Hey all!
For over a year and a half since the announcement that Nintendo is working on a new console, Nintendo fans, gamers, and the industry alike, have been highly anticipating the next system from the gaming giant. It seems like every other day, we get a new piece of unofficial NX news. As we approach the inevitable announcement of Nintendo’s next system, we’ve collected all of the information about the platform in one handy post!
Here’s all we know about the NX so far:
The Hardware
Facts Confirmed by Nintendo:
System Name:
Nintendo’s next system is yet to be officially named, with Nintendo stating the NX is a code-name.
Release date:
The NX will release in March 2017 (exact date to be announced).
System type:
The Nintendo NX will be a new concept.
It will be a new way to play games; will not be a simple replacement for Wii U and 3DS.
OS:
Nintendo proprietary OS. Not based on Android.
Connects to and integrated with My Nintendo.
Specifications and price:
The NX has yet to be officially spec’d, with Nintendo’s president Tatsumi Kimishima stating that the specifications of the console will be revealed later this year.
Additionally, Kimishima stated that the NX will not be sold at a loss, and will not be more expensive than the current offerings.
Facts Hinted at by Nintendo:
Hardware formats:
–The NX will take into consideration the various playing environments that differ by country.
Other Features:
The system will appeal not only to moms and their kids, but experienced gamers, as well.
Regarding VR, Shigeru Miyamoto from Nintendo has stated that they are looking into developing VR in their game systems, however did not confirm whether the NX would be compatible or not.
However, Reggie Fils-Aime stated that Nintendo does not focus on specs with its systems, but rather on content, and that Nintendo will utilize VR once the tech is good enough for it.
My thoughts on this are that Nintendo will be adding VR compatibility to the system, and it will come out with its own VR hardware that addresses the problems it sees with VR, sometime down the line. I don’t expect it to be the initial innovation of the system, though.
Facts from Notable 3rd Party Developers and Publishers:
According to Ubisoft, the NX will “recapture a lot of the lapsed Wii players“, who are now predominantly on smart devices. Satoru Iwata has said that the NX will still be a system that will be able to play games in ways smartphones and tablets cannot, thus making an argument for dedicated games systems.
Many developers familiar with the NX, such as CD Projekt Red and others, have said it will be easier to develop for, and they are excited for it.
Gamestop confirmed that the NX will have physical media.
Hardware and OS rumors:
Now we move onto the plot that continues to thicken: the NX rumor mill. It seems every other day a new NX rumor pops up. Here we will cover the most important ones:
OS:
Rumored to be called “NintendOS”
Easy to port to; supports Android and Unreal Engine 4 software
Will work with smartphones, PCs, and other rival consoles
Architecturally similar to PS4 and Xbox One, and very modern
Hardware:
In the past year, we’ve heard plenty of different suggestions on what the NX hardware could be. Many have been speculated from patents Nintendo filed, and some rumors have come from trusted sources within the industry.
Console form factor:
There are conflicting rumors here. The current popular rumor suggests the NX will be a console/portable hybrid.
However, there is evidence suggesting the NX will instead be a separate console and a separate portable.
Additionally, there was a rumor that the NX would be console and portable, and the portable would come first.
However, another rumor states that the NX home console could come first.
Who knows? All three form factors could come to market eventually.
Controller:
The Eurogamer report also gives details on detachable controllers for the hybrid system.
It could also have a new form of haptic feedback, which was never integrated in Nintendo portables before.
Building upon the hybrid report, those detachable controllers would act as new, improved, Wii remotes, with much better vibration and haptic feedback (similar to HTC Vive), adjustable depending on the game, and not just one vibration intensity, as the Wii remote was. The system would support both these controllers and the Wii remotes for some games.
According to a later report by the same publication, the controller could feature a separated d-pad and a PS4-like share button.
Additionally, the controller could have clickable scroll wheels as triggers, and the screen covering the entire surface area of the controller, with analog sticks inside the screen, instead of alongside it.
According to Emily Rogers, the screen is currently 720p, 6.2 inches, and features multitouch.
According to Digitimes, the screen would be 5-7 inches.
The console could also include an optional screen controller.
Finally, it could include or support a standard controller as well.
The NX could feature moddable buttons and analog sticks with haptic feedback.
Earlier rumors have suggested the NX controller will feature a touch screen using virtual buttons.
According to this rumor (unverified), the NX controller:
-Doesn’t have an oval screen, but a standard rectangle.
-Has a headphone jack (bottom of controller), gyrometer, and accelerometer, but no camera.
-Has physical buttons with a screen behind them. It doesn’t have a form shifting screen, nor does it have a touchscreen with haptic feedback.
-Has scroll wheel shoulder buttons and two regular shoulder buttons labeled ZL and ZR
-Screen covers the entire face of the controller.
-Screen is capacitive, meaning multitouch, and not stylus-based
-Screen is 1080p
-Is sort of a game system in its own, but it’s not a replacement for the 3DS. It works like a companion app on a phone, and you can take it with you and control some things from your game, like how the VMU on the Dreamcast let you take a Chao with you and train it.
