10 Crucial Things The Nintendo Switch Must Do In Year One
Or, "How to do the complete opposite of what happened with the Wii U".
Numbers don't lie in the gaming industry. Granted, they sometimes lead companies into making strange decisions in the quest for profit, but in the case of Wii versus Wii U, sales numbers certainly don't lie.
With the Wii selling upwards of 101 million consoles versus the Wii U's paltry 13.30 million (yes, really), the newly-revealed Nintendo Switch is already working hard to win the trust of loyal Nintendo fans and the general public.
The October 21 announcement video was intriguing, and definitely has a large number of internet journalists, bloggers, commentators and YouTubers welcoming what Nintendo are offering. That said, there are still concerns about the specifics - something Nintendo often famously avoid giving.
We know no pricing details, nothing of online functionality, zilch about any Virtual Console offerings, nor whether the titles showing during the video (including Splatoon and Mario Kart) are Switch conversions of Wii U titles or new entries in each series.
So many hardware features of the Nintendo Switch are yet to be revealed, and second-guessing what Nintendo are planning is not straightforward - although that doesn't stop the pure joy of speculating in the first place. Here's my guide to 10 essential things Nintendo's new Switch must do in year one, in order to succeed.
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10. Expand The Range Of Paid And Free DLC
The Wii U finally allowed Nintendo to prove themselves when it came to providing DLC, mainly because the system's internal storage allowed gamers to download additional content such as characters and stages in Super Smash Bros., or tracks, karts and racers in Mario Kart 8.
There have also been some great crossovers, such as Link joining the karting circuit for the first time in Mario Kart 8, racing around a Hyrule-based track.
With Nintendo Switch, we need to know what storage space there is internally. We also need to know whether SD card storage is an option, especially for the portable part of the unit.
The 2DS and 3DS have made great use of SD storage, but if that hardware feature is a given, then the possibilities for DLC from Nintendo must also expand.
Nintendo's DLC policy at present is to give a little, but offer great value for money. There's no doubt that thousands of customers will spend a few notes on extra dungeons in Zelda, new worlds or challenge levels in Mario. Nintendo simply need to take this crossover idea further, and unite their various brands together alongside (hopefully) a strong third-party offering.