Nintendo's CEO Says its Online Accounts Key To Its Next Console Transition (theverge.com) 33
At Nintendo's 83rd annual shareholders meeting last week, president and CEO Shuntaro Furukawa said the company is hoping for a smooth transition from the Switch to its unannounced next game console, pointing to Nintendo Accounts as being key to the generational hand-off. From a report: Nintendo has pointed to its accounts as being integral to future business in the past, as in the Nintendo Account segment of a special report it released at the end of 2021.
In response to an investor asking if the company has any specific measures in place to make the leap to a Switch successor, Furukawa pointed to the difficulty of switching customers from one console to the next, saying in the past, the company had to rebuild a relationship with its customers each time. Furukawa noted that the more than 290 million Nintendo Accounts are cross-platform and can be used with console games as well as mobile apps. To close out his answer, he said that while moving onto the company's yet-unannounced next-generation console, Nintendo would do its best to make the transition smooth for customers.
In response to an investor asking if the company has any specific measures in place to make the leap to a Switch successor, Furukawa pointed to the difficulty of switching customers from one console to the next, saying in the past, the company had to rebuild a relationship with its customers each time. Furukawa noted that the more than 290 million Nintendo Accounts are cross-platform and can be used with console games as well as mobile apps. To close out his answer, he said that while moving onto the company's yet-unannounced next-generation console, Nintendo would do its best to make the transition smooth for customers.
Backward compatibility (Score:1)
Huh? (Score:2)
I'd have thought a headline's spelling and grammar would be key to getting a story posted on slashdot, but I guess that's old-fashioned of me.
What's their next console? (Score:2)
Any guesses?
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Since they are parteneering with Sharp for the screen, maybe the same switch but with a 3D screen ?
OLED and some more powerfull cpu/gpu (Score:2)
The nVidia Tegra wasn't top of the line when the Switch came out but with a good line-up of games, that doesn't matter much.
Just take a look at the Atari2600.
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I have not seen the OLED version in action (apparently it's gorgeous), but I imagine it would be quite mind-blowing to see.
I used to play on my son's Switch. I got one of the first OLED when they came out.
It is really nice to play on, it is brighter, the display size is a bit larger. And you get a bit more battery because it is a bit more energy efficient.
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My guess is that they will upgrade to nvidia's most recent embedded system. We have some in the lab here and software between the tegra 3 and the new ones should be very easy to port. Most of it may just run natively or maybe just by recompiling.
So my guess is that we will get switch 2 with the updated specs.
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It will probably be a while before they release a new console/handheld machine. Every new hardware platform coincided with a new Zelda release and since they just released Tears of the Kingdom, it will be a while before they have a new one ready. And if they were developing a new Zelda game in parallel with finishing TOTK then their information security is better than the military's.
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There has been speculation that they might release a more powerful but compatible successor to the Switch. With backward compatibility like the PS4/5 and Xbox have, it would be a much smoother upgrade for consumers. They did it before with the Wii and Wii U, and various Gameboys.
As long as they make Mario Maker 3 and it runs on the current Switch, that's all I ask.
Zelda is not a real clue here (Score:2)
BoTW was a dual platform release that included the Wii U and Twilight Princess also came out on GameCube as well as the Wii.
I suspect that if anything Nintendo deliberately released TOTK well in advance of their Switch 2 plans to throw off people like you, but it will appear on the Switch 2 either as pure backward compatible software or that and a remaster.
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Netflix like subscription model to play all Nintendo games? It seems Switch will be good in terms of concept for a long time, just slap a better SoC and screen on, update the looks to make it distinct from the old one, and they are good for another generation. Would be pretty crazy if they ruin this run with some gimmick and botching peoples library of games.
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Netflix like subscription model to play all Nintendo games?
I thought that's what Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack was supposed to be about.
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Microsoft is going to announce soon that Nintendo is going to release a "Switch Slim" later this year. And they also know the price for it.
Accountz (Score:2)
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I see a big walled garden that Nintendo customers can't escape, inability to play offline and micro-transaction nickel-and-diming aplenty.
