Rumors of a Nintendo Change 2 (or Change Professional) have been circulating for years. Whispers of the next-gen Nintendo console first began when The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom was initially teased in 2019, gained steam when the Change OLED launched in 2021, and are rising now that the usual Change has been out for six years.
There’s little doubt that the Nintendo Change is a unbelievable console — it has a novel and spectacular sport library (with extra upcoming video games slated for this 12 months), the variety of options included with Nintendo Change On-line is consistently bettering, and it’s nonetheless our favourite moveable console — nevertheless it isn’t with out its flaws. There’s sufficient room for enchancment to warrant a wholly new console within the close to future. Nintendo just lately introduced that we wouldn’t see a Change improve within the subsequent fiscal 12 months, that means absolutely the earliest we get a take a look at a brand new Nintendo console could be in late 2024.
Wanting on the Change’s life span and the present gaming panorama, right here’s what we expect the Nintendo Change 2 must convey to the desk to be a worthwhile improve and compete with different platforms.
Change 2 launch date hypothesis
Whereas the preliminary rumors pointed to a late 2024 launch for Nintendo’s subsequent console, new rumors have sprung up suggesting it has been pushed to the early a part of 2025. The strongest supply on this comes from Nikkei (translated through VGC), which states that the Change 2 has been internally delayed to keep away from {hardware} provide points and strengthen the quantity of video games it can have at launch.
Nintendo has additionally introduced that it’ll not be attending Gamescom 2024, which helps rumors that the launch date has been pushed to subsequent 12 months.
Change 2 rumors and information
Other than the discharge date, a couple of different credible rumors about this new system are floating round. Take every part right here with a grain of salt, after all, as a result of Nintendo has but to acknowledge {that a} new console is within the works. These can also contradict the options we wish, however since they’re nonetheless simply rumors, our wishlist can nonetheless be answered.
Display high quality
By way of tech, the largest disappointment is relating to a Bloomberg report stating the Change 2 will launch with an 8-inch LCD display screen quite than OLED. By way of energy, the Verge reported through the Microsoft-Activision acquisition that Activision executives have been knowledgeable in regards to the potential energy of a Change 2 and in contrast it to being much like the PS4 or Xbox One. Whereas Digital Foundry does say we all know that Nvidia’s T238 chipset will energy it, it isn’t clear if will probably be ready to make use of DLSS 2 to doubtlessly upscale graphics to 4K.
Backwards compatibility
Whereas all of us count on it, fortunately, backward compatibility does appear to be within the plans. Throughout one in every of Nintendo’s personal monetary calls, it said that “Nintendo Change can be getting into its eighth 12 months in March 2024. We’ll proceed to launch new titles and content material for Nintendo Change with out being certain by the standard idea of the platform lifecycle.” That is backed up additional through Universonintendo rumors claiming it can have backward compatibility for bodily and digital titles but in addition enable builders to improve their Change video games to reap the benefits of the brand new {hardware}.
Pleasure-Con enhancements (and issues)
In keeping with experiences from Spanish online game web site Vandal, Pleasure-Cons for the Change 2 will join magnetically as a substitute of utilizing a plastic rail system. Whereas that is nice information for anybody who has ever struggled to take away a Pleasure-Con from their Change (it may be surprisingly troublesome), it’s unclear if previous Pleasure-Cons can be appropriate with the Change 2 with this swap. The present Nintendo Change Professional Controller will reportedly work with Change 2.
Vandel discovered this info by means of sources at peripherals producers.
Options we wish in a Change 2
4K decision and quicker processing
Whereas the Change certainly wasn’t constructed to compete with the Xbox Collection X or PS5 by way of uncooked horsepower, it might probably really feel woefully underpowered working even Change exclusives, not to mention multi-platform titles. Trailers for upcoming Nintendo titles are sometimes met with “that appears nice … for the Change,” and new launches don’t all the time run as easily as followers hoped. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet have been unusually buggy at launch, Sonic Frontiers couldn’t hit excessive body charges on Change, and video games like Hogwarts Legacy and The Lord of the Rings: Gollum are coming to the Change properly after preliminary launch dates as these ports require additional work to suit them on the system. Whereas the upcoming Legend of Zelda installment seems nice, we will’t assist however dream about how properly it’d run on one other console or PC.
