Nintendo

I fully agree with you there. The switch has time and time again proven to be more than capable. Monster Hunter Rise, Xenoblade 1-3 and Shin Megami Tensei V - just to name a few - pretty much have me satisfied. Sure, there are better looking games out there, but I don't care beyond what these games already deliver.

I have lived through amazing graphical breakthroughs in video games, but at least for me, they stopped happening at least 10 years ago. Like, they are there for sure if I were to compare screenshots. But, once I'm emerged in the actual game play, they are lost on me.

To be fair, it's not really a "potential" anymore. Nintnedo confirmed back in March that the successor would be announced "within the fiscal year." So it's completely realistic that speculation is happening, as such an announcement implies Nintendo is much further into development than most of us initially predicted.

Nintendo has been more about innovation in gameplay more than graphics pretty much since the turn of the century, and aside from the Wii U it's paid off for them pretty well, so why should they change that model? Further, this isn't like the Wii days in which they got only shovelware or severely butchered versions of 360/PS3 games from third parties: the main difference in many third party Switch games compared to their MS/Sony counterparts is mostly just running at 30 vs 60 FPS with no other major graphical or gameplay changes.

That said, Nintendo has been blessed to have mostly weak competition in the handheld console market up to now, so also hasn't felt much pressure from outside in the handheld world until recently. Their handhelds have had quite the long lifespans: the Game Boy lasted from the late 80s to the 2000s before the upgrade to the GBA, and even after the Switch released the 3DS was still seeing relatively strong support until the turn of this decade, putting that at around a nine-year life cycle. I mention this because the Switch for many is as much a handheld as a home console. Now the Steam Deck and similar handheld PCs are giving Nintendo their first strong handheld competition since the PSP (among dedicated gaming machines, I don't include smartphones). That handheld challenge may also be behind fans' push for a Switch 2 soon and/or featuring more graphical power than Nintendo may have originally been wanting. But even then, they are mostly best off moving at their own pace and not trying too hard to keep up with the competition. It's when they have tried to keep up that they hit their lowest numbers compared to MS/Sony, such as the GameCube and the Wii U. When they do their own thing and take the time to get it right is when they are at their best.

Nintendo is always good at supporting its systems past the end of the generation, especially portables. Based on past behavior, I expect that when the Switch 2 comes out, Nintendo is going to market the Switch as a cheap alternative for families who are uncomfortable with the new console price.

"Buy the Switch Lite, now with a lower MSRP, and start enjoying its vast library of great games. Once we release some great Switch 2 games and you are in a better financial position (or saved up), you can buy a Switch 2."

Tears of the Kingdom really made the switch show it's age. It would have been nice to play it without the framerate drops.

Guess I should have emulated it.

Just wanted to say that while I agree with the spirit of your comment, there are so many Nintendo first party titles that barely hit 30 fps, that a power bump would be nice.

I’m not expecting 4k 144 fps, but just hitting a consistent 30 (or call me crazy, 60) would make me very happy. Playing Xenoblade at sub 720p, or Tears of the Kingdom at less than 30, is just unacceptable imo.

I don’t even care about a Switch 2, just give me a Switch Pro or something, something that can play all the available games well.

It's weird that fanboys still desire the latest tech from Nintendo. They haven't given a damn since the GameCube.

And you know what, i still like my graphical fidelity, but thats what the PC is for. Nintendo consoles are for the great gameplay loops they always manage to develop into there games.

lol no

I'm just thrilled for another Mario & Luigi, I love RPGs, screw the platformers

Tbh once the Steam Deck released I haven’t picked mine up once. Barring grabbing keys and dumping games for emulation.

But tbf I don’t really prioritize Switch exclusives and more used my Switch just to play my favorite games, all of which are on Steam. If I only played Nintendo games it’d be a different story I’m sure.