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Nintendo's Switch doesn't come with a charging Joy-Con grip
If you're dead-set on owning a Nintendo Switch, you should probably start thinking about your charging setup. In addition to the main unit, you'll need to keep the detachable "Joy-Con" controllers topped up, which could prove tricky if you're playing the console exclusively at home. That's because the Joy-Con Grip bundled with the Switch (shown above) doesn't have any charging capabilities of its own. As Eurogamer reports, it's basically just a plastic shell designed to keep the two Joy-Cons in place.
The Switch shows desperate Nintendo is the best Nintendo
Nintendo has something to prove. After the Wii U flamed out spectacularly, the company needed to do something truly different to stay afloat in the console world. Its answer is the Switch, a hybrid portable/home gaming system that's unlike anything we've seen before. While Microsoft and Sony are simply trying to shove in faster hardware to support 4K and HDR, Nintendo is going back to its roots with a device that evokes memories of spending carefree afternoons with your Game Boy, or going head-to-head with your friends in Mario Kart on the SNES. The Switch is a reminder that Nintendo innovates best after it fails, when its back is against the wall and it's not just reacting to pressure from the competition.
'Switch' is Nintendo's next game console
It's been almost a year and a half since Nintendo announced the NX, and now the gaming giant has finally dropped the codename and secrecy in favor of something more official: Switch. Like the countless rumors previously asserted, it's indeed a hybrid mobile and home console with a tablet element and detachable controllers. The tablet itself (which Nintendo calls "the Switch Console") is thin and pretty attractive. It looks to have a screen measuring around 7 inches, of unspecified resolution. At home, it'll plug into the "Switch Dock," which in turn plugs into your TV. While out and about you can either hold it like a Wii U gamepad or use the built-in kickstand to prop it up. In the trailer, a gamer slides what looks to be a 3DS-style cartridge into the tablet, meaning games are likely to distributed both digitally and physically. It's powered by an unspecified custom Nvidia Tegra processor, which is "based on the same architecture as the world's top-performing GeForce gaming graphics cards." Whether that means Pascal -- the architecture underpinning the 1000 series of GeForce cards and the yet-to-be-announced Tegra X2 -- or just that Tegra chips in general are based on the GeForce architecture, is not clear. But the question of which SoC is powering the Switch -- and whether it's based on newer or older architecture -- is important to answer if we're to work out what exactly it's capable of.
Nintendo promises our 'first glimpse' of the NX
After all the rumors, we're about to get a look at Nintendo's mysterious NX system. The company has invited everyone to check out a "preview trailer" tomorrow on Nintendo.com at 10AM ET. Nintendo Japan tweeted that it will only last about three minutes, so prepare your expectations accordingly. Nintendo already announced the console will launch in March next year, but other than the release window and a few game titles, we don't have much hard information to go on. What we do know for sure is that despite the success of Pokémon Go a new console can't come a moment too soon for Nintendo.
Pokémon chief says Nintendo's NX is both handheld and console
The head of The Pokémon Company has let slip that his outfit is working on a pocketable monster title for Nintendo's NX. Given that TPC is part-owned by the Japanese gaming giant, he's probably seen the new handheld/console/tablet hybrid up close and personal. The Wall Street Journal quotes Tsunekazu Ishihara as saying that "the NX is trying to change the concept of what it means to be a home console device or a hand-held device."
Nintendo opines on where it went wrong with the Wii U
Nintendo wants to make sure it "does better" next time when it comes to launching its NX platform. Judging by a recent interview of Nintendo of America head Reggie Fils-Aime in market mag AListDaily, the company thinks it has learned its lesson from the Wii U launch. The Nintendo head outright admitted that Nintendo has to do a "better job helping people to understand [the NX's] uniqueness and what that means for the game playing experience."
Recommended Reading: Nintendo's NX sounds weird and that's okay
NX is different, and different is Nintendo's best option Oli Welsh, Eurogamer Based on the rumors so far, Nintendo's upcoming NX handheld console will be... unique. This piece from Eurogamer, a site that's been the source of some of the details, takes a look at why switching things up a bit may be the company's best bet. A touchscreen device with detachable controllers may sound strange, but if the reports are true, "we should savor and celebrate NX's weirdness" like Eurogamer explains here.
