Topic: The Nintendo Switch Rumor and Speculation Thread

@PikminMarioKirby
As much as people like to complain about them, I've used Gamestop for all of my big preorders, both software and hardware, and I've never had an issue. I've preordered stuff to be delivered through mail and to pick up at my local Gamestop, and it's always gone smoothly.

Amazon is nice for a lot of stuff, but I tend to stick to specialty stores when I care about the product, even if it's a few bucks more.

@skywake
Yea I'm seeing 400 bucks for this. On the down low, I wouldn't be surprised at 450, really, though I do think that would be a massive mistake. Maybe they'll do a premium SKU at 450.

I really don't know where to place the Switch 2 price wise. The OG Switch launched mid generation compared to 'rival' consoles and was less powerful and cheaper than them from what I remember. If they pull the same trick this time then PS5's are currently available at $400-500. So to be cheaper they'd have to undercut that.

Maybe they don't feel they need to now as the Switch is the more desirable and profitable device, or maybe a potential Ps5 Pro later this year will put the Switch in a better looking position for price. Or all this is just wistful thinking hoping that the new device will be in reach for lower budgets!

I think 350 - 400 USD will be the price of Switch 2, the best case scenario would be for OLED Switch to be discounted at 300 USD, Switch 2 basic at 350 USD, and Switch 2 OLED at 400 USD, but this sounds too good to be true (i really don't want to go back to LCD screens, please Nintendo).

Yea, I can see something like:

Lite - 100
Switch 1 (while it lasts) - 150
Switch 1 OLED - 250
Super Switch regular - 350
Super Switch extra crispy - 450

I saw a rumor about a potential return to the Mario & Luigi series.

Supposedly it’s being announced before the end of this fiscal year.

If true, we don’t really know the Holiday game this year and Mario/Luigi are huge characters, so it’d probably sell millions. This is the perfect slot as nothing else is taking that time frame.

We’ve seen Paper Mario and Mario RPG get games really recently. Why mot Mario & Luigi? Mario RPG is selling well, and it seems like TTYD is on track to do so as well.

The main problem is that the (former) developers of the Mario & Luigi series, AlphaDream, is seemingly shut down.

A new team/partnership could be taking place here. Maybe they could try to recruit some of the OG developers?

If AI is going to be doing most of the heavy lifting, then I think everyone is a fool for wanting to spend 400 quid on a console. Imagine what signal that would send Playstation, Valve and Microsoft! It's certtainly not where the blue ocean is.

@GrailUK I mean , using AI (machine learning) to slightly improve certain styles of graphics which are massively computer processed anyways is very different than having AI actually make games or art directly... or, worst of all, if the npcs were annoying AI chat bots.

I'm far from an AI expert, all this stuff goes completely over my head. But if it can help get the job done without putting people out of a job, completely overtaking a project, and removing it's soul (AI NPC's would be an utter nightmare.) then I'm open to it being used. A lot to ask of greedy corporate executives, but I like to believe that there's at least a shred of humanity out there. (A fool's errand, I know. XD) I'll say this again and again: as long as it's within reason. I still firmly believe that restrictions should be put in place to avoid such scenarios. It infuriates me seeing big corps utilize this tech to save money down to the last penny at the expense of honest workers' livelihoods. That said, we live in a different time now. Like it or not, AI is in out in the wild, there's no going back on it. As long as it's here it needs, to be kept on a tight leash. Use it to assist, not to replace. (Please bear in mind though, I'm no expert on the subject. There's plenty of nuances in the conversation that I'm sure I'm completely blanking on, so please go easy on me. XD)

@Novamii I reckon AI Nintendogs might be amazing! (would explain the microphone too lol.)

@GrailUK
All these AI models do is predict the next item in the sequence. In the case of DLSS we're talking about hardware accelerated prediction of what colour missing pixels will be. FSR, which BTW some Switch games already use, is the same thing but doesn't need hardware acceleration

But it's not magic. Using them to calculate the missing pixels does take some computation. In the case of the Switch 2 if a game is optimised enough that it can run at 1080p/60 then it's probably not worth bothering with DLSS at all. Because the time it would take, on the SoC we're assuming this will have, to push that game to 1440p or even 4K would be less than the time it would take for such a game to natively render at those resolutions

But yeah, fundamentally it's just a new way to predict what the next thing is. At its core it's not really that much different to using raw maths to calculate it. It's just instead of using a relatively simple formula some PHD figured out you're using some absurdly complex formula you've calculated by throwing some PHDs algorithm at a bunch of data

New rumor claiming BOTW is getting a dedicated Switch 2 port.

Very interesting, especially considering the mystery surrounding how Nintendo will handle backwards compatibility.

Will Nintendo tone down automatic upscaling features for Switch games in order to sell more dedicated ports of their biggest Switch titles? Or will Nintendo offer as many DLSS and other dynamic upscaling features for free for any Switch game transferred to the Switch 2?

@Ulysses I hope that this is false. I like remakes/ports/remasters or whatever, but if we get a bunch of switch ports for the next console, I don't think I'm interested. Majority of Nintendo fans wouldn't care to buy Switch games a 2nd time for $70. We just bought them for $60. Almost anyone getting the Switch Successor is going to already have a Nintendo Switch. If people see several Switch Successor games just being Switch ports, that will turn off most casual fans (majority of Nintendo's fanbase).

