Anyone would say seeing the tremendous commercial, critical and public success of recent titles such as The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomthat The Nintendo Switch still has a lot of life ahead of itand the truth is… nothing is true. Even if Nintendo unveiled its new console tomorrow, the current one would still be around indefinitely for one simple and repeated reason: it’s successful.

Not even success now Tears of the Kingdom they share all the games that come out on the Switch, whether from Nintendo or third parties, and the fact that the console maintains good health is no obstacle to the inexorable passage of time relief is becoming necessary. This is precisely evident in the latest Zelda adventure, a real pleasure in all respects that suffers from only one thing: greater graphic power, with which the sublime artistic part of the game shines even more strongly if possible.

That said, not everything that can be asked for from the future Nintendo Switch 2 is more performance. So as a long-time Nintendo customer, someone who has owned all of their consoles since the beginning, including the Switch, I’d like to share my thoughts on what I believe to be Five things you want to see when the successor to the Nintendo Switch arrivessomething not expected until the middle of next year, although you never know with those in Kyoto.

more energy

This is a fact. I’ve said before that it’s not the only thing, but it’s the foundational leg on which to support the launch, taking over the entire phenomenon that was and is the Nintendo Switch. That graphics are not everything is obvious; which are also a major part of the experience. Locking in one position makes as little sense as the other: yes, it’s true that most Switch games look good as they are, but it’s no less true that depending on the distance between your hardware and the industry standard, everything will get worse.

It’s not just about playing anymore Tears of the Kingdom and notice those small visual errors, or that they intelligently looked for a lack of sharpness in the graphics, with which it would be possible to mask some textures that would normally – without the mentioned artistic part of the game, quite a feat even on a technical level – be very difficult . . It’s all about going ahead and doing it somewhat in line with the rest of the castfrom PlayStation to Xbox or the same PC, all in moderation of course.

I bring up New Zelda as an example because, despite the redundancy, it’s an unbeatable example of how conscientious optimization can push hardware like the Nintendo Switch to unimaginable levels.

It is not necessary for the successor of the Nintendo Switch to catch up with the new generation of consoles, and it probably won’t be, because the bet is risky. But that the technical leap will reach at least enough for you to enjoy the starts third side, albeit with slightly cut versions of the gamesThis seems to be the bare minimum. There will always be someone who despises her for it, but that would provide a balance that is missing.

In addition to all this, if you want to read what the future Nintendo Switch 2 could bring, talk about specific news and not just generic troubles, we recently devoted another comprehensive article to this matter with updated information: here is the link, do not miss it.

Innovation of the fair

Despite being one of the most traditional companies in the sector, Nintendo has also been one of the most innovative in one way or another throughout its recent history – ever since it has been involved in video game creation. And as it usually happens in these cases, sometimes it turned out well and sometimes not so much, or nothing at all. The question now is Does Nintendo’s current proposal with the Switch need a turnaround? In my opinion, no.

A bit of context before explaining because of Nintendo’s innovation. For example, the Japanese company was a portable console creator with its Game & Watch, long before the GameBoy redefined the concept, which it later revived with the dual screens and touch capabilities of the Nintendo DS; It was the first to introduce novelties such as a cross, four typical front buttons, triggers, vibrations or glue analog control…

And other things, although as I say, they did not succeed in everything. An example is the success of the Wii and its concept as a cultural phenomenon, but it didn’t last over time, even though they didn’t try to. And a dismal failure? From the original virtual reality system – helmet included – the Virtual Boy to the unique fall they had with the Wii U, right after the success of the previous one. With the Nintendo Switch, they not only renewed flight, but succeeded through innovation.

The Nintendo Switch hybrid paradigm may not be the company’s original idea, but there’s no doubt that its approach is what established it in the market. Without the Nintendo Switch, there probably wouldn’t be inventions like Steam Deck and the like. Although, be careful because innovation with the Nintendo Switch is not limited to the hybrid model: the controls, the Joy-Con, have a lot of weight. I mean in the innovation factor.

For all that and I honestly think so Now is not the time for Nintendo to try to reinvent the wheel.: with the improvement of what has room for improvement, there is a lot. It is true that something better than what already exists can always come along, but the opposite can also happen. I mean hardware only, huh?

drift solved

Speaking of Nintendo’s successes and failures, as well as innovation, I have to focus on the conceptual and practical marvel that is the Joy-Con. Being able to play with them while sitting on the sofa without having your hands close to you, that they react to movement… Only those who have enjoyed the experience know how incredible it is… Until drifting and the suffering begins. But suffering. He drifting The Joy-Con goes above and beyond what he’s seen in an industry that already has crime.