'Project Sonic 2017' is coming to Xbox One, PS4 and Nintendo NX
While fans will celebrate the series' 25th anniversary with a 2D throwback game in Sonic Mania, the Sonic Team (Sonic Colors, Sonic Generations) is working on something new. Tonight Sega dropped this teaser trailer for "Project Sonic," which is due for the 2017 holiday season on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo's NX. Everything in the trailer is CG, but it does indicate that we can expect both a "Modern" and "Classic" Sonic to make an appearance.
Pranksters scammed Nintendo fans with 3D printing and Photoshop
It's getting tougher and tougher to determine what's real on the Internet. Thanks to Photoshop and 3D printing you can create nearly anything. That's exactly what two pranksters did using the upcoming Nintendo NX as a subject.
Nintendo reportedly stops Wii U production in late 2016
You might need to bid farewell to the Wii U sooner than you think. Nikkei sources claim that Nintendo is halting production of its struggling home console at the end of 2016, and that the gaming legend is already discontinuing some accessories. Nintendo hasn't confirmed anything (we've asked for comment), but it's easy to see this as preparation for the NX system you'll likely hear about this year. Just don't see this as a guarantee that the NX will ship this year, even if it's true -- stopping production doesn't mean that Nintendo is stopping sales, and it might keep the Wii U around for a while longer as it clears remaining stock.
Nintendo invents a gamepad dominated by its touchscreen
Nintendo has said precious little about its plans for the NX (other than that it won't be like a Wii U), but it might have hinted at what's coming through some recent paperwork. The console maker has filed for a patent on a gamepad design where a touchscreen would cover the entire front panel. You'd still have familiar elements like analog sticks (poking through the display) and shoulder buttons, but the usual front-facing buttons would be replaced by context-aware touch. The move would give you the adaptability of a smartphone interface with the primary controls you're used to in a TV system -- you could even use the controller on its side, or get visual effects when you press buttons. It wouldn't require a gigantic body like the Wii U's gamepad, either, and a card slot could take game data directly.
'Dragon Quest XI' may be one of the first Nintendo NX games
It's been a long time coming, but another Dragon Quest title is on the way -- and you'll want to keep your eye on this one. Square Enix has announced Dragon Quest XI, a solo role-playing game (no DQX-style massively multiplayer experience) that will come to the PlayStation 4, 3DS... and, quite possibly, Nintendo's future NX console. Yes, the publisher is at least "considering" a version for a system that exists as little more than a codename. There's no mention of what that version will entail, although it's clear that DQXI will take advantage of platforms' strong points. The PS4 version is based on the pretty Unreal Engine 4, while the 3DS version makes good use of the dual screens to show 3D gameplay and 2D maps at the same time. As it stands, you'll have to wait a while to try any edition for yourself. Square Enix hasn't provided any release dates yet, so the odds are that you won't be battling slimes until 2016 at the earliest.
Going Android: How Nintendo could learn from Amazon
Nintendo may have quashed rumors that its next-generation "NX" console will run Android, but that isn't enough to stop the speculators. After all, the company has a history of denials that weren't entirely forthright. Remember how the console maker downplayed talk of a supersized 3DS in early June 2012, only to announce that very device weeks later? Yeah. Whomever you believe, the scuttlebutt raises a big question: Just what would Nintendo do with Android? Would it see much of a benefit versus handling everything in-house? If Amazon's experience building a heavily customized version of Android is any indication, the answer is yes -- but it wouldn't be the cure-all that you might hope for.
Nintendo's next console won't run Android after all
Aside from its codename, we know little about Nintendo's in-development "NX" console. Yesterday, however, Japanese publication Nikkei claimed to have hit upon a particularly juicy detail about the next-gen gaming system, with its sources stating the NX will run some form of Google's Android OS. The rumor wasn't exactly far-fetched, given Nintendo's plans to get into mobile games this year; but alas, it appears to have been a blast of hot air. Today, a Nintendo spokesperson's commented on the hearsay -- or rather, shot it down in flames -- declaring "There is no truth to the report saying that we are planning to adopt Android for NX." Denials don't get much clearer than that, but hopefully whatever platform Nintendo's outfitting the NX with will be less Wii U, more 200cc.