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They know what they need to do (Score:2)
That is to bring reality to the rumors and create a system that is literally just the Switch but with a PS4-level (or near that level) SoC from nVidia that is 100% backward compatible with digital and physical games from the Switch 1.
If they pull that off, the Switch 2 will sell at Switch 1 levels (3rd best selling console of all time [wikipedia.org])
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My 10 year old has figured out that buying "online" games isn't as good for her as buying the physical versions. She's worked out that the physical ones can be shared amongst friends, and can be resold after she's finished with them. Online, not so much.
I'd love to think they'll just give us upgraded hardware, but seeing as they're already warming us up for online accounts, I think we're headed in a slightly different direction. If either physical games cease to exist, or if they become "locked" to one onli
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My 10 year old has figured out that buying "online" games isn't as good for her as buying the physical versions. She's worked out that the physical ones can be shared amongst friends, and can be resold after she's finished with them. Online, not so much.
While it is true for many cases, there are many cases where it is not quite like that. If you are looking at a first party nintendo game, then they never go down that much in price. I bought Fire Emblem Engage at full price physically and I guess at most it will ever go half price. Similarly for Zelda and games like that.
But third party games can often be significantly cheaper digitally than physically. I wanted to get the two ace attorney collections, they are retailling at about $70 for both games. If you
Backwards compatibility (Score:2)
Could I just buy one old SNES game, and carry it forward to all consoles (via emulation, etc.) without having to rebuy it in an entirely new shop?
Because then you might actually see a purchase from me.
If I could buy half a dozen of the "best" Nintendo games from the last 30+ years, and have them permanently in my account, and they work on all the consoles "above" the one they were purchased for (or a decent bare minimum capable of emulating such), and it "just worked" and I could just get them from the stor
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Nintendo is notorious for multiday outages with their shops and often with no announcement. They also drop older console shops and halt further purchases for that platform then offer some vague promise that the redownloading purchased games will remain possible for some unspecified period of time.
No thanks, I don't wish to do business with these guys. Basically I think Valve has set the bar with Steam. Meet or exceed that bar else I'm going to play other franchises.
Physical games are the only way to go (Score:2)
You get a case, you get physical media, you get the resale value, you get the ability to loan out a game, and you can build a collection. Digital titles are the same price, but without any intrinsic value after the game has been played.
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Welcome to the digital cattle barn. Get in your pen and try not to flinch as the hammer drops - we wouldn't wanna spoil the meat.
All of this shit has been by design for a long long time. Digital "goods" are a media company wet dream many decades in the making with the help of lawyers and anti-consumer 'lobby friendly' (corrupt) politicians; naturally.
Own nothing. Pay rent for literally everything (from housing to healthcare to food to entertainment). Get back to work, drone. OBEY.
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You get a case, you get physical media, you get the resale value, you get the ability to loan out a game, and you can build a collection. Digital titles are the same price, but without any intrinsic value after the game has been played.
Digital games are NOT the same price.
First party games on release week are the same price.
Anything else you'll get 50% off without trying much; you can get 80% off when the stars line up a bit. (For instance, I picked up unravel two on Nintendo's store for $3 last week; retail is $20, used is about $17.)
So yeah, you don't get a cartridge, can't resale, or loan. But with that much of a markdown in price, maybe I don't care...
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Both digital and physical games can and do go on sale so this isn't a counter argument.
Yes, they do go on sale, but not on the same level of sales. You do not see 80% off price for physical games, but you do see them regularly on digital sales.
You got a sale price. They did not lower the price of the game.
Well the only thing I care about is how much *I* pay for it.
And buying games digitally is much cheaper in dollars coming out of my account than buying them physically. You will not find unravel two physically for $3 out of pocket. But you will find ways to buy it at that out of pocket price from the Nintendo store.
Physical games that are resold (used) start at a lower price and tend to stay that way.
That used to be true. It has not been t
Online account required? (Score:2)
Here's a company that wouldn't allow Wii store points to be carried over to the Switch store.
Color me unconvinced that Nintendo will do anything right if they intend to move to an online-only experience.