Recently, Nintendo shocked the gaming world with an amazing console that you can pretty much play anywhere. The hybrid, first only known as NX, is the new Nintendo Switch. This is a modular device that can be used as a portable console or place on a dock for your living room or bedroom gaming. The long, three-minute trailer showed us plenty of what to expect out of the new console set to release next year. If you haven’t seen it, we highly suggest you YouTube it, and don’t forget to pick your jaw up off the floor.
This is what we know so far:
1. The Switch’s controller is called the Joy-Con. The company describes each as a small half-controller with an analogue stick and four face buttons on each. They can either be separated or slotted into the side of the main Switch body.
2. There’s actually an optional “Pro” controller that has been seen played by e-sports fans in the trailer. Conceptually, this optional controller is similar to that of the older Wii U Pro controller, which is basically a traditional gamepad for a not-so-traditional gaming console.
3. The Switch also uses DS-like GameCards. For those of you who are familiar with portable Nintendo games will be no strangers to those small cartridges that you can pop into the side of the tablet.
4. So far, 48 software companies have established their support for the new console. It’s very important that gaming studios are on board with such a new device. More collaborations mean more games adaptable for the new Switch. Companies like EA, Bethesda, Capcom, Activision and Ubisoft are among the developers ready to take on Switch.
5. From what we’ve seen, there seems to be only six games to begin with. There’s The Legend of Zelda, Mario Kart, a new Super Mario game, Splatoon and the open-world fantasy game The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim. There was also an unspecified NBA game.
6. Finally, we can all expect the new gaming console to be released in March of 2017. However, we have no idea of the price or the exact date in March. October is nearly over, which means we have exactly 5 months to figure out more about the new Switch.
