For a long time now, the Internet has gone crazy with
speculation about Nintendo’s newest console, currently codenamed the NX.
Nintendo decided to skip E3 2016 and has said that they will be revealing the
console in September. In the meantime, so many rumors and so much speculation
has been circulating that people are getting sick of it all and just want
Nintendo to reveal the thing and end it all. With September now being here and
the Tokyo Game Show fast approaching, it stands to reason that Nintendo will
finally reveal the console soon and answer everyone’s questions, of which there
are plenty.
With the NX so close to its reveal, I would like to give my
opinion on all the rumors we have heard so far about the console.
The Console
The NX is said to run on an Nvidia Tegra processor, likely
to be either the X1 or X2 chips. The X1, which more people seem to believe is
the one chosen, would put the console ahead of the PlayStation 3 in terms of
power, but not the PlayStation 4, making it graphically underpowered compared
to other current consoles. It also notably puts it ahead of current
smartphones, which a lot of people are taking as a sign that Nintendo is moving
away from making traditional consoles to compete more against the smartphone
market. On the other hand, the X2 chip, if chosen, would put the console more
on par with current generation systems like the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One,
therefore, making it easier for third-party developers to port their games to
the system.
The Games
Nintendo has stated that they have fused their console and
handheld game development teams together to work on the NX. This has some
wondering if the NX will serve not only as a replacement for the Wii U, but the
3DS as well, which is currently a big seller for Nintendo and still has various
highly anticipated games being released for it in the future. It is also
unknown if the system will have backwards compatibility with Wii U games. The simultaneous
release of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild for both Wii U and NX would
imply that backwards compatibility will not be included, which would be a break
from Nintendo’s more recent systems which have it present.
As for the games themselves, six games have currently been
completely confirmed for the system. Those games are:
- Dragon Quest IX
- Dragon Quest X
- Just Dance 2017
- The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
- Pikmin 4
- Project Sonic 2017 (not officially named yet)
Aside from that, rumored games for the system cover a wide
range. The rumors have included ports of some of the Wii U’s most successful
games like Super Mario Maker, Splatoon, and Super Smash Bros. 4. They have also
included sequels to highly requested series like Super Mario Galaxy, Metroid
Prime, F-Zero, Kid Icarus, and again, Splatoon. There have also been mentions
of revivals of classic Nintendo series, ports of AAA third-party games already announced
for other platforms, updated re-releases of hit third-party games from the past
few years, and many more. As far as new IPs from Nintendo or exclusive new
third-party titles, no one can guess as to what those will be, so everyone is
hoping for the best on that front.
My Thoughts
The past couple of console generations almost make it seem
like Nintendo wants more to leave software alone and innovate in hardware,
while a lot of gamers want them to leave hardware alone and innovate in
software. As far as the handheld/console hybrid idea goes, I think Nintendo
actually needs something like this to differentiate themselves from the other
consoles, but they need to be careful with it. If done well, this concept could catch on to a lot of people and help
make this console a success, but if handled poorly, Nintendo may have another
Wii U situation on their hands, so they need to make sure that their marketing
is on point and the console launches with, and continues to receive, good,
attention grabbing games.
Most of the people that are asking for a simple, more
traditional console with a standard controller, the highest-definition
graphics, and a big roster of serious, mature games; most of
those people, at this point, already have a PlayStation 4, an Xbox One, or a PC
that doesn’t crash if you try to use much more than Microsoft Office or an
Internet browser. So, if Nintendo were to make a more traditional console,
there wouldn’t be much to make it stand out from the crowd and convince gamers
to turn away from their current consoles and pay attention to this new one.
The only draw would be the games and Nintendo would have to
have the most jaw-dropping, eye-catching, slam-dunk lineup of games to get
everyone’s attention, which again, wouldn’t be easy when everyone else has
their own amazing lineups. The GameCube was their last traditional console and
while it sold decently, it had to compete with the original Xbox, especially after the Halo
series became a big hit, and the juggernaut that was the PlayStation 2, and as a result, it felt
like the third wheel of that console generation.
Can Nintendo get enough amazing games to get the kind of attention they need? Hard to say. Having the kind of console that is easy to develop for is only part of the solution. In the past, Nintendo's main concern is how their own games would look on their consoles and they haven't been the friendliest to work with for third-parties.
Speaking of the games, there isn’t much to go on with only six games revealed for the NX so far, but of those six, most of them look
like things that hardcore gamers would enjoy. The rumored games all sound like great ideas,
but at this point, they are only just that: rumors, hearsay, unconfirmed ideas. No
one outside of Nintendo’s circle knows if these games are being produced or
not, so the most anyone can do is hope for the best. Only time will tell if the rest
of the lineup looks this good.
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So, what do you all think about this? Do you think the NX
will be Nintendo’s next big success or their next big flop? Make your voice
heard in the comments below. Thanks for coming.
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