Nintendo Announces ‘Switch’ To Standardize Gaming
On Thursday, gaming manufacturer Nentendo announced that it was time for a Switch...the Nintendo Switch. The Switch is the manufacturer's new console, designed to combine the traditional home console with the mobility of a handheld unit.
The Switch, which had previously been known as the Nintendo NX, is scheduled to launch in March and will provide entertainment at home to both single and multiple players, but will also allow players to take their games with them in a detachable, hand held unit. When at home the unit will rest in a docking station, which not only provides high definition connection to television, but also charges the handheld module. Both controllers can detach from the console for a variety of gaming option.
A long list of game developers have come on board to provide titles for the console, including Electronic Arts, Activision and 505 Games, with a full list of game titles to be announced in the near future. One of the games that was announced at the big unveiling Thursday was the latest in the Legend of Zelda series, Breath of the Wild. Nintendo consoles and handhelds generally feature exclusive characters like Sonic the Hedgehog, Pokemon and Mario Bros.
In recent years, Nintendo, who was one of the originators of the home gaming console, has lost a major chunk of its market share to Sony and Microsoft. Its most recent release, the Nintendo Wii U was considered a major disappointment, selling only about 13 million units. The company is hoping to return to the numbers of its most recent major success, the Wii, which was released in 2006. The console's innovative motion-sensing technology helped it to sell over 100 million units, making it the industry leader at the time.
While the company's handheld units have continued their popularity with the gaming comunity, it was recently was forced to cut its sales projects on the WiiU, which will cease production at the end of the year. Nintendo will continue to release games that are compatible with the console through the next few years.