I think the next console should be backwards compatible. I mean, maybe the codenames just indicate the update?

I think both dedicated and casual fans wouldn't want this outcome. It could possibly mean significantly less sales for the next console.

Maybe port/remaster/remake these games in about 15 years (give or take), when things are no longer backwards compatible with Switch games and there is more room for updating the games. This could also possibly introduce these games to a new generation of Nintendo fans.

This could be also technically be the codename for the tech demo supposedly shown at Gamescom, which isn't very likely to release

It was one thing to port the Wii U games, they were stuck to a completely different form factor. Not to mention many things needed to be changed to accommodate for the lack of gamepad and Miiverse functionality. If the Switch 2 is well and truly a "sequel console", while the innards of the console will differ, the overall form factor of the Switch 1 will remain largely intact. The Wii U NEEDED new versions in order to get them on Switch, if backwards compatibility is included with next-gen, the need for creating a new version is a lot less enticing. WE hardcore fans might be into a revamped BotW, sure. I'm also positive that a good amount would pay for a new version...but not for full price. But the general consumer...I don't know. Well over 100 million people already own a Switch, and a ton probably own BotW. Would that many people really be willing to pay full price simply for a visual upgrade when they already own the original on the same console? I get that Nintendo fans are used to re-buying old games, but that's usually because those old games arent' available on the current hardware. Not to mention the majority add new content. A lot of people felt a little off paying full price for the Link's Awakening remake because, for the most part, the changes were stylistic. The game itself played mostly like the Game Boy original. Would people really be willing to pay a full $60 just for a resolution and frame rate bump? (Maybe throw in those load time improvements too.) It'd be awesome to get those upgrades for free, but I can't really see that happening. $10-$15? Eh, sure. You could do worse. A full $60?! I can't get behind that.

@Novamii It made sense why that had to be done with Wii U games, as very few people played those games, and the Wii U was too gimmicky for backwards compatibility on Switch. However, there's no excuse for there not to be Switch backwards compatibility on the Switch Successor.

Yeah it's good to remake some games like Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door and Link's Awakening (The remake was before it got ported on NSO), because those haven't been accessible for a very long time. Even ports/remasters like Metroid Prime Remastered, Pikmin 1+2, and Luigi's Mansion 2 HD make sense for the same reason, as they're not available on modern hardware.

@PikminMarioKirby I know nothing is set in stone yet, and we'll just have to wait and see when the official reveal happens. It's just, imagine putting a game on Switch and less than 2 or 3 years later making a superior version and charging people like it's a whole new release. Even when the original is right there on the same storefront. Reminds me of the Atlus debacle that's been making the rounds ever since SMT V:V was announced. People who already purchased the game basically get treated like they never did. No discount on the game itself, no cheaper price to simply upgrade for pre-existing owners, no nothing. You like the game on your current system? You want really cool upgrades? Buy it again at full price. Not to mention de-listing the original. That kind of practice just doesn't sit well with me. We joke about how Nintendo re-sells us the same games over and over again. Doing that on the same exact console storefront, and basically ditching people who already bought the original game.. that's a very efficient way at disrespecting your early adopters and people who stuck with the Switch from day 1. No sir, I do not like it. :/ (Hopefully I'm just reading the situation wrong and Nintendo does the smart thing and offers upgrades at an affordable price, if not free.)

@Novamii Yeah we'll ultimately have to wait to see. That Atlus thing seems very anti-consumer.

I feel like if there's backwards compatibility, there's no point in remastering/porting them. Just give us updates to enhance the game instead. Switch owners are the key audience for the Switch Successor. Trying to appeal to a brand new audience and forgetting about the Switch audience would be a poor choice. Appeal to both audiences by having the game still available through backwards compatibility, and give an upgrade to the game as well. This doesn't work for every console generation, but it should definitely work from Switch to Switch Successor.

My view is that an enhanced port doesn't mean backwards compatibility isn't a thing or that they're going to charge full retail for people to upgrade. Of course there's nothing really stopping them from doing that but there's also nothing stopping them from putting anything they want behind a paywall

What I expect will happen is that backwards compatibility will be a standard thing. No charge. This will be basically just the game running as if it was on an overclocked Switch but limited to how the game was programmed for Switch including resolution/framerate caps. But that some games will have more comprehensive upgrades for Switch 2, whether that's graphical or whatever. And these will be available in the eShop as an upgrade. Like DLC

How they charge for those? That's certainly a question. I'd argue it probably depends on what it is. Some games I wouldn't be surprised if it's straight up free. Some will be an upgrade fee. Some might be included in NSO. Some may well be an entirely new release. Depends

For BotW..... I almost feel like it'd be a nice launch bundle kind of thing. And if not I would lean towards either a free upgrade or part of NSO. I don't think charging full retail is a smart move because it's just going to get them off on the wrong foot

Honestly BotW at 1080p/60fps and with the load times gutted? That's enough for me. Any more than that I don't really care. And for that kind of upgrade.... I'm not paying full retail again. I'm paying something like $15AU at the absolute most

I would buy an enhanced BotW. I've double dipped on much much worse. I dare say it would have extra content.

@GrailUK The extra content is slightly more attractive grass.

I guess I'll hold off on my botw replay. Was going to play again soon, but I suppose I can wait for botw deluxe 🫠