Although the Nintendo Switch with OLED screens is only a month old now, the company is already discussing a successor to its highly-acclaimed console/handheld hybrid.
Nintendo makes vague but interesting comments about some of its future plans during a presentation to investors. The company intends to expand its business around its core concept of creating unique integrated software-hardware products. This I take to mean that they will continue to make video games and other hardware in the future.
The slide can be viewed here (PDF) and includes a timeline showing Nintendo's hardware projects. It also shows the next Nintendo gaming system, which is due to launch at an unknown 20XX date. It would be sometime between now 2099, I suppose. The hardware will not be the same as the Switch's hybrid, but there are no clues about what it might look like. Nintendo has only one image, a question mark.
The OLED Switch is a great device. However, new Nintendo hardware could make it even better. One of the obvious improvements would be the ability to play 4K resolution video games. Bloomberg reported that a Switch capable of playing 4K resolution games was in development, but that the official OLED Switch does not support it. Bloomberg reported that Nintendo was working on a 4K-capable Switch just days before the OLED Switch launch. It claimed that it could be available as soon as 2022. However, Nintendo strongly denied the report. It would be 4K if there were a feature that I wanted to see on Nintendo's next console.
Nintendo is not just investing in hardware, the company is also committed to value-added service for Nintendo accounts. The blue triangle above is indicative of this. You can already see the results of this with the Nintendo Switch Online + Extension Pack. This is a more expensive version that includes Sega Genesis and Nintendo 64 games as well as access to the Animal Crossing: New Horizons DLC.
According to the company, it will continue to expand and improve the Nintendo Switch Online standard and the Expansion Pack. Nintendo does not provide any details on how this will happen, but Game Boy games are something to look forward to.
The company keeps its cards close and doesn't usually reveal hardware, services or games until they can provide concrete details. This is typical Nintendo. Since the announcement of Metroid Prime 4's reboot nearly three years ago, I am still waiting to hear more. It's fun to imagine what may be in the hopper now that the company has hinted at future hardware. I cannot wait for 20XX.