-Is about the size of the bottom half of a 3DS XL.
-Itself is about as powerful as a mid-tier smartphone.
-Has secondary controllers to play local multiplayer with. No screen or headphone jack on those.
Other features:
We can expect the NX to continue to support amiibo, given how popular and profitable this market is, and how many figures Nintendo has produced. Nintendo has filed patents involving NFC too, so there is some evidence behind this, as well.
Other new innovations:
–Improved AR and multiplayer features
–Innovative achievements system
–Connects to TV via HDMI dock to display content
–Ability to upgrade and share console power with Supplemental Computing Devices
–Stream games and save data through SCD
–Enhanced video camera features
–Ability to take portable console/hybrid on the go. Games would scale down from home version.
–Game streaming through handheld
–Very strong networking functions; cross-platform synchronization
Media:
The NX may get rid of the disc drive, and instead will use cartridges for all of its physical software offerings.
While it may seem odd, the move to cartridges would be a smart one. Not only would it be necessary to keep costs down and fit the portable device, but it would also provide data transfer speeds much faster than the now-bottlenecked software discs.
Specifications:
This is arguably the largest debate surrounding the NX.
Officially, all we know is that the NX will likely be scalable between hardware configurations.
The NX will be close to Xbox One in power
The NX will be more powerful than the PS4 and closer to the PS4 Neo
Will have industry-leading chips
The NX will use ARM architecture [This is very likely]
See:
Why Nintendo NX Will Support Unreal Engine and ARM Architecture
The NX will have x86 architecture
The NX will not have x86 architecture
The NX will use a Tegra X1 processor
The NX may use a Tegra X2 processor
Will use Polaris-like processor
Handheld powered by DMP/Xilinx technology
Sharp providing free-form display
Macronix developing game cards
The Games
First Party Support:
As always, Nintendo will support the NX with a stable of Nintendo games throughout its life cycle. This time, since the software will be unified across all NX devices, you can expect to see a strong launch lineup, more 1st party games than ever before, and no game droughts.
The 1st party software output will also be increased by utilizing Nintendo’s new software strategy, as well as smart device and game integration.
Third Party Support:
After the lackluster 3rd party support the Wii U received, Nintendo is striving to make the system attractive to third parties.
Big Third Party Publishers on NX:
100% Confirmed:
Ubisoft (Just Dance 2017, among others)
Unofficially confirmed:
In Consideration:
Electronic Arts (EA Sports a big demand)
Rumored:
Bandai Namco (Super Smash Bros., among others)
Activision (Skylanders, Call of Duty, and Destiny)
All NX Games
Officially Announced:
First Party-
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
New Shin’en Projects (Possibly Including F-Zero)
Third Party-
Sonic Project 2017 (working title) (Sega)
Bit Boy!! (tentative title) (Bplus Games)
Unofficially Announced:
Third Party-
Hinted At/In Consideration:
First Party-
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD
Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door HD
Third Party-
Dragon Quest Builders (Square Enix)
Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn (Square Enix)
Final Fantasy XV (Square Enix)
Project CARS (Slightly Mad; Bandai Namco)
Shadow of the Eternals (Quantum Entanglement Entertainment)
The Order OR Deformers (Ready at Dawn)
Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom (FDG Games)
Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap (Lizardcube)
World to the West (Rain Games)
Rumored:
First Party-
Animal Crossing NX (launch title) (Gamer Splash verified source)
Miitomo NX (Full Version, similar to Tomodachi Life) (Gamer Splash verified source)
Super Smash Bros. (highly likely)
Luigi’s Mansion 3 (Next Level Games)
Pokemon (Game Freak) (launch window)
Unannounced Mario Game (launch window)
Koei Tecmo games (Hyrule Warriors?)
Kid Icarus (reboot) (Retro Studios)
Splatoon (uncertain for release)
Super Mario Maker (uncertain for release)
Third Party-
Beyond Good and Evil: The Prejudices of Philosophers (working title) (Ubisoft)
Ubisoft VR Games (Star Trek VR, Rive, etc.)
Call of Duty: Bloodlines (Activision)
Spider Man: The First Avenger (Platinum Games; Activision)
Beyond Destiny + Destiny: Complete Edition (Bungie; Activision)
Final Fantasy VII Remake (Square Enix)
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided (Square Enix)
Battlefield 1 (Electronic Arts)
FIFA 2017 and other EA Sports titles
Mass Effect Trilogy (Electronic Arts)
Mass Effect Andromeda (Electronic Arts)
Kingdom Hearts 3 (Square Enix)
Conclusion
The NX will certainly be an interesting system. Never before has there been so much hype for any console in recent history, and it is testament to the excitement and hype that Nintendo is building around its latest console.
It is likely to be revealed in September, so we will eagerly wait until then until the final news breaks.
Until then, we will continue to update this article with any new information as it breaks.
Stay tuned to Gamer Splash on our social media!
Article written by Noah from Gamer Splash.
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