In a Q&A session following Nintendo’s quarterly financial report earlier this week, company president Shuntaro Furukawa addressed the challenges of transitioning between generational platforms, stating that Nintendo will continue to offer “unique propositions” to stand out from the crowd (thanks, VGC).
When asked what risks the company is mindful of as it looks to the future and builds on the success of the Switch (which, let’s not forget, has been really rather successful), Furukawa noted that the company has dealt with the challenges of generational platform transitions before and it never takes anything for granted as a consequence.
The following statement was translated for VGC by Robert Sephazon. Do bear in mind that some of the wording may vary from Nintendo’s official translation which is expected soon.
We approach our business every day with a profound sense of urgency. The generational transition of platforms in the dedicated gaming console business is never easy. We have experienced significant challenges following successful platforms multiple times, so we never consider our current situation to be totally secure.
Of course, Furukawa isn’t wrong. The Switch has been a huge hit for Nintendo selling over 139 million units since its launch in 2017. Still, times were a lot more challenging in the years prior when the company moved from the smash-hit of the Wii (101.63 million sales) to the comparatively miniscule sales of the Wii U (13.56 million).
But this isn’t to say that Nintendo isn’t willing to tackle these challenges head-on. With the entertainment landscape as crowded as we find it today, Furukawa insisted that the company will continue to offer “unique propositions” to keep the consumer onside:
Our business is always exposed to great competition. From a broader entertainment perspective, not only video games but also various forms of leisure are competitors in this industry. In this environment, there’s an increasing need, more than ever before, to continue offering unique propositions to become a brand that customers choose.
Just what these propositions will be, we’ll have to wait and see.
All signs point towards new Nintendo hardware at some point in 2024 following the Switch successor allegedly being showcased to select developers at last year’s Gamescom. Rumours have since come thick and fast, with claims that the console will be capable of running games like Breath of the Wild at 4K 60fps or that it will come with an eight-inch LCD screen.
While Furukawa didn’t mention anything specifically about the company’s follow-up hardware (surprise, surprise), he did once again warn people not to believe everything that they read on the internet in the following statement. The following quote comes via Google Translate, so, again, the specific wording will likely differ from Nintendo’s official translation:
Regarding new hardware, we are constantly researching and developing new hardware and software, but there is nothing more we can tell you. Additionally, as I have previously mentioned, there have recently been articles and speculations published on the internet that appear to be information published by the company. However, information that has not been officially announced by the company may mislead customers and investors. We would like you to read the information we send out on our official website and social media and make an appropriate decision.
In short: yes, Nintendo is looking into what’s next (as ever), but it’s not ready to reveal anything official just yet, so keep taking those rumours with a pinch of salt.