Nintendo unveils its NX as the Switch modular console

October 20, 2016 | 18:49

Tags: #console #console-gaming #legend-of-zelda #mario-kart #nintendo-nx #nintendo-switch #skyrim #splatoon #teaser #tegra

Companies: #arm #nintendo #nvidia

Nintendo has finally offered an official glimpse at the Switch, its next generation console originally leaked around 18 months ago as the Nintendo NX amid a barrage of rumours.

While Nintendo's Switch is now official, the company is still playing its cards close to its chest. Rather than a formal announcement complete with handy-dandy press release, specifications sheet, and plenty of photography, the company has instead opted to publish little more than a three-minute teaser trailer - not exactly the reveal for which fans have been waiting around 18 months.

Despite this, there's some information to be gleaned from the promotional video: the Switch is, as earlier rumours had suggested, a hybrid device which can operate as a portable or TV-tethered console. The Switch also goes back to the use of cartridges, something Nintendo has long retained for its handheld devices but abandoned on the mainstream console front with the launch of the GD-ROM-based Gamecube. Exactly what hardware can be found inside the Switch, though, is still a Nintendo secret, but it has confirmed that a customised Nvidia Tegra chip - the same system-on-chip processor powering the Shield consoles - sits at its heart.

We also know that the Switch is a bold move for Nintendo: the device uses a modular format in which users can slide controllers on and off a central hub unit or the console's main display system. These controllers work wirelessly, and can be used while docked or waved around Wiimote-style, and the company is sure to offer additional game-specific add-on hardware for what it is calling the Joy-Con controller.

The teaser trailer also shows off wireless multiplayer gaming, with four players taking part in a race on two Switches, and demos games including The Legend of Zelda, Super Mario Bros., Mario Kart, Splatoon, and - interestingly - Skyrim. What Nintendo hasn't yet announced is pricing, but it has confirmed the device will launch in March 2017.

The teaser trailer is reproduced below.


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