As Switch 2 Rumors Heat Up, Nintendo President Calls Moving to a New Console "Never Easy"

Can Nintendo transition the Switch audience to a new platform?

By Marc Deschamps

It seems very likely that the Nintendo Switch era is coming to an end. For the last year, rumors have been circulating that Nintendo will launch a new console this year, tentatively known as "Switch 2." Nintendo's current platform has sold nearly 140 million units since launching in 2017, making it the third best-selling video game system of all-time. In a Q&A following Nintendo's third quarter financial briefing (translated by Video Games Chronicle), company president Shuntaro Furukawa was asked about challenges moving into a new console generation. Furukawa noted that Nintendo is well aware of its past struggles when jumping to a new system. 

"The generational transition of platforms in the dedicated gaming console business is never easy. We have experienced significant challenges following successful platforms multiple times, so we never consider our current situation to be totally secure," said Furukawa. 

Switch vs. Wii

The success of Switch is often compared to the Wii, as both consoles proved to be gigantically successful for Nintendo, despite being underpowered compared to their competitors. This has led to some concern that Nintendo's Switch successor could face a drop off in interest following a generational transition, given the fact that the Wii U was one of Nintendo's most dismal failures. During its time on the market, Wii U sold under 14 million units worldwide.  

Despite these similarities, there are many differences between Switch and Wii. During the Wii U era, Nintendo was also supporting the 3DS, which sold nearly 77 million units. Nintendo published games were the big interest driver in the 3DS, with franchises like Pokemon, Mario Kart, and Animal Crossing all performing quite well on the system. Since Nintendo will (presumably) be supporting just one system, and that will be the only place to play Nintendo's biggest franchises, it stands to reason the system should sell quite well, even if it doesn't manage to hit Switch numbers. Nintendo has also been looking into ways to make it easier for Switch users to transition over to its next console. 

Expanding Nintendo Franchises Beyond Gaming

Another major difference between the Wii U era and Switch is that Nintendo has spent the last several years generating interest in its franchises outside of its games. The Super Mario Bros. Movie made more than $1 billion at the global box office, and was released in countries where Switch isn't even sold, giving Nintendo a chance to further expand its properties. A live-action movie based on The Legend of Zelda is also in the works. Beyond movies, Nintendo has been working with Universal Studios on theme park attractions.

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All of these factors have led to greater overall interest in the company's properties than before. It's possible that Nintendo's next console could struggle to capture the same level of interest that Switch did, but the chances of another Wii U failure are pretty slim. Fortunately, Nintendo seems to have learned some valuable lessons since then. 

Do you think Nintendo's next system will be successful? Should they be worried about another Wii U level failure? Share your thoughts with me directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp or on Instagram at @Dachampgaming!

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