch didnt either have a WiiU or dont even know what 3rd party games were on the system

I had a Wii U, still have it, in fact. I'm simply not as optimistic as you about support from companies that have been burned in the past.

 

[Zalman]

nintendo should help playtonic out with yooka laylee promotion. get that switch port done as soon as possible, even market it as the lead console for the game.

then, playtonic, like platinum before them, becomes a close knit third party with nintendo, creating exclusive 3d platformers for the console, including donkey kong 64 2

I would love that. New 3D Donkey Kong please.

 

[jwj442]

For all the jokes, DKC:TF really is a good encapsulation of some of the worst tendencies of Iwata-era NCL, namely short-term risk aversion at the expense of long-term strategy. Yes, DKCR sold very well on Wii, and thus on paper I'm sure a sequel looked like a much safer bet than, say, a new Western-oriented IP (let alone Metroid Prime 4), but it did absolutely nothing to broaden Wii U's appeal beyond the Mario audience, and any number of Nintendo's Japanese partner studios could have made more or less the same game.

It's obviously too early to evaluate the whole of Switch's first-party lineup, but there are already some encouraging signs in this regard, at least (Splatoon's success, BotW's drastic reinvention of the Zelda franchise, 3D Mario Switch appearing to step back from the bland NSMB-inspired gameplay and aesthetics of recent entries).

The Wii and DS weren't risk-averse. Also Splatoon was under Iwata's watch, and the Switch will be mostly his child for good or ill.

But still, you're right that Nintendo can also be maddeningly conservative at times. Like, say, reusing the same music for four NSMB games in row, or making Nintendoland the capstone of the Wii U presentation (and I like Nintendoland - but still).

I do think Tropical Freeze has a vibrancy and dynamism to the level design (both visuals and gameplay) that wouldn't have been the same without Retro. Still, it probably wasn't the right game for them to make at the time. Nintendo's 2D platformers nowadays do well with established bases, but aren't so good at bringing new people on board.