Nintendo NX: What do you want it to be?
Ever since its codename was uttered back on March 17, 2015 by the late Mr. Iwata, the NX has captured the imaginations of Nintendo fans everywhere. Is it going to be a handheld? Is it a console? Is it both? What kind of power will it have? There are so many unanswered questions, and assuming Nintendo follows through with the plan set forth by Mr. Iwata, we won’t hear another peep about it until 2016.
There have been hints of what it could be. Mr. Iwata called the NX a “new dedicated video game system”. In prior statements he had suggested that there were benefits to having an ecosystem like Apple, where one application can work across multiple devices and that he foresaw Nintendo moving in that direction, going so far as to call the handheld market and console market as “brothers”. Also, recently Nintendo of Japan moved their game developers into a new building to allow for more synergetic game designing to share resources. If the NX does become a platform of multiple devices where the same game can work across them, then it makes sense to pool your talent from both the handheld and console development into one entity.
This could result in development of many new franchises as Nintendo would no longer need to make two similar games for two different markets. Or, perhaps we’ll see faster iterations. If we look back at the releases of Super Mario 3D Land (3DS) and Super Mario 3D World (Wii U), perhaps only one would have been created. Or, if both were still made we’d have seen them on the same system, potentially nullifying the infamous Nintendo droughts that seem to plague both of their divisions. Indeed, perhaps this is the most exciting thing to come of the NX: no more months of waiting for games to be released. Then again, maybe that’s wishful thinking.
So, what do you hope the NX will become? Do you think at least one version (if there are multiple ones) will release by Fall of 2016? If so, do you think it will be the handheld (the 3DS is older than the Wii U after all), or do you think Nintendo needs to revitalize its console business and that will be its focus? Could both release at the same time? Or, maybe it’s a hybrid product?
Let me know what you think and hope the NX will be. How much will it cost? Will it use cartridges or Blu-Ray? Do we need new hardware, and if so, why? Share you comments below!
Craig has been covering the video game industry since 1995. His work has been published across a wide spectrum of media sites. He’s currently the Editor-In-Chief of Nintendo Times and contributes to Gaming Age.