Off topic drifting or drift, we’ve talked on this site on many occasions for various reasons: complaints, lawsuits, investigations, more lawsuits, de facto presumptions of guilt… Just in case it’s related to analog stick drift, and that’s that with use and over time, the Joy-Con will irreparably fail (also a Pro Controller, mind you, though to a lesser extent) until reaching levels where it’s almost impossible to play.

In short, the Joy-Con, one of the jewels in the Nintendo Switch’s crown for all they contribute, are also a terrible piece made with design flaws for which there is no fix. It’s gotten so far that, at least in the European Union, Nintendo has promised unlimited fixes because the failure will always reproduce. And no, it’s not a forgivable fault for a company on the level of Nintendo, also known for making durable and quality products.

Seriously: it’s been more than six years since the Nintendo Switch went on sale and there’s no solution when it’s not happening on the rest of the consoles, it’s like a bad joke. During this time there have been initiatives that claim to eradicate the problem, the old familiar – but much more indirect – analog control. The worst part is that the companies that innovate with it are nothing compared to Nintendo. Therefore, Joy-Con without drifting Yes or yes (and if they are a little bigger, the better).

Backward Compatibility

This point kind of spins off the issue of power supply, which is ultimately defined by the hardware the console is mounted on and is quickly understood: it’s worth noting that with media replacement, the new console can’t read cartridges or digital discs. , but there’s no excuse for the Nintendo Switch successor not to maintain backward compatibility with it. Well, yes, it is: that the graphics processor and the system change a lot and make it extremely complicated, but with an overview it is not an obstacle.

This time, of course, there is no obstacle in the format of the games, given that the “cartridges” of the Nintendo Switch, called Game Cards, are a dividing line between formats such as Secure Digital (SD and MicroSD cards). According to the format, even those used on the Nintendo DS and 3DS seemed potentially compatible, although it is likely that the effort was not worth it, preferring a virtual approach and cutremulation in the style of what was done with Super Mario 3D All-Starsbut…

But unless Nintendo does something unusual, backwards compatibility with Nintendo Switch is essential.

Permanent eShop

And finally, an outstanding issue that goes far beyond those coming after the Nintendo Switch: enough of ripping us off generation after generation, wanting to charge us for the same game over and over again. I mean, enough.

Nintendo made its debut in online game stores with the Wii and its WiiWare, which had an important life cycle: it launched in late 2008 and remained open and allowed content downloads until 2019, although there have been occasional reopenings, of which the Nintendo DSi, the second jumping on the Internet bandwagon also benefited. Then the Nintendo 3DS (early 2011) and Wii U (late 2012) arrived, and in both cases the store was extended until April 2023, although from then on, and indefinitely, only what they bought or its updates would be downloadable .

There is no disadvantage in this aspect: the company cannot be demanded – or maybe it is? – to maintain support for outdated devices and systems forever, because all of this has costs that cannot be assumed when no benefits are generated. However, many of those games are available on the Nintendo Switch eShop, you just have to pay for them again. Because? Why such ongoing robberies?

Why, as long as I have an updated Nintendo device and spend money in their store, can’t I continue to download what I’ve already paid for and what’s still available in the store? Because of compatibility issues? Because of lace issues? Or because they want to make money as many times as they can with the same product? There are companies that have free game update policies for next generation consoles that are considered impossible for Nintendo. But I don’t think so either.

I also understand that this is a complex issue, as many games that are added to digital stores require maintenance to ensure compatibility, which brings us back to the issue of backwards compatibility. However, not the bulk of the “older” catalog does. Unless Nintendo does too! There is the mentioned cutreport from Super Mario 3D All-Stars for confirmation… and latest Metroid Prime remake To qualify this, not everything is to use a leap of definition without more.

The truth is, I don’t have a solution to this problem, but paying in each generation for games I bought in the previous ones seems like an inappropriate shame for the year we’re in. Ten years ago I was still playing Wii and buying WiiWare games. I did the same on Steam. I still have access to my entire Steam catalog today, but that’s not going to happen with Nintendo. This is something that should be changed for the benefit of the user for once.

And here’s my list of five things I’d like to see when the successor to the Nintendo Switch arrives.