Highlights
- Rumor has it that the developer kit for a Nintendo Switch successor is already with key partner studios, possibly working on launch titles.
- Rumors suggest that a Switch successor may be released in 2024, with increasing hype surrounding potential leaks.
An insider is claiming that the developer kit for a successor console to the Nintendo Switch is already in the hands of key partner studios who may already be working on launch titles. The Nintendo Switch came out more than 6 years ago and recent rumors speculate about it being replaced as soon as 2024.
The Nintendo Switch has a large and successful library full of hit titles. Many fans and critics are still wanting more, though, and complaints about the Switch's outdated hardware have only ramped up as it went from competing against the PS4 and Xbox One to their successors. Things may be changing, as hype around the possibility of a Switch successor on the horizon is only increasing with each new leak about its potential release.
It seems increasingly likely that the follow-up console to the Nintendo Switch will be launching in mid-to-late 2024. This information comes via Video Games Chronicle, which recently released information from private sources stating a decent amount of early information about this new piece of Nintendo hardware. One of those pieces of information is that the developer kit is already in the hands of "key partner studios," many of whom are likely already working on launch titles for the successor, considering the near window for announcements and launch.
If the Switch successor does wind up releasing next year, it will confirm a pattern for Nintendo of launching consoles midway between the life cycle of its biggest competitors' consoles. The Switch launched in 2017, about 4 years after the launch of the Xbox One and PS4 and 3 years before the launch of the Xbox Series X/S and PS5. VGC does speculate whether or not a Switch successor would see similar success, considering the new Xbox and PlayStation consoles still feel fairly new with many unable to purchase them until recently due to Sony and Microsoft's supply shortages.
The exact studios which currently have these Switch successor development kits are, as of right now, unknown. It can be pretty safely inferred that "key partner studios" almost certainly implies developers for at least some of the franchises Nintendo consoles are known to house, including Pokemon and Fire Emblem. Hopefully, Nintendo will manage to line up some decent titles for this new console's launch, considering the Switch launch titles were mostly considered a bit underwhelming outside Breath of the Wild.
Source: VGC