Nintendo has actually carved out its personal piece of the gaming marketplace for gamers who don’t want improved graphics or processing energy (do we actually want high-res Kirby or Pikachu?), however the Change’s limitations actually maintain it again, and that subject is barely going to worsen transferring ahead.
The present Change can hit 720p to 1080p decision and has a 60fps body price restrict. We’d like to expertise full 4K gaming on the Change 2 and bump up that body price potential (so it might probably, on the very least, constantly hit 60fps). We aren’t going to get into the ins and outs of processing energy and most well-liked chipsets right here, however we undoubtedly want extra energy from Nintendo going ahead.
Make the OLED display screen the brand new commonplace
The Nintendo Change has all the time been stuffed with vivid, colourful gaming experiences in comparison with different consoles that concentrate on mature titles that are likely to pattern darker (visually and content-wise), and its successor will want a display screen to replicate that content material. When the Change OLED mannequin launched in 2021, the usual Change’s LCD display screen instantly regarded washed out by comparability. OLED screens are steps forward of their counterparts, boasting improved black ranges, brightness ranges, and colour accuracy whereas utilizing much less energy total.
We’d be actually disillusioned if Nintendo walked again on such an awesome replace and didn’t standardize the OLED display screen on its subsequent console, on the very least.
Extra built-in storage
Any longtime Change house owners have run into storage points and have been pressured to archive sport knowledge to make room for brand new video games repeatedly. The usual Change and Change Lite include 32 GB of inner storage, whereas the Change OLED mannequin bumps up storage to 64 GB. With new video games turning into extra demanding and needing more room with every passing 12 months, the concept of becoming greater than a handful of premium titles inside 64 GB is laughable. And even a few of that restricted storage is reserved to be used by the system!
Change customers can simply broaden the storage on any of those consoles by buying a big microSDHC or microSDXC card as much as 2TB, however these are offered individually and might value as a lot as a brand new sport in case you go together with a big one. This a bizarre value to go off to gamers when it’s going to be 100% obligatory to take care of an honest digital library of video games.
Nintendo ought to make the swap over to an inner solid-state drive when the Change 2 comes out. An SSD would enable for higher inner storage and drastically improved load instances in comparison with the Change’s commonplace flash reminiscence or exterior SD card knowledge switch instances. Present video games would carry out higher and quicker, whereas builders would have much more to work with when creating new video games. It’s a win for everybody.
Improved Pleasure-Cons
Everybody loves the power to maneuver the Change backwards and forwards between docked and handheld modes. What’s higher than doling out Pleasure-Cons to all your pals for a sport of Mario Occasion Superstars or Mario Kart 8? The simplicity of the Change’s controller design works — we’re not asking for something advanced — however their high quality simply isn’t as much as business commonplace. Pleasure-Cons really feel low-cost for a way a lot they value, aren’t probably the most ergonomic form for comfy lengthy gaming periods, and can inevitably endure from drift points. That is when a Pleasure-Con thumbstick will transfer and not using a participant touching it, inflicting apparent gameplay issues.
Pleasure-Con drift is the massive subject right here as a result of it has existed because the console’s launch and Nintendo actually hasn’t finished something about it with newer fashions. The corporate has been repairing out-of-warranty Pleasure-Cons since 2019, however the course of isn’t precisely clean, and Change house owners shouldn’t need to ship their very primary controllers off for issues with the design.
Shade customization choices
Nintendo has launched some spectacular particular version Change fashions for video games like Splatoon 3, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, however there aren’t a complete lot of customization choices exterior of shopping for a wholly new console or a separate set of Pleasure-Cons that you just may not want. There are a number of colour schemes accessible for the Change Lite and some completely different colour first-party Pleasure-Con colours, however exterior of that, there are quite a lot of third-party equipment that may not meet Nintendo requirements.
Clearly, there must be a colour scheme for the bottom mannequin, however wouldn’t it’s cool in case you may order a Change 2 on-line and decide your individual types for the console, dock, and Pleasure-Cons? That stage of personalization may make a Change successor really feel a bit extra particular, giving gamers a great motive to improve. It’d be nice to see that power prolonged to its UI as properly, bringing again the Nintendo 3DS’ themes and including new methods to customise the present Change’s barebones menu display screen.
And please, Nintendo, convey again translucent controllers.
